How can you make super inexpensive edibles?
March 7, 2021 5:17 AM Subscribe
I’m looking into alternate methods of having weed. Edibles seems to be the safest and the one that would be most pleasant to take into my body. But I’m afraid about price. I have this picture in my head that edibles are super expensive. Am I wrong? How can you make super inexpensive edibles?
First off, I’m in Texas, so no I can’t go to the local dispensary. I am interested in edibles because I’m often not looking forward to smoking out of my pipe, because I always cough and sometimes even vomit. And the aftertaste is awful. It’s not plesent.
But I’m afraid about price. I have this picture in my head that edibles are super expensive.
I buy about a quarter of an ounce every month and a half. It costs about $60-$65. I can’t afford to buy more of a quantity or more often. I smoke a fair bit every Friday evening, Saturday, and sometimes Sunday - every weekend.
Because I picture weed as super valuable (it’s not at all as easy to get as beer) I often drink a lot of beer to make the weed go longer.
But I want to start drinking less, for my health and weight.
One alternative is to smoke more and drink less. You see, when I drink I like to get drunk... I like to be in an altered state. I know that weed could offer the same-but-different feeling, but I do it so sparingly because I hate the violent coughing, the sometimes-puke response, the smell, and the aftertaste of smoking weed out of my pipe.
So I’m looking into alternate methods of having weed. Edibles seems to be the safest and the one that would be most pleasant to take into my body.
But every recipe I seem to find seems to call for at least an 8th of weed. I image that the brownies or cookies I make would only last a weekend or two, if I started relying on weed more than alcohol. And as my current 4th lasts me a month and a half, it just seems like I’d run out of weed way faster.
Am I right about this, or am I overlooking something? How can you make super inexpensive edibles?
First off, I’m in Texas, so no I can’t go to the local dispensary. I am interested in edibles because I’m often not looking forward to smoking out of my pipe, because I always cough and sometimes even vomit. And the aftertaste is awful. It’s not plesent.
But I’m afraid about price. I have this picture in my head that edibles are super expensive.
I buy about a quarter of an ounce every month and a half. It costs about $60-$65. I can’t afford to buy more of a quantity or more often. I smoke a fair bit every Friday evening, Saturday, and sometimes Sunday - every weekend.
Because I picture weed as super valuable (it’s not at all as easy to get as beer) I often drink a lot of beer to make the weed go longer.
But I want to start drinking less, for my health and weight.
One alternative is to smoke more and drink less. You see, when I drink I like to get drunk... I like to be in an altered state. I know that weed could offer the same-but-different feeling, but I do it so sparingly because I hate the violent coughing, the sometimes-puke response, the smell, and the aftertaste of smoking weed out of my pipe.
So I’m looking into alternate methods of having weed. Edibles seems to be the safest and the one that would be most pleasant to take into my body.
But every recipe I seem to find seems to call for at least an 8th of weed. I image that the brownies or cookies I make would only last a weekend or two, if I started relying on weed more than alcohol. And as my current 4th lasts me a month and a half, it just seems like I’d run out of weed way faster.
Am I right about this, or am I overlooking something? How can you make super inexpensive edibles?
Chocolate! Making chocolate edibles is pretty inexpensive, and you can store those suckers in your fridge or your freezer for a pretty long time.
I have to ask: do you have access to getting already made oil? If not, you will want to decarb your weed then infuse it with coconut oil or grapeseed or even vegetable or canola oil. Decarbing is a PITA but if you want to activate the THC, you will need to do this. There are a lot of great resources about decarbing and making your own. Here are some I like:
Wake + Bake
The Loud Bowl
Laurie + Mary Jane
The trick of making your own edibles is being able to precisely dose them, so there's a lot of trial and error in terms of finding out what your sweet spot is in terms of getting the feeling you want. (Mine is around 10 mg, any more and I green out and it's not fun.)
posted by Kitteh at 5:37 AM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
I have to ask: do you have access to getting already made oil? If not, you will want to decarb your weed then infuse it with coconut oil or grapeseed or even vegetable or canola oil. Decarbing is a PITA but if you want to activate the THC, you will need to do this. There are a lot of great resources about decarbing and making your own. Here are some I like:
Wake + Bake
The Loud Bowl
Laurie + Mary Jane
The trick of making your own edibles is being able to precisely dose them, so there's a lot of trial and error in terms of finding out what your sweet spot is in terms of getting the feeling you want. (Mine is around 10 mg, any more and I green out and it's not fun.)
posted by Kitteh at 5:37 AM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
am I overlooking something?
Yes. You're overlooking the fact that cannabis is a super easy plant to grow indoors, and that the existence of LED grow lights mean that doing so doesn't even need a ton of electricity the way it used to.
