Cannabis can be enjoyed in a variety of ways. People can smoke it or use it topically, but one of many people’s favorite ways to enjoy weed is to eat it. When marijuana is ingested, it can take longer for its effects to become noticeable. The effects often come in waves and can last as long as 10 hours depending on how much you ate, what strain you used, and how potent the product happened to be. 

Many people just go to a dispensary to pick up marijuana edibles. At Altitude, we have a variety of different edibles for customers to enjoy. This is probably the best way to ensure you have a consistent product. But if you want to make some of your products, here is our guide to cooking with cannabis.

The Importance of Decarboxylation

One of the biggest mistakes made by amateurs who are new to the world of cooking with cannabis is to just throw the bud directly into their brownie or another baking mix, and then follow the instructions as usual. But they are missing an essential step: decarboxylation. This essential process involves heating the plant to the point where the non-psychoactive THCA becomes the psychoactive TCH that people enjoy. If you’ve ever made a batch of edibles that didn’t seem to cause any effects, this step was likely skipped or not done properly.

The process isn’t difficult:

• Preheat oven to 225 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Grind up your buds.
• Spread them evenly along the bottom of a baking dish, then cover the dish with aluminum foil.
• Bake for at least 20 minutes and up to 60 minutes.

The longer you leave the marijuana in the oven, the more potent your final product will be.

Open Up Your Options By Infusing Butter and Oil

Cannabutter and canna-oil are both great options to cook with and are easy to make. It will take you about two hours to get them ready—and this is before you prepare whatever dish you will be using them for. One of the best things about using cannabutter or canna-oil is that you won’t get any rough, ground bud your edible. The texture of your baked good will probably be the same as it would if you didn’t use it. Your baked good might have a slightly earthy flavor, however. 

You Are Only Limited By Your Creativity

Pot brownies are a go-to item for many when it comes to cooking with cannabis. But if you create cannabutter and canna-oil, you have an endless number of possibilities for making some fun treats. Any foods you would normally make can now be infused with cannabis to enhance the flavor—as well as your experience. It can be a bit time-consuming to prepare the cannabutter or canna-oil, but if you plan and make enough of it, you can store the leftovers for the next time you want an extra special cannabis treat. 

Come to a Denver Weed Dispensary

Whether you are seeking an edible or if you need weed to make your creations, Altitude has what you need. We have three locations in the Denver metro area. Stop by one of them today!