The first step to making cannabis edibles

By Christina Wong

What is THC Decarboxylation and Activation? What do these words mean? How much flower do I use? How do I figure out how potent it is? Will I get f***ed up? Can I skip this step? Am I doing it right? These are just some of the questions I struggled with as a new cannabis user and home baker.

Want to make your own edibles at home but don’t know where to start?

Step 1: Decarboxylate + Activate the THC

What does this mean?
Can I skip this step?
What happens if I don’t do this?
Can I decarb ahead and store for use later?

Define Decarboxylate

Decarboxylation (pronounced de-carb-OX-yl-a-tion), decarb for short, is a chemical reaction that activates the psychoactive compounds in the cannabis plant, including THC, using heat and time.

For example: When you light up a joint or smoke a vape pen, heat from the fire/heating element will activate the THC in the cannabis flower when you inhale. Which is responsible for the high feeling.

What does Activate mean?

Activate means that the decarboxylation process is “activating” the THC molecule and converting it from its original non-intoxicating THCA. When a recipe instruction says, decarb + activate cannabis flower, that means heat the cannabis flower to activate the THC and prepare it for infusion.

If you were to just eat cannabis flower without activating the THC, you will not get the high feeling. You’d still get the benefits of THCA, but without the psychoactive feeling.

How to Decarb + Activate

Heat the cannabis flower to a specific temperature between 240°F and 295°F to convert the THCa molecule to THC. There are several different methods to decarb (choose one):

Oven: Spread coarsely crumbled flower in a foil or parchment envelope/boat to prevent burning. Preheat the oven to 240°F, place the foil on a baking sheet and onto the center rack of the oven. Bake for 30-40 minutes.
Mason jar: To reduce the strong cannabis smell during decarb, place coarsely crumbled flower in a mason jar and seal with a metal lid. Place the mason jar on a baking sheet in the oven and bake at 240°F for 40 minutes. Using oven mitts, shake the mason jar every 20 minutes to evenly heat all the flower.
Slow cooker: Place coarsely crumbled flower in a mason jar and seal with a metal lid. Fill the slow cooker pot with water, at least halfway. Place the jar in the water, and cover with a lid. Set on high (no higher than 300°F) and let it simmer for 4 hours. Keep the water levels topped at halfway throughout.
Sous vide: Prepare a water bath with a sous vide machine or immersion circulator set at 240°F. Place ground flower in a water-displaced zip-top sealed bag. Place the bag into the water bath for 90 minutes.
Infusion machine: Specialty infusion machines such as Ardent and LEVO have a decarb function, where you place the ground flower inside and set the temp/time according to instructions.

I personally prefer the mason jar method if you don’t have an infusion machine. It’s affordable, easy, quick, and has the least amount of smell and cleanup.

Can I skip the decarboxylation step?

You COULD skip this step (see question below). It’ll work and you’ll get high. But you’d be sacrificing potential THC potency because it’s not the optimal temp and time to convert as much THC from the plant as possible before baking. Also, calculating potency will be more inaccurate if you skip this step.

I recommend taking 30-40 minutes to decarb + activate rather than skipping this step.

Why? Wouldn’t the THC activate while baking?

Technically yes, if you were to skip the Decarb + Activate step and simply put the ground cannabis flower into the brownie batter to activate while baking, it will convert some of the THC during baking depending on the baking time and temperature of the recipe.

However, this is not a precise way to make edibles at home because the ground cannabis flower is potentially dispersed unevenly in the batter. One piece could be more potent than another piece. That doesn’t mean that this method is wrong, it’ll work for sure. But there’s a more accurate way that won’t f*** up you or your friends.

Can I do this step ahead of time and store the decarbed flower?

Yes, absolutely! This is a time saver and I do this often. After decarbing cannabis flower, the color will look slightly toasted and brown compared to the green freshly ground flower. Store the decarbed flower in the mason jar or an airtight container in a dark, cool dry place until read to use.

Please note that THC will degrade and lose potency over time. It’s best to use the decarbed flower as soon as possible for maximum potency. I’ll decarb in advance and measure out the amount I need for recipes throughout the week.

THC degradation can happen when stored for several months. Keep out of sunlight in a cool, dry place. If you have old flower, take into account that flower labeled as 25% THC may have lost potency to 20% or less over time. But that doesn’t mean it's gone bad. You can still use it, it just won’t be as potent. I save old weed to make topicals and salves.

Articles