How I make 'clean' cannabutter- a tutorial - Page 2 - Cannabis Forums Message Boards - Medical Marijuana, Cannabis Club, Dispensary, News

NaughtyDreadz · #26 (**permalink**) Jun-24-2008, 11:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by allrollsin21

How much herb can be used with this method at a time? I have a rather large bag of popcorn and trim that is ready to become food-fuel.

I am thinking the half gallon mason jars are probably the best size because they will fit in the pot, but will only hold a limited amount.

Can i assume that ball jars are lead free?

Thanks, i am excited to try this recipe

I just cooked a shitload yesterday... like a fuckin shitload...

I think I made my fudge a lil too strong..

I used a 112 g of shake - 500 g of butter... I have a cheese store on my block, so I get organic butter (it doesn't sit well in the fridge for too long, but it has more fat than the stuff in the supermarket) except my butter looks deep green... I slow boil it for a few hours and then cheesecloth that biotch... (when I don't have cheesecloth white cotton T works even better )

man had two tea spoons of fudge.. maybe three.. I woke up red blazed..

allrollsin21 · #27 (**permalink**) Jun-24-2008, 14:50

by propping it up., you mean placing something in the pot between the jar and the pot. hmm...maybe like a vegetable steamer??

**stinkyattic** · #28 (**permalink**) Jun-24-2008, 16:02

Veggie steamer ftw! Or a wire rack that fits inside the pot, like one for drying cookies, or if you are all fancy and have a canning pot, there should be a rack that came with it.

Be very careful; it is REALLY hot, and you have to remember to tighten and loosen the ring around the cap at the proper times- loose while it is in the hot water bath, tight while you are agitating it, and don't shake it too hard.

daihashi · #29 (**permalink**) Jun-24-2008, 19:30

I use a pint size Ball brand mason jar and place it in a pot that holds 1 gallon of water with some room to spare.

I put up to half the jar filled with herb and 1 stick of butter.. Put enough water to cover the herb completely and then add about another half cup for good measure.

I then place the jar with the band and lid on (not tightened down but not completely unscrewed either) and let it sit in a pot of simmering water (occasional bubbles) for 2 hours.

I shake the jar about once every 20 minutes. Not too vigorous (hot water will come spurting out even with the lid tightened all the way) and not to soft either. The butter and water will constantly seperate, this is ok.. just make sure to shake it once every 20 minutes pretty well to ensure that the thc is binding with the fat in the butter and not stuck beneath the herb and melted butter.

I love this method and if I ever met the stinkster I'd probably give her a big hug for teaching me the way to make cannabutter that doesn't taste like burned weed. All my baked goods taste so good.. you can only notice it was made by cannabutter if someone were to tell you. Very very very very slight background taste, not noticeable unless you're looking for it.

Great tutorial. I'm glad more people have started looking into this method. It takes longer but well worth the hassle.

grumio · #30 (**permalink**) Jun-24-2008, 20:39

Is there still some room for me on this bandwagon?

First, a question for Stinkyattic, who is worshipped as a minor deity by all right-thinking people: In the OP, you say to "repeat the heating & shaking process" for the two "washes" after the initial extraction. Should each of those washes last ~2 hours? I got a little impatient on those & only gave the first wash about 1 1/2 hours & the second wash one hour.

There was very little change in the color. I saved a bit of butter from each stage to compare, & I couldn't really tell them apart either by color or flavor.

I also tasted the water at each stage. The water from the initial extraction was fairly vile, but not nearly as bad I expected - actually, it reminded me of Cynar or one of those European herbal digestifs. The water from the first wash had very little flavor, color or cloudiness; the second even less (still had some taste & cloudiness).

You are meant to toss the plant matter after the initial extraction/straining/squeezing, aren't you? I did.

Anyway. ~1 oz dried fan leaves & 1/2 oz vapo-poo into ~7 oz haphazardly clarified butter (Plugra); ~3 hours @ simmer in a small slow-cooker for the initial extraction, then the 2 washes - mason jar/water bath. Straining tek - fine mesh stainless, then nylon hose & a lime squeezer (in lieu of a potato ricer).