Running a tiny hydroponic grow op for your own use in your own home should both cost way less and pose less of a security risk than buying regularly from a dealer, if you're at all careful about it. Growing one healthy plant per year will easily get you your quarter ounce per month, and the tips you pinch out to make it grow bushy are plenty to get you started with learning to make and enjoy your own edibles.
posted by flabdablet at 5:37 AM on March 7, 2021 [13 favorites]
Yes. You're overlooking the fact that cannabis is a super easy plant to grow indoors, and that the existence of LED grow lights mean that doing so doesn't even need a ton of electricity the way it used to.
Running a tiny hydroponic grow op for your own use in your own home should both cost way less and pose less of a security risk than buying regularly from a dealer, if you're at all careful about it. Growing one healthy plant per year will easily get you your quarter ounce per month, and the tips you pinch out to make it grow bushy are plenty to get you started with learning to make and enjoy your own edibles.
posted by flabdablet at 5:37 AM on March 7, 2021 [13 favorites]
You should probably buy some edibles first to see if you like them. The experience is quite different. It can take quite some time to take effect, there is little margin for error with respect to dosing, and the effect can last a very long time (through to and including the next morning is not unusual).
As to the difference between commercial or homemade, the main benefit to buying commercial product (most edibles these days were produced for legal sale) is knowing exactly what dose you are taking down to the precise milligrams of THC. Anything you make on your own will be much more of a crapshoot due to the variability in the initial strength of the active ingredient as well as your method of production. This can make it pretty easy to under- or overshoot on your dose, both of which can be a pretty serious bummer. There is also the issue of homemade edibles usually tasting like balls.
Per mg of THC, I’m sure commercial edibles are more expensive. What you’re paying for is (a) having someone else do all the hard work; (b) a product that doesn’t taste terrible; (c) knowing the exact dose you are taking; and (d) if you stick to the same general kind (e.g., gummies, chocolate, whatever), knowing how long it’s likely to be until it takes effect and how long it’s likely to last.
posted by slkinsey at 5:46 AM on March 7, 2021 [8 favorites]
As to the difference between commercial or homemade, the main benefit to buying commercial product (most edibles these days were produced for legal sale) is knowing exactly what dose you are taking down to the precise milligrams of THC. Anything you make on your own will be much more of a crapshoot due to the variability in the initial strength of the active ingredient as well as your method of production. This can make it pretty easy to under- or overshoot on your dose, both of which can be a pretty serious bummer. There is also the issue of homemade edibles usually tasting like balls.
Per mg of THC, I’m sure commercial edibles are more expensive. What you’re paying for is (a) having someone else do all the hard work; (b) a product that doesn’t taste terrible; (c) knowing the exact dose you are taking; and (d) if you stick to the same general kind (e.g., gummies, chocolate, whatever), knowing how long it’s likely to be until it takes effect and how long it’s likely to last.
posted by slkinsey at 5:46 AM on March 7, 2021 [8 favorites]
I've known college students who made edibles with weed cooked in a pan with butter, then used the butter used to make box mix brownies, so this really doesn't have to be an expensive endeavour. I've also made the kind where you decarboxylate the weed first by baking it in the oven, then infuse it into coconut oil, then bake normal baked goods with the oil (or use it in other ways, e.g. I've melted the oil into pineapples blended with coconut milk to make a big green smoothie, which I find goes down a little easier than solids for me sometimes).
Another option (either to avoid smoking or as part of making edibles) might be to vape rather than smoke the weed. Already-vaped bud can still be used to make edibles, and with no need to decarboxylate first. The main risk is that you may find you enjoy vaping more than eating - it's a very different inhalation experience compared to smoking, much less harsh on the lungs & throat. Personally I don't like the way it hits when I eat it, and vaping has been by far my preferred ingestion method since I first tried it. There are a ton of herb vaporisers available at various price points.
posted by terretu at 5:49 AM on March 7, 2021 [8 favorites]
Another option (either to avoid smoking or as part of making edibles) might be to vape rather than smoke the weed. Already-vaped bud can still be used to make edibles, and with no need to decarboxylate first. The main risk is that you may find you enjoy vaping more than eating - it's a very different inhalation experience compared to smoking, much less harsh on the lungs & throat. Personally I don't like the way it hits when I eat it, and vaping has been by far my preferred ingestion method since I first tried it. There are a ton of herb vaporisers available at various price points.
posted by terretu at 5:49 AM on March 7, 2021 [8 favorites]
It’ll never be as efficient in absorption as smoking or vaporizing, but you can do better than the space brownies of old. The key is to decarboxylate the weed first. This means basically toasting it. The cooking process does this but not well.
