Cannabis education: the home chef edition!

With Canada’s legalization of cannabis in October 2018, and the legalization of edibles just one year later, Canadian foodies are ready to ‘add pot to their pots’ and start cooking with cannabis! If you’re looking to expand your cannabis education to the kitchen, RCU is here to outline the basics of cooking with cannabis.

To begin your culinary cannabis education journey, consider this your introductory cooking class - here to inform and assist you.

Just a quick reminder: When purchasing cannabis from an authorized retailer, ensure that you familiarize yourself with the provincial laws and penalties when it comes to possession and transporting cannabis and where you are allowed to consume. Visit dontbesorry.ca to view these laws by province.

Step 1: Heat It

Before you do anything, your cannabis flowers need to be heated through to achieve a reaction called ‘decarboxylation’ or 'decarbing' (just a fancy laboratory sounding word for heating your plant to make it more potent). In the interests of cannabis education – this process of heating converts THCA into THC, activating the psychoactive properties of the flower and making it receptive to the body.

This reaction of decarboxylation requires the following:

• Grinding your cannabis flowers in a food processor or coffee grinder (not too fine or it will become bitter)
• Dry baking in a preheated oven at 230°F for up to 1 hour. 

You can either store your prepared cannabis in an airtight container (see here for storage tips) or you can begin using it in recipes.

Step 2: Make Cannabutter

No culinary cannabis education can leave out cannabutter! It is the most basic approach to cooking with cannabis.

How To:

1. Melt 1lb of butter in a saucepan.
2. Add 2 cups of water, mix, and bring it to a simmer.
3. Add 7 grams decarboxylated cannabis and mix well. Allow it to simmer for a few hours (2 to 3 hours should do the trick). The more the cannabis is infused into the butter, the better and stronger the results will be. Tip: don’t allow the butter to burn!
4. Once the butter is smooth and thick, strain it through a cheesecloth to remove the bitter cannabis flowers. Let the butter cool at room temperature and store in the fridge.

Step 3: Make Your Favourite Recipes

Now that you’ve got your cannabutter on hand, you can use it in any of your most well-loved recipes. Instead of adding regular butter to your recipes, you could substitute with a little bit of cannabutter. As a cannabis education team, we would suggest that you start with a lower amount of cannabutter, especially if this is your first time. Edibles are known to have a longer lasting and potent effect. Remember that your homemade cannabis edibles haven’t been lab tested like shop-bought edibles, so recognize the risks, take care and act responsibly if you decide to experiment with cannabis in the kitchen.

If you’re interested in further expanding your cannabis culinary skills, diarize The Culinary Cannabis Show presented by Fire & Flower. Find out more about this upcoming event here!

RCU is a Canadian cannabis education company – providing education on Canada’s cannabis laws and policies in relation to everyday life – on the roads, at work, and in retail (and now in the kitchen). Stay informed about your rights and responsibilities through our cannabis education courses. Find out more at RCU.