Didn't know what to expect re potency at all. This was my first plant since '92 & was just grown like a houseplant in the window. This was also my first use of vapo-poo. The butter is fairly dark green & tastes distinctly grassy (in both senses). I like the flavor.

Yesterday afternoon (empty stomach) I ate a tablespoon of it spread on a biscuit.

Disassembled. ratfucked. I was walking home while I was peaking, & especially while walking up a very steep hill, I had the very strong sensation that I was sort of floating still, & my feet were pushing the earth behind me as I "walked."

Of course according to Einstein that's a perfectly reasonable way of looking at walking.

I'm fairly experienced with edibles, too. I had been using store-bought cannabutter, & then I became a tincture fanatic.

Good stuff!!!

**stinkyattic** · #31 (**permalink**) Jun-25-2008, 11:59

Lol@ deity!

You don't have to do a long cook on the wash steps. I get it up to a light simmer, shake it a bit, let it sit, shake it a bit more, and call it good. The wash water will get progressively clearer and gentler in flavor as your butter gets cleaner. The dark green product means it's got a lot of chlorophyll in it still, but as long as you get as much contamination/fert salts out as possible, you will still have a very pleasant tasting product. I don't know about you guys, but I really like the mild earthy/incense/hash taste of a well-cleaned butter extraction. I have plans to work up a recipe for a less-sweetened cookie/biscuit made with whole oat flour and maybe sage and lemon, or whole oat and grapefruit peel, undecided as yet, but I'd like to find some way to incorporate the hash flavor into the overall taste experience too. We shall see.

I like your description of the high. That sounds about right for a good edibles dose. A neat thing about good cannabutter is that at higher dosages you can actually get into a trippy state. I don't go that far personally, but a couple of my friends have been enjoying my caramels just a LITTLE too much, hahaha!!! Woo hoo...

grumio · #32 (**permalink**) Jun-25-2008, 16:26

First time I've tried uploading a picture, don't know how it'll turn out.

Anyhow, this is what became of my plant, who was named Cat Food.

QWISO, cannabutter, Green Dragon, & bud (such as it is).

I won't know how well you can see the color of the butter until I see the post.

Anyway, I was expecting it to be loaded with chlorophyll - it was made with fan leaves, after all.

The taste is fine for me. I'll probably consume it straight (just had some on banana bread). I've kind of turned around on eating mj. I would rather get high & then eat the most amazing stuff I can come up with. Eg, cannabuttered popcorn. Great idea! Works like a charm! Only problem is you want the buttered popcorn after you're stoned, & if you have another batch then, well, say goodnight, Gracie...

PlantHeadJ · #33 (**permalink**) Jun-25-2008, 18:33

Thanks for the post Stinky, gonna be in the kitchen for the next week!!

**stinkyattic** · #34 (**permalink**) Jun-27-2008, 10:41

Here's something to keep ya busy...
Donkey Dick and VT local IBL Indoor/Outdoor 2008
That's the caramel recipe. I can't stress enough:
-Use a pot bigger than you think you need
-Wear long sleeves, eye protection, and dish washing gloves- molten sugar is like fucking fresh lava. OW!

grumio · #35 (**permalink**) Jun-28-2008, 04:48

That looks very nice, Stinky. Reckon I'll give it a whirl sometime.

Speaking of caramel, I did a Tarte Tatin with c-butter for both the apples & the crust once. That's a nice one to impress company with.

Hmmm... Canna-Tarte Tatin with Green Dragon whipped cream....

**stinkyattic** · #36 (**permalink**) Jun-28-2008, 07:09

O. M. G. That sounds droolsome. I've got all the gear to make all SORTS of French desserts (madeline molds, assorted tart pans with removeable bottoms, Charlotte pans, you name it) but I'm only now just getting really into baking. I have no sweet tooth so it's been a matter of finding stuff that's not too sweet, and any apple tarts are good to go as far as I'm concerned! Learning cannagoodies has been a ton of fun for me, because my whole cooking background up to this point has been focused on Indian and Mediterranean styles, completely ignoring sweets, with the exception of Biscotti, to which I'm addicted. Someday I'm going to have a catering service/small commercial bakery... just watch...

grumio · #37 (**permalink**) Jun-28-2008, 17:11

Well, pastry will sure test your kitchen mojo.