You may also want to try making a tincture, which seems to be more bang for the buck. You can mix it into drinks or recipes and it’s pretty easy to do.
posted by condour75 at 5:50 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
You may also want to try making a tincture, which seems to be more bang for the buck. You can mix it into drinks or recipes and it’s pretty easy to do.
posted by condour75 at 5:50 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
You can use stems to make edibles. If you have friends who smoke, ask them to save their stems for you!
posted by RobinofFrocksley at 6:04 AM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by RobinofFrocksley at 6:04 AM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
you can do better than the space brownies of old
Clear to me that you've never had access to the good space brownies of old.
Making your own edibles from plants you've grown yourself adds whole layers of joy to a pursuit that's fun to begin with.
And yes to toasting your edibles-destined bud in a herb vaporiser. It doesn't take much. Bud you've grown yourself, handled carefully while drying, and stored loosely packed in screwtop jars in the freezer will in general be far less damaged and therefore much more potent than anything a dealer can sell you.
Homegrown bud also smokes better in a pipe, basically because you need to burn down less vegetable matter per dose and because, unlike any time-sensitive commercial grower, you will have bothered to take the extra two weeks to starve the plants of nutrient once they're properly flowering so that they don't end up loaded with nitrate and phosphate after you dry them.
Oh, and if your present practice is to make up a mull with a mix of weed and cigarette tobacco, stop doing that. Tobacco adds completely unnecessary head-spin, nausea and horrible tarry stench to perfectly good weed smoke. Take the same amount of weed you would have mixed into a tobacco mull and smoke it unadulterated in a much smaller pipe. Small cones with plenty of cooling side air still get the job done; there is absolutely no need for the heroic pull and the wracking cough.
posted by flabdablet at 6:06 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
Clear to me that you've never had access to the good space brownies of old.
Making your own edibles from plants you've grown yourself adds whole layers of joy to a pursuit that's fun to begin with.
And yes to toasting your edibles-destined bud in a herb vaporiser. It doesn't take much. Bud you've grown yourself, handled carefully while drying, and stored loosely packed in screwtop jars in the freezer will in general be far less damaged and therefore much more potent than anything a dealer can sell you.
Homegrown bud also smokes better in a pipe, basically because you need to burn down less vegetable matter per dose and because, unlike any time-sensitive commercial grower, you will have bothered to take the extra two weeks to starve the plants of nutrient once they're properly flowering so that they don't end up loaded with nitrate and phosphate after you dry them.
Oh, and if your present practice is to make up a mull with a mix of weed and cigarette tobacco, stop doing that. Tobacco adds completely unnecessary head-spin, nausea and horrible tarry stench to perfectly good weed smoke. Take the same amount of weed you would have mixed into a tobacco mull and smoke it unadulterated in a much smaller pipe. Small cones with plenty of cooling side air still get the job done; there is absolutely no need for the heroic pull and the wracking cough.
posted by flabdablet at 6:06 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: flabdablet: don’t worry I don’t accociate myself with nicotine or tobacco.
slkinsey: That sounds really nice, but I live in Texas and my state hasn’t gotten it’s shit together. I can’t buy edibles commercially because marijuana is illegal here.
posted by ggp88 at 6:26 AM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
slkinsey: That sounds really nice, but I live in Texas and my state hasn’t gotten it’s shit together. I can’t buy edibles commercially because marijuana is illegal here.
posted by ggp88 at 6:26 AM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: If I’m being honest, I’m an alcoholic. And I don't want to be anymore. I want to lessen of maybe even substitute alcohol with something more healthy but which also achieves a similar result. I want to improve my health and more immediately, my weight.
Also, I’ve heard of CBD as a solution to alcohol... I haven’t read much into it... I’ve tried CBD before and I felt absolutely nothing. I tried the oil couple of drops under my tongue method. Nothing.
I know that CBD doesn’t make you high like weed. I guess I don’t know what to expect to feel. All I do know is that I felt absolutely nothing.
But I’m so hesitant to hit the pipe often because it makes me cough so much that sometimes I puke.
posted by ggp88 at 6:39 AM on March 7, 2021
Also, I’ve heard of CBD as a solution to alcohol... I haven’t read much into it... I’ve tried CBD before and I felt absolutely nothing. I tried the oil couple of drops under my tongue method. Nothing.
I know that CBD doesn’t make you high like weed. I guess I don’t know what to expect to feel. All I do know is that I felt absolutely nothing.
But I’m so hesitant to hit the pipe often because it makes me cough so much that sometimes I puke.
posted by ggp88 at 6:39 AM on March 7, 2021
Some of that might be down to technique. Do you normally stop a pull at about the lungs half full point, then rapidly top yourself up with fresh air, preferably sucked in hard through mostly closed lips? That really helps because it leaves your throat full of nothing but cooled air while the smoke has its wicked way with you deeper in.
posted by flabdablet at 6:49 AM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
posted by flabdablet at 6:49 AM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
Response by poster: flabdablet: I don’t know. I just kinda do it automatically without thinking of how I do it. I’ll try to consciously try it the way you just described it the next time I toke up.
posted by ggp88 at 6:57 AM on March 7, 2021
posted by ggp88 at 6:57 AM on March 7, 2021
Have you tried a water pipe? The filter helps.
Try to mix some air in when you hit so it's not pure smoke.
The effect of edibles is more subtle but lasts longer. I smoke less after eating one, but I like to have both.
Easiest way to make your own is a slow cooker. Two grams of good weed broken up into 4 oz of oil in a canning jar. Put on the cap, put in cooker filled halfway with water. Set on high for six hours then strain weed from the oil. That does the decarb at the same time and you can't burn it.
posted by InfidelZombie at 7:04 AM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
Try to mix some air in when you hit so it's not pure smoke.
The effect of edibles is more subtle but lasts longer. I smoke less after eating one, but I like to have both.
Easiest way to make your own is a slow cooker. Two grams of good weed broken up into 4 oz of oil in a canning jar. Put on the cap, put in cooker filled halfway with water. Set on high for six hours then strain weed from the oil. That does the decarb at the same time and you can't burn it.
posted by InfidelZombie at 7:04 AM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
a) if you want to try commercial edibles to get the lay of the land, take a long weekend in colorado.
b) if you have a friend who is a grower, see if you can get trimmings after harvest (stems & leaves). they don't have much commercial/smoking value, but in quantity can be great for the home edible cook.
posted by j_curiouser at 7:11 AM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
b) if you have a friend who is a grower, see if you can get trimmings after harvest (stems & leaves). they don't have much commercial/smoking value, but in quantity can be great for the home edible cook.
posted by j_curiouser at 7:11 AM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
I would be surprised if your current weed hookup can't either sell you edibles made for legal sale elsewhere or direct you to someone who can. Same for legal vape cartridges. Those I think are the absolute best value (aside from home growing) in terms of dollars per effect.
posted by SaltySalticid at 7:19 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by SaltySalticid at 7:19 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
I switched to a vaporizer because I couldn't handle the combustion anymore. It's definitely easier on the lungs but good vaporizers can be quite expensive (we're talking several hundred dollars), and many bad vaporizers are quite expensive as well.
Based on your stated goals, I do not think edibles are going to take you where you want to go - I like a nice big one before a flight to drift off with, but they aren't really a "let's get wrecked" thing. In my experience they also take quite a lot of material to make. Concentrates would probably be your ideal solution, i.e., either a wax pen or the pre-filled cartridges, but finding a reliable supply chain for those is often impossible in a state where they aren't legal.
I think the best thing you could do in your situation would be to save your pennies for a Storz & Bickel Crafty+ - the PAX is also very popular in my circles, but I don't think it produces dense enough vapor for a satisfying session.
posted by jordemort at 7:34 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
Based on your stated goals, I do not think edibles are going to take you where you want to go - I like a nice big one before a flight to drift off with, but they aren't really a "let's get wrecked" thing. In my experience they also take quite a lot of material to make. Concentrates would probably be your ideal solution, i.e., either a wax pen or the pre-filled cartridges, but finding a reliable supply chain for those is often impossible in a state where they aren't legal.
I think the best thing you could do in your situation would be to save your pennies for a Storz & Bickel Crafty+ - the PAX is also very popular in my circles, but I don't think it produces dense enough vapor for a satisfying session.
posted by jordemort at 7:34 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
Also, re: CBD, you will not feel anything noticeable from it alone beyond what you would feel from, say, an ibuprofen. However, it alone is better than nothing; it won't give you a buzz but it will make you feel more OK about not having one, if that makes sense. There's also a bit of an entourage effect; if you want to stretch your weed supply, take some CBD before smoking.
posted by jordemort at 7:38 AM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by jordemort at 7:38 AM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
So, I don’t want to put stuff into my lungs either, and I don’t like the lack of control of edibles, so I drink it.
I put flower in a small mason jar, stick it in a crock pot filled with water for 3 1/2 hours, add butter or oil, leave it in there for another 1/2 hour and am done. This decarboxylates it, and you can do as much or as little at a time as you like.
