Weed edibles are more popular than ever. We certainly don’t make the same mistakes we made 10 years ago while making them. However, mistakes can still happen when cooking weed edibles.

Here is a list of common mistakes made when cooking with weed and how to avoid them.

1. Not dosing your weed edibles.

Not dosing is the main reason that someone never wants to eat cannabis edibles again. Ever had a bad edible experience or heard of a friend that has?

The number one reason people have bad experiences with edibles is that they got dosing advice from a very high tolerance user or a poorly-trained budtender. Or just because they are eyeballing their infusion in their recipe. While a seasoned user may be able to readily consume 80, 150 milligrams, or more, without any issues, for a novice user, these doses are SKY-HIGH! Even 25 – 50 milligrams can totally put a novice edible user in a hole. Edibles are actually an amazing experience when dosed right, learn about dosing Here.

2. Not decarboxylating.

If you want to get high from your cannabis, you need it to be Decarboxylated. This is because it is THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) that makes you feel high. And raw cannabis contains THC-A, which is the acidic form of this cannabinoid. To convert THC-A to THC we need to heat the cannabis. 

Now, decarboxylation also happens when you are infusing your cannabis with butter or oil and baking Cookies from it after that. But to make sure you decarboxylate it to its full potential, you will need to expose the cannabis to heat. An oven is usually used.

If you continue to decarb longer than the recommended 40 minuted on 240F, THC will begin to convert to CBN, the strongest sedative of the known cannabinoids. 

3. The wrong temperature.

In a general sense, and what does make sense is using a lower temperature with cannabis cooking. The THC will completely degrade if you cook on temperatures that exceed 392 degrees Fahrenheit.  When you boil water, it does not go beyond 212 degrees Fahrenheit. So, it is always recommended that you use water as a way to properly infuse your end product while also paying very close attention to the temperature, especially when infusing oils or butter or when cannabis cooking with Concentrates.

4. Grinding your cannabis into powder.

Ever wonder why your weed edibles have a strong grassy flavor? The grind of your cannabis might be too fine. Pulverizing your cannabis with a food processor or a coffee grinder until it’s a powder will:

• Introduce chlorophyll to your oil, lending a strong plant-like taste
• Cause your butter or oil to turn green (which may look appealing but at the cost of flavor)
• Make it impossible to strain unwanted, bad-tasting plant material

5. Using the wrong cannabis infusion for a certain recipe.

If you just made your first cannabis butter recipe, it does not mean you can use this infusion for every recipe. For cannabis gummies for example, it is better to use a Cannabis tincture. As if you use Cannabis butter or cannabis coconut oil you can get an uneven distribution of potency in an infused batch. And a layer of fat can float on top of your gummie which is not very appealing. 

6. Using any kind of cannabis strain for your weed edibles.

Just like when you smoke weed, strains make the difference. If you just cooked up a batch of cannabis and do not like the effects because it makes you feel sleepy. There is a chance it is because the strain makes you feel that way. While mostly the strain determines which effect you feel when cooking with cannabis, it will also change the flavor and aroma of your finished edibles. Some strains have a fruity flavor while others have a coffee aroma. Here is a small list of strains we like for cooking weed edibles.

If you want to learn more on how to make weed edibles, check our Complete guide