Seven common mistakes to avoid when making edibles
Recently, people have been finding ways to incorporate cannabis into their lives, and one of them is through edibles. This is a common way of consuming weed for people who do not like smoking it.
However, cooking edibles comes with its own challenges. Because it takes time before learning how to measure the right dosages, it can be frustrating when you end up with an edible tasting badly and wasted weed.
It’s also important to ensure that you use a reliable service to source your marijuana, you can even get it delivered to save you time with the baking process using sites such as HeyEmjay.com so you’re sure you get the right product you ordered online. Using the right cannabis products to start with will greatly improve the quality of your baked goods so you can better enjoy them.
While sometimes unexpected factors can cause you to end up with bad edibles, there are mistakes you can avoid to prevent that. Here are seven common mistakes to watch out for when preparing weed.
1) Not decarboxylating
Never use cannabis in its raw form. Before you add cannabis to your recipe, first decarboxylate it. This is a process where you heat it to activate the cannabinoids so that you feel the effects. If you add raw cannabis to your edibles, it will taste horrible, and you will not get the effect you are looking for.
Fortunately, the process is easy. Preheat your oven to around 110-120 degrees Celsius, then spread the ground cannabis evenly on a baking tray and heat it for an hour. Every 15 minutes, stir the buds to prevent them from burning. If you are making cannabutter, go at lower temperatures and a slow cooker.
2) Adding too much or too little cannabis-infused oil
When you are buying edibles from a shop, sometimes it can be a gamble as you do not know the potency of cannabinoids that have been used in that food. When you are preparing an edible at home, you are in charge of deciding how much infused oil to use based on its potency.
If you are unsure, do a test first. Add half or a quarter teaspoon of your oil to a drink or food, then give it an hour and see how you feel. That will give you an idea of the appropriate dose to use. Using too much oil will not give you the effect you are not looking for, and too little does nothing.
3) Cooking in extreme heats
Cannabis needs to be cooked with care. For best results, a lower temperature is recommended. When temperatures are too high, exceeding 200 degrees Celsius, the THC starts breaking down, leaving you with burnt brownies or cake. Cooking at lower temperatures can prevent such mishaps.
If you are using cannabis-infused oil or butter, be careful of the temperature. Also, avoid using the cannabis oil for frying or sautéing. When baking, ensure the cannabis concentrate is in the batter and cook at a temperature of 190 degrees Celsius or lower to prevent the food from getting too hot.
4) Over grinding your cannabis to a powder
A majority of people end up making edibles with a strong grassy flavor because of grinding the cannabis buds too much. When you pulverize the cannabis to a fine powder using a coffee grinder or food processor, you will get that strong grassy flavor in your edibles.
To avoid this, avoid grinding it too much. Use a hand grinder as it will help you get that coarse consistency. Ideally, you should end up with a consistency resembling coarse salt. It will give you a better tasting experience. A good cannabis strain to go with is Sativa, as it produces a soothing aroma with some earthly flavors that can help you relax.
5) Not stirring well while cooking
Have you ever prepared a batch of edible brownies, and after eating a couple of pieces, you do not feel anything? On the other hand, your friend only had one piece, and it was as high as a kite. This often happens when you do not stir the batter well, leading to uneven distribution of potency. To avoid this mistake, stir your batter thoroughly. It will ensure that all the cannabinoids are distributed evenly across your edibles, leading to a good experience.
6) Using too much cannabis
Some people use about half an ounce of cannabis to make a cup of infused butter, thinking that is the amount required. A good ratio is 1:1. That is one cup of ground cannabis to one cup of oil. A cup of ground cannabis is about 7 grams. When visiting a Florida dispensary to buy your cannabis, you can ask the budtender to direct you on the right amount to use. Using too much only leads to wastage.
7) Improperly straining the oil
After infusing your oil with cannabis, you will have to strain it to remove plant material. Cheesecloth is an ideal filter as it easily allows you to separate the oil from the ground plant material. While straining, allow gravity to take its course. As much as you want to squeeze the cheesecloth yourself to get as much oil out of it, doing so allows some plant matter to pass as well.
Preparing edibles is taxing, so it would make sense if you want to skip some steps. However, your edibles are only as good as your patience and following the recipe. If you want to have a great experience, follow all the steps necessary and use the right dosages.