I put some (this is where you have to try out the dosage) in a savory tea (Millie’s is amazing) and then sip it. Drinking it gives me much more control over the dosage, and it’s a nice experience as well.
Doing it this way, you can use as much or as little weed as you want.
posted by Vaike at 7:41 AM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
I put flower in a small mason jar, stick it in a crock pot filled with water for 3 1/2 hours, add butter or oil, leave it in there for another 1/2 hour and am done. This decarboxylates it, and you can do as much or as little at a time as you like.
I put some (this is where you have to try out the dosage) in a savory tea (Millie’s is amazing) and then sip it. Drinking it gives me much more control over the dosage, and it’s a nice experience as well.
Doing it this way, you can use as much or as little weed as you want.
posted by Vaike at 7:41 AM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
Good advice above. I would add that it sounds like you should clean your pipe. A nice clean glass pipe will be easier on the lungs and will taste much better.
posted by AugustWest at 8:31 AM on March 7, 2021
posted by AugustWest at 8:31 AM on March 7, 2021
It took 2 referendums and way too much wrangling by legislators, but weed is finally really legal in Maine, albeit much cheaper with a medical card, which is trivially easy to get, and cheap. With buds or pre-rolled, buyers have a lot of choice of strains. In my limited experience, there is no information about what strain is in edibles. I would pay for edibles with a strain likely to make me laugh. So consider making your own. I've been using a tiny dose of edibles when I can't sleep and I think it was @ $30 for a pack of 20 or so.
posted by theora55 at 8:45 AM on March 7, 2021
posted by theora55 at 8:45 AM on March 7, 2021
Just going to add that smoking from a bong is easier on the lungs (still not as easy as a vape)
Edibles are super different and I echo the suggestion of trying some out, preferably commercially made, before converting your stash into edible format. I’ve had multiple experiences where eating too much led to nausea and vomiting and being barely able to stand... have never managed to get anywhere near that high by smoking because it hits you right away when you smoke and so you can regulate your intake better. Dosing in a DIY situation is super inconsistent and hard to control and you only know how much you’ve taken after an hour or so and then you’re already on the ride with no getting off. I use edibles more these days since starting to buy from a friend who makes carefully dosed candies so I can take one and be confident I won’t feel sick afterwards.
Another possibility: Delta-8 THC is also legally available at CBD stores in my state where marijuana isn’t legal, and I discovered the hard way that a Delta-8 edible will get you just as high as a regular weed one. You could check into that.
posted by music for skeletons at 9:02 AM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
Edibles are super different and I echo the suggestion of trying some out, preferably commercially made, before converting your stash into edible format. I’ve had multiple experiences where eating too much led to nausea and vomiting and being barely able to stand... have never managed to get anywhere near that high by smoking because it hits you right away when you smoke and so you can regulate your intake better. Dosing in a DIY situation is super inconsistent and hard to control and you only know how much you’ve taken after an hour or so and then you’re already on the ride with no getting off. I use edibles more these days since starting to buy from a friend who makes carefully dosed candies so I can take one and be confident I won’t feel sick afterwards.
Another possibility: Delta-8 THC is also legally available at CBD stores in my state where marijuana isn’t legal, and I discovered the hard way that a Delta-8 edible will get you just as high as a regular weed one. You could check into that.
posted by music for skeletons at 9:02 AM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
Great question. I think you have a few options:
1. Try a vaporizer, as suggested above. Will save on the amount you use and likely help your lungs. I recommend an Arizer but there are a lot of great options. The other good news is that a vaporizer decarbs the bud as you use it, so you can save it and make easy edibles from the AVB (already vaped bud). See the firecracker recipe below
2. Firecracker recipe - Take 1/2 tsp of decarbed bud (grind it, place on cookie sheet with parchment paper in oven at 225 for 30 minutes) or use a 1/2 tsb AVB from a vaporizer. Separately, take a piece of bread with an even spread of a fatty topping (peanut butter, butter, Nutella - fattier, the better). Evenly sprinkle the 1/2 tsp over the fatty topping. Fold up the bread and wrap in aluminum foil. Place in oven at 225 for 30 minutes. Remove, eat and enjoy!
3. For more recipes, check out /r/treedibles on Reddit. A lot of great recipes (gummies, cookies, desserts, infused honey). These will take more time but are worth the payoff.
posted by glaucon at 9:23 AM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
1. Try a vaporizer, as suggested above. Will save on the amount you use and likely help your lungs. I recommend an Arizer but there are a lot of great options. The other good news is that a vaporizer decarbs the bud as you use it, so you can save it and make easy edibles from the AVB (already vaped bud). See the firecracker recipe below
2. Firecracker recipe - Take 1/2 tsp of decarbed bud (grind it, place on cookie sheet with parchment paper in oven at 225 for 30 minutes) or use a 1/2 tsb AVB from a vaporizer. Separately, take a piece of bread with an even spread of a fatty topping (peanut butter, butter, Nutella - fattier, the better). Evenly sprinkle the 1/2 tsp over the fatty topping. Fold up the bread and wrap in aluminum foil. Place in oven at 225 for 30 minutes. Remove, eat and enjoy!
