Decarboxylation: The Simple Way to Decarb your Weed

Name: Decarboxylation: The Simple Way to Decarb your Weed
Prep time: 2 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 22 min
Yield: Varies
Cuisine: Marijana
Ingredients: Raw marijuana (or whatever you prefer to call it - weed, pot, buds, cannabis, etc.)

July 22, 2019 by Cannabis Spatula 107 Comments

You're ready to get cooking in the kitchen and wow your friends and family (or maybe just yourself) with your mad cannabis cooking skills. You're ready to get high during breakfast, lunch and dinner - with some snacks in between.

There's just one problem.

You need to decarb your weed before you do anything else, and you're just not sure how to get started.

Luckily you're in the right place. With this simple recipe, you'll be able to have your marijuana decarbed in no time. And I'm even answering all of your most-asked questions about the decarboxylation process.

Why you Need to Decarb Your Weed for Cooking

I get asked this question all the time, so let's go ahead and answer it first thing. In order for your edibles to get you high, you need to put your cannabis through a decarboxylation or decarbing process.

By slowly cooking your dried buds, you'll release the THC from the cannabis.

Believe it or not, your raw cannabis contains zero THC. Seriously.

You can google this for days and read about all of the fun science-y reasons behind this process. Or you can just understand that in order for the food you make with marijuana to get you high, you need to decarb your weed first.

Got it?

Good, let's move on.

The Easy Way to Decarb Your Weed

The decarboxylation can sound intimidating (probably because it's such a big word), but it's actually super easy. With just a little big of prep and an oven, you'll be whipping up edibles in no time.

First, Prep Your Marijuana

To prep your weed for baking, use a handheld grinder (or your fingers) and lightly grind your cannabis. You do NOT want it to be finely ground - just lightly ground - as if you were going to roll it into a joint.

Next, Bake Your Weed

It doesn't get much easier than this. Simply spread your ground buds onto a cookie sheet and bake at 250° F for 20 minutes.

You can cover it if you want to, but it's not necessary.

Finally, Eat Your Weed

Okay - don't really eat it. But you're now ready to cook with it.

All of the recipes here at Cannabis Spatula start with a base of Canna Butter, Canna Oil or Canna Honey. You can click on the links below to get started!

How to Make Canna Butter

How to Make Canna Oil

How to Make Canna Honey

Answering your Biggest Decarbing Questions

I need to decarb my weed, but I'm afraid of the smell. How bad is this going to smell?

This was one of my biggest fears when I first started cooking with cannabis. There's too much to cover in a quick answer, so click here to read an entire post on the smell of decarboxylation.

What types of marijuana need to be decarboxylated?

Pretty much all marijuana will benefit from being decarbed or "activated."

This means that not just flowers/buds and trim but kief, hash and hash oils as well.

I'm going to use this cannabis to make cannabutter and other edibles that I'm going to be baking/heating. Do I still need to decarb first?

Great question - and YES! For maximum potency of your edibles, you want to activate (or decarb) your cannabis first.

This is the case even when you're making slow-cooking infusions like canna butter and canna oil.

What happens if I don’t decarboxylate my cannabis?

Well, you'll still get some medicinal benefits from the cannabis, but you won't get as high.

Can I decarb my weed in a toaster oven?

Sure thing! In fact, some people that are nervous about the smell decarb their cannabis in a toaster oven in their garage, basement or even outside. Just be sure that your toaster oven is at an even temperature for 30 minutes before starting the baking process.

Can I decarb my weed using a food dehydrator?

Opinions are mixed on this decarbing process, and it's not one that we've attempted ourselves. Our preference is for higher heat for a shorter amount of time.

If you're dead set on using a food dehydrator, be sure to further research the process. From what we've heard, you need to plan on anywhere from 8 - 12 hours for your cannabis to be fully activated.

Decarboxylation: The Simple Way to Decarb your Weed

For those of you who prefer a printable recipe card, here you go. Bonus - there's even a video for you!