You can find dispensaries that sell cannabutter but if you got a bag of shake or stale weed sitting around then this might be the move for you… or maybe you just wanna have some fun and experiment making your own! Some will smoke it, some will toss it, and others will transform the old flower into something beautifully brand new by infusing a variation of butters or carrier oils to create homemade edibles or topicals. It’s much easier than you think, but it requires a little time and patience. I will say, the benefits of making your own cannabutter is the ability to have quality control by choosing your own butter and flower strain with the ability to increase or lower the potency. The hard part is knowing exactly how potent it truly is so it’s important to proceed with caution.
Before I jump in, I want to stress that cannabis decarboxylation is essential to the process because without heating your flower, the different cannabinoids (parts of the plant that get you high or provide pain relief) will receive little to no activation which means you’ll probably feel nothing and that would defeat the purpose!
Below you will find ingredients/materials needed, directions, and additional tips on how to infuse butter in the comfort of your own home. Let’s keep it simple and have some fun with it :)
Ingredients + Materials
7-10 grams ground decarboxylated cannabis (+/- dependent on strength wanted)
¼ of water
1 cup of butter (2 sticks)
Baking sheet
Parchment paper
Grinder (helpful but optional)
Candy/food thermometer (highly recommended)
Oven
Double-boiler
Container for cannabutter
Part 1: Decarbing Your Flower
Preheat oven to 245 degrees fahrenheit
Grind/break down flower loosely while you wait for your oven to heat up
Add parchment paper to a baking sheet and spread grinded/loose flower evenly across
Bake for 30-40 minutes tossing every 10-15 minutes
Part 2: The Infusion
Prepare a double-boiler by adding water into a pot, bringing to a simmer, and adding a heatproof glass bowl on top
Add butter into the heatproof bowl w/ a splash of water and melt on low
Next add your decarboxylated flower to the melted butter and stir thoroughly
Let this simmer anywhere from 45 minutes to 3 hours stirring occasionally and checking to make sure the butter doesn’t overheat (stay between 160-200 degrees fahrenheit)
Part 3: Strain + Cool + Store
After the infusion is complete, lightly strain and let it cool down
Use parchment paper to roll up when cooled or pour liquid butter into a silicone mold with marks for more accuracy ~ I ordered mine here from amazon!
Tips:
Slow cookers are amazing for this because the temperature is locked and you can walk away and let it do its thing.
The fattier the butter, the better the cannabinoid infusion because it has something to latch to. European butters are always higher in fat content compared to American butters!
I kept the infusion temperature between 160-180 and no higher just to be extra safe
When straining, don’t over-squeeze to get all the butter out - this can produce a heavier canna/plant flavor and even make it bitter at times.
Test a small amount for potency. I also like to see how plant-forward the butter tastes so I can be cautious when cooking with different flavors!