3. For more recipes, check out /r/treedibles on Reddit. A lot of great recipes (gummies, cookies, desserts, infused honey). These will take more time but are worth the payoff.
posted by glaucon at 9:23 AM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
If I understand correctly you used the CBD to relax and THC to get high, so if you use oils and want to get high it needs a THC content. Some people put a drop into a spoonful of sugar, and I am told it is still strong enough you will probably gag trying to get it down.
The process of decarboxylating the weed is very smelly. Everything in your house will reek of weed.
The resulting by-products (water and plant fibre) can also get you high but taste awful and are very strong when you use them to cook with. You'll probably want to use ingredients with strong flavours to mask the bad taste.
The concentration of CBD and THC varies a lot in different products. One thing you can do is try a different supplier if the stuff you have been getting is not working for you.
I am told that the commercial edibles that are sold in Canada where it is legal are not reliable - in one package of gummies you could get two gummies that don't give much effect, four that do what you expect and one more that is stronger than expected. Just because they are commercially produced or legally produced doesn't necessarily mean the product has reliable contents.
posted by Jane the Brown at 1:52 PM on March 7, 2021
The process of decarboxylating the weed is very smelly. Everything in your house will reek of weed.
The resulting by-products (water and plant fibre) can also get you high but taste awful and are very strong when you use them to cook with. You'll probably want to use ingredients with strong flavours to mask the bad taste.
The concentration of CBD and THC varies a lot in different products. One thing you can do is try a different supplier if the stuff you have been getting is not working for you.
I am told that the commercial edibles that are sold in Canada where it is legal are not reliable - in one package of gummies you could get two gummies that don't give much effect, four that do what you expect and one more that is stronger than expected. Just because they are commercially produced or legally produced doesn't necessarily mean the product has reliable contents.
posted by Jane the Brown at 1:52 PM on March 7, 2021
glaucon has some excellent suggestions! In addition to those, I'd suggest looking at a Dynavap. It's one of the less expensive ways to see if you like the effect of vaping, plus you end up with all that lovely AVB for future edibles making!
posted by Vervain at 2:11 PM on March 7, 2021
posted by Vervain at 2:11 PM on March 7, 2021
Two ideas:
1: decarb your flower (25 minutes in the oven at 250 degrees F works well*) and then put it into a jar. Fill that jar with Everclear. Stick it in a cabinet and shake it up every time you think of it. Wait two weeks then test a dropper-full of the liquid in at least a shot of water. If nothing happens, wait some more. When it reaches the desired potency, strain it through a coffee filter and store in little dropper bottles. (Clean the funnel and bottle with Everclear) This will give you a portable potent potable. Onset time is 15 minutes to an hour, and effects can last 2-5 hours.
*this will stink up your place but you only have to do it once. Maybe cook something with a strong smell at the same time.
2: get one of those mini-crockpots that are like 2 bucks at any thrift store. Crumble flower in there and add coconut oil and water in equal parts. I'm not sure how to tell you quantities but maybe start with half a cup or a cup of each? Let that cook for 8 hours. (This will produce an unrecognizable sort of popcorn smell--doesn't register as weed to most people, but again, cook some chili or something at the same time if you need to disguise it.)
Then strain this mixture into a flexible plastic or silicone container and refrigerate. (Press as much of the liquid as you can out of the flower and compost or discard.) After a few hours the liquid will have separated into a disk of green stuff on top of a bunch of brown water. Remove the disk, dump the water, and rinse off any schmutz that's stuck to the bottom of the disk under hot water. Pop the disk and some fresh water back in the crockpot and heat enough to melt it. Put it back in the plastic container and refrigerate again. This time the water should end up pretty much clear. Re-melt just the nice clean oil and put it into a jar for storage.