Do you ever read Cook's Illustrated? They had a pie crust recipe that's pretty ingenious - uses vodka as part of the liquid. Why? Water + flour = gluten = tough crust. Alcohol & flour doesn't create gluten, so you get more liquid into the dough, making it easier to handle & roll out, without making it tough.

Probably the sickest thing I've done with c- butter was puff pastry. & even then I didn't go the whole hog, I made the blitz puff pastry (pate feuilletee rapide).

Tell you something for free: making puff pastry is an acquired skill...

Funny - I got started cooking on Indian food too...

**stinkyattic** · #38 (**permalink**) Jun-29-2008, 11:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by grumio

...They had a pie crust recipe that's pretty ingenious - uses vodka as part of the liquid. Why? Water + flour = gluten = tough crust. Alcohol & flour doesn't create gluten, so you get more liquid into the dough, making it easier to handle & roll out, without making it tough.

PURE genius. I'ma try that with Applejack and make turnovers. Mmm.

Quote:

Originally Posted by grumio

Probably the sickest thing I've done with c- butter was puff pastry. ...: making puff pastry is an acquired skill...

(in best action comic voice

PUFF PASTRY SKILLS ACQUIRED!!!! *shoop

Quote:

Originally Posted by grumio

Funny - I got started cooking on Indian food too...

IMVHO, the collected cuisines of the Indian subcontinent make the most rich, delicious, ingenious and diverse culinary contribution the world has ever seen. The creative ways of using complementary grains, pulses, and spices to promote health and overcome spiritual or economic dietary restrictions are astonishing, and no matter what you do or do not eat, within Indian cuisine you will never want for a good hearty meal. And the methods of preservation that cope with weather that can be quite hot and humid are clever. Yoghurts and pickles and chutneys, oh my!
And then next in line would be the Mediterranean coasts' dishes.

grumio · #39 (**permalink**) Jun-29-2008, 13:39

ROFL - isn't there some program you can jack into where Laurence Fishburne teaches you how to make puff pastry?

Ok you have GOT to check this out. I did the lime pickle with ginger. Fantastic. Not quite hot enough. Which is not something I expect to say about a recipe which calls for THIRTY THAI BIRDSEYE CHILIS.

I'm with you - my desert island cuisine is Indian. Also, I have a theory - Indian vegetarian cuisines work so well because they never had meat in them in the first place, as opposed to some other vegetarian cuisines which always seem to be trying to make up for or work around the fact that they can't use meat.

You want details on the vodka pastry crust?

Oh & re the lime pickle recipe, regardless of what the OP says, it is in fact fermentation that makes pickles, and not the "goodness of the sun."

You have McGee?

**stinkyattic** · #40 (**permalink**) Jun-29-2008, 15:16

That's not a bad looking pickle! Yup, fermentation and other actions of yeast and bacteria are the KEY to hot-climate food preservation.
And I think you are dead on the money about the traditional vs. modern vegetarianism being the reason behind the seeming effortlessness of it all.

Pastry crust details would be great; you should start a pastry and pie crust thread. The crust itself opens up a whole new avenue for THC infusion into recipes... think about it... for us traditionalists, a short-pastry pie crust with THC-infused LARD and applejack? Mmm! And for the Betty Crocker generation, Chocolate cream pie with a Mint Green Dragon oreo cookie crust?

grumio · #41 (**permalink**) Jun-29-2008, 16:43

Here's a link to the original Cook's Illustrated recipe. You'll need to sign up for their 14-day free trial, & there's tons of great stuff on their site. If that doesn't work I'll be happy to type it up for you.

Prepping for a bbq this afternoon (made the pulled pork yesterday & it is unbelievably good), more later.

dragonrider · #42 (**permalink**) Jul-23-2008, 18:20

I made a bit of this clean cannabutter yesterday. I didn't use the recommended 2 grams per tablespoon, only about half that --- used 4 grams of bud with a half stick (4 tbs) of butter.

The washing process really does clean it up a lot! The first wash water got very cloudy, but each wash was progreessively cleaner, and the resulting butter got progressively less opaque each time. Even using the coffee filter, I was not able to get absolutely ALL of the plant material out. There must be some amount of extremely small plant "dust" in the butter that makes it through the filter screen. And not all of the smell is gone either --- there is still a kind of herbal smell. In fact it reminds me a bit of a sage butter I made the other day for a delicious herb-crusted pork loin. Mmmmmmm...pork.

One difference that I tried was to do a first extraction using 2 tbs butter and the 4 grams of herb. Then filter that, save the butter and wash water in one container, throw the "mash" back in the extraction jar with a second 2 tbs of butter and new wash water for a second extraction, then combine both portions of extracted butter and wash water. I always hate to think there might be any good stuff left in the mash, so for almost evey kind of extraction I do, I extract twice and combine the extracts.

Another difference was that instead of using the jar, I used a pyrex measuring cup. I didn't have any glass jars that I trusted enough to shake when full of scalding hot water, so I used the cup and just stirred it really well now and then.

I have a few questions:

Will the small amount of organic stuff still in the butter be a problem if I try a caramel recipe? It really is very little material left in the butter, but I can see it, and I don't want to blow a batch. If I do need to get rid of it, what do you recommend? I could do one more wash and try the coffee filter again, but this stuff already made it through the filter once.

If the caramels aren't going to work out, I will triy a batch of brownies. I tried a new brownie truffle mix from Trader Joes the other day (just the regular brownies, not "special" in any way) and it was delicious! The recipe calls for butter, instead of oil like many mixes do, so it would be perfect I think for using the cannabutter.

If I do make the caramels, how is that usually dosed? For example, I have a recipe for caramels that uses the 1/2 stick of butter that I have made, and it makes a bit more than a pound of caramels. I've never made this recipe, so I'm not even sure what a pound of caramels looks like --- are caramels usually served in 1-ounce pieces? Or maybe 1/2 ounce? Does anyone know how many normal-sized pieces of caramel a pound of caramel makes, and is cannabutter from 4 grams of good weed going to make a reasonable dose per caramel? I'm trying to get somewhere in between having to each a ton of candy to feel the effects, but not so strong that if you each just a tiny piece you end up in outer space. Any advice on that would be great.

**stinkyattic** · #43 (**permalink**) Jul-23-2008, 19:35

The residue left behind after a coffee filter strain is no biggie. You'll need double dose for caramels but that's still also totally fine, especially if you have a sweet tooth- they taste SO yummy that you will probably wnat to pop a couple lol! Just DON'T LET THE SUGAR SCORCH!!!

dragonrider · #44 (**permalink**) Jul-23-2008, 19:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by stinkyattic

The residue left behind after a coffee filter strain is no biggie. You'll need double dose for caramels but that's still also totally fine, especially if you have a sweet tooth- they taste SO yummy that you will probably wnat to pop a couple lol! Just DON'T LET THE SUGAR SCORCH!!!

Thanks for the info. Now I'm torn. I'll have to decide between caramels and brownies. I hope people feel sorry for me.

One more question about caramels: How well do they store? And what is the best method of long-term storage? The recipe I have says they keep for weeks but are best right away. One batch would last me a LONG time. Would it be OK to freeze or refrigerate some portion of them? Seems like there might be some kind of problem with condensation whan pulling them back out of the freezer.

I will definitely avoid scorching! If I'm going to make caramels, I'll need to get a candy thermometer.

**stinkyattic** · #45 (**permalink**) Jul-24-2008, 06:52

Make them on a day when the air is quite dry, or in an air-conditioned room.
Wrap them individually in waxed paper immediately, and put them in mason jars with some rice in the bottom, then put them in the refrigerator. They get melty at room temperature, and tend to scavenge humidity from the air.
Yeah. I feel sorry for you...

lol

daihashi · #46 (**permalink**) Jul-25-2008, 08:47

Just wanted to add this little tidbit:

Yesterday I went to make some Cannabutter when I realized I had broken my potato ricer the last time I made butter (squeezed too hard) so to the store I went to find a replacement. After going to 4 different stores I could not buy a potato ricer.

Then I came across a french press. I bought it up and put it to use. The very fine screen in the french press filters out nearly 100% of all the plant matieral.

