7 Mistakes To Avoid When Cooking With Cannabis
Tips For Making Edibles
With so many folks still spending the summer at home due to the COVID-19 pandemic, DIY culture has taken over our lives. Many of us have turned to building, crafting, or cooking – and for some of us, that includes making edibles.
If you’re new to making edibles, you’ll want to avoid making these seven mistakes, according to Leafly’s Bailey Rahn.
Mistake #1: Overcompensating With Flower
“I hear plenty of tragic tales of people throwing a half ounce of cannabis into a slow cooker thinking that’s how much cannabis it takes to make a cup of infused butter,” Rahn writes.
You’ll want to measure your ingredients properly to make a well-balanced edible. Keep this ratio in mind: 1 cup of oil goes with 1 cup of ground cannabis.
If you’re serious about ballin’ on a budget, we suggest infusing your oil with cannabis stems, trim, or with pre-vaporized cannabis flower
READ MORE: Cooking with CBD – Recipes You Can Tweak to Add CBD Oil
Mistake #2: Throwing Ground Cannabis Into The Slow-Cooker Right Away
Before you cook with cannabis, you need to take care of one crucial step: decarboxylating the cannabis. There are many ways to do this, but the easiest method is to heat up your cannabis in the oven on some parchment paper and a baking tray.
By doing this, your cannabinoids will taste better and will be fully activated.
Mistake #3: Heating And Decarbing Incorrectly
As with many baking processes, you can overheat or underheat your cannabis. Here are some good general rules, Rahn says:
- Heat the oven to 245 degrees Farenheit.
- Cook for 30 to 40 minutes.
- Mix the buds every 10 minutes.
Mistake #4: Making Your Cannabis Powder Too Fine
If you grind your cannabis too thin, you might end up with a strong, grassy flavour that leaves a nasty taste in your mouth. We don’t recommend using a food processor or coffee grinder, as that will add chlorophyll and make everything yucky.
Instead, try using a hand grinder, and grind coarsely.
Mistake #5: Straining The Oil Improperly
How do you strain your oil properly? Use a cheesecloth.
“It allows oil to pass through while separating it from the ground plant material, but only if you let gravity do the straining for you,” Rahn explains.
Just make sure you don’t squeeze it too much, or you’ll lose out on some of the plant material you’d want to leave in.
READ MORE: Different Types of Edibles
Mistake #6: Using The Wrong Amount Of Oil.
Using too little oil would result in weak edibles. And we all know what’ll happen if you use too much. Yikes.
Before adding oil to your dish, run a “strand test” – or, see for yourself how much oil is necessary. Take a pinch of oil as a dose to see how you feel after an hour or so. As you continue to sharpen your edible-making skills, you’ll develop a muscle memory for how much oil to use.
Mistake #7: Creating An Uneven Batch
One of the most important steps is to stir the batter, or mixture, of your creation. Otherwise, you’ll end up with some brownies that don’t work, and others that send you higher than Mt. Everest after one bite.
And don’t forget – many simple cooking skills can be transferred to edible-making. Good luck!