Depending on quality and quantity, a quarter teaspoon should have a pretty strong effect. Maybe even an eighth of a teaspoon. This will last for ages in a cool dark cabinet and is pretty easy to dose: a tablespoon of oil can make a dozen cookies. Or you can just melt a quarter teaspoon (or less) into a cup of tea or cook with it or what have you. The downside: it can take 1-4 hours to take effect. Do NOT have a second cookie when you don't feel the first one after an hour. The upside: portable, odorless, practically tasteless in baked goods; effects can last for hours.
posted by bink at 2:48 PM on March 7, 2021
1: decarb your flower (25 minutes in the oven at 250 degrees F works well*) and then put it into a jar. Fill that jar with Everclear. Stick it in a cabinet and shake it up every time you think of it. Wait two weeks then test a dropper-full of the liquid in at least a shot of water. If nothing happens, wait some more. When it reaches the desired potency, strain it through a coffee filter and store in little dropper bottles. (Clean the funnel and bottle with Everclear) This will give you a portable potent potable. Onset time is 15 minutes to an hour, and effects can last 2-5 hours.
*this will stink up your place but you only have to do it once. Maybe cook something with a strong smell at the same time.
2: get one of those mini-crockpots that are like 2 bucks at any thrift store. Crumble flower in there and add coconut oil and water in equal parts. I'm not sure how to tell you quantities but maybe start with half a cup or a cup of each? Let that cook for 8 hours. (This will produce an unrecognizable sort of popcorn smell--doesn't register as weed to most people, but again, cook some chili or something at the same time if you need to disguise it.)
Then strain this mixture into a flexible plastic or silicone container and refrigerate. (Press as much of the liquid as you can out of the flower and compost or discard.) After a few hours the liquid will have separated into a disk of green stuff on top of a bunch of brown water. Remove the disk, dump the water, and rinse off any schmutz that's stuck to the bottom of the disk under hot water. Pop the disk and some fresh water back in the crockpot and heat enough to melt it. Put it back in the plastic container and refrigerate again. This time the water should end up pretty much clear. Re-melt just the nice clean oil and put it into a jar for storage.
Depending on quality and quantity, a quarter teaspoon should have a pretty strong effect. Maybe even an eighth of a teaspoon. This will last for ages in a cool dark cabinet and is pretty easy to dose: a tablespoon of oil can make a dozen cookies. Or you can just melt a quarter teaspoon (or less) into a cup of tea or cook with it or what have you. The downside: it can take 1-4 hours to take effect. Do NOT have a second cookie when you don't feel the first one after an hour. The upside: portable, odorless, practically tasteless in baked goods; effects can last for hours.
posted by bink at 2:48 PM on March 7, 2021
I agree with the advice to just take a road vacation to Colorado. I mean yes, it's not hard to make some weed butter, but it's a bit of trial and error, and it's always hard to know how much you're consuming. Since you're fairly new to this, I'd advise starting with edibles made professionally, with measured/even THC quantities. The other advantage of going to Colorado is that you can get 1:1 edibles, which means even amounts of CBD and THC. I personally find this to result in a high that is much more calming and pleasant than the super-charged THC varieties that dominate the black market.
posted by coffeecat at 5:02 PM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by coffeecat at 5:02 PM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
If the fumes from oven decarboxylation are an issue for you, you might care to try experimenting with using a pressure cooker to decarboxylate and sterilize for storage in one well controlled and well contained operation. Water in a pressure cooker boils at a nice steady temperature that's pretty much perfect for decarboxylation.
posted by flabdablet at 6:14 PM on March 7, 2021
posted by flabdablet at 6:14 PM on March 7, 2021
As for worries about getting dosage right: if you're careful and consistent about the strain you grow, the way you grow it, the way you process it, and the way you prepare your edibles, you'll end up with pretty consistent results. Determining your best edible dosage then becomes a process of starting with eating very small quantities and waiting at least an hour to gauge the effect before eating more. It's not rocket science. You'll work it out.
posted by flabdablet at 6:34 PM on March 7, 2021
posted by flabdablet at 6:34 PM on March 7, 2021
Want to go cheap? No need to use buds or expensive resins just grind stems and seeds after toasting or you can go ahead and take the fine powder and slow cook in some fat like butter for u see e in other dishes after decanting. Heck, you can use the powder directly in spice heavy cake recipes like dump cake. Now, unless you are very aware of the strength of the source, you will need to calibrate your cake slices to determine the power of final product.
posted by jadepearl at 6:59 PM on March 7, 2021
posted by jadepearl at 6:59 PM on March 7, 2021
Decarbing in an oven is going to waste a lot of THC. This is because ovens are notoriously inaccurate and often swing 50F above/below the set temperature.
posted by slkinsey at 7:41 PM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by slkinsey at 7:41 PM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
I wanted to reach out about your comment that you're an alcoholic. It sounds like you're making changes in your life and your alcohol use isn't working for you. I encourage you to get support for that!
Using more weed may help you reduce your alcohol intake, or may not. If your goal is to reduce alcohol use, I suggest exploring further what additional strategies, supports and tools will help you do that.
Wishing you the best!
posted by latkes at 7:53 PM on March 7, 2021 [5 favorites]
Using more weed may help you reduce your alcohol intake, or may not. If your goal is to reduce alcohol use, I suggest exploring further what additional strategies, supports and tools will help you do that.
Wishing you the best!
posted by latkes at 7:53 PM on March 7, 2021 [5 favorites]
Chiming in strictly to second the suggestion to try edibles first and see how they work on you, because your experience with them could be markedly different than what smoking is like and you may want to know how that might work.
Also - you may find that edibles pack more of a punch, which might cut down on what you need. In the past, I've learned that smoking marijuana doesn't do jack-diddley for me. Edibles, on the other hand, hit me kind of hard - to the point that I usually have to further carve up the teeny-tiny edible gummies I've been able to get via friends-of-friends. Like, if they gave me a small pouch of about six "special" gummy bears, a typical dose for me would be, like, the left foot. That's enough to me to still be feeling the effects about 10 hours later. ....Fortunately, though, that means that a small pouch of six gummy bears lasts quite a long time for me.
Just mentioning that to reinforce that you may want to try some already-made edibles first, to see how different the impact is. The last thing you want to do is make a whole batch of brownies and have one, and only then find out that edibles hit you about ten times harder than smoking.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 9:43 AM on March 8, 2021 [1 favorite]
Also - you may find that edibles pack more of a punch, which might cut down on what you need. In the past, I've learned that smoking marijuana doesn't do jack-diddley for me. Edibles, on the other hand, hit me kind of hard - to the point that I usually have to further carve up the teeny-tiny edible gummies I've been able to get via friends-of-friends. Like, if they gave me a small pouch of about six "special" gummy bears, a typical dose for me would be, like, the left foot. That's enough to me to still be feeling the effects about 10 hours later. ....Fortunately, though, that means that a small pouch of six gummy bears lasts quite a long time for me.
Just mentioning that to reinforce that you may want to try some already-made edibles first, to see how different the impact is. The last thing you want to do is make a whole batch of brownies and have one, and only then find out that edibles hit you about ten times harder than smoking.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 9:43 AM on March 8, 2021 [1 favorite]
a typical dose for me would be, like, the left foot
Yep. I'm not a notorious lightweight or anything, but I find commercial edibles to be extremely efficient and very cost effective, because 1) the dosing is consistent and 2) I barely have to take any at all. It stretches them out forever.
posted by fiercecupcake at 2:51 PM on March 8, 2021
Yep. I'm not a notorious lightweight or anything, but I find commercial edibles to be extremely efficient and very cost effective, because 1) the dosing is consistent and 2) I barely have to take any at all. It stretches them out forever.
posted by fiercecupcake at 2:51 PM on March 8, 2021
decarb-wise: i inherited an ardent lift, which is a sealing cylinder about the size of a coffee can; i think it is foolproof. it does not create too much odor. have also used it to infuse some oil, but, uh, did not assess resulting potency in a controlled manner. i think eating it makes me sleepier than smoking. mean to try some tincture; haven't yet. also have a pax2; pretty good vaporizer. still, i prefer a classic joint, which my friend who went to marijuana school called something like "a single-use partial-combustion personal vaporizing device" (suggesting that the cannabinoids vaporize out adjacent to and ahead of the combusting plant material), though it is probably wasteful.
posted by 20 year lurk at 8:51 AM on March 9, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by 20 year lurk at 8:51 AM on March 9, 2021 [2 favorites]
You are right, edibles are by far the healthiest way to use cannabis and it actually allows the user to uptake many additional compounds that are thought to be beneficial for us. Making cannabutter is your best bet, you can drop bits of this into cup of tea, have it on toast, or even eat it straight. But there is still the expensive of buying cannabis. If you live in a place where you can legally buy cannabis seeds from a site like this then I recommend you opt for this method, but check growing is also legal.
Even with a small amount of experience, you can cultivate a plant easily. With edibles you can use low quality weed and still get fantastic results. Be aware that edible can be incredibly strong and people have found themselves on the floor unable to move! But it always passes. Just start small and find a dose that works for you.
Best of luck!
posted by Meseeks at 4:33 AM on October 2, 2021 [1 favorite]
Even with a small amount of experience, you can cultivate a plant easily. With edibles you can use low quality weed and still get fantastic results. Be aware that edible can be incredibly strong and people have found themselves on the floor unable to move! But it always passes. Just start small and find a dose that works for you.
Best of luck!
posted by Meseeks at 4:33 AM on October 2, 2021 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by ggp88 at 5:24 AM on March 7, 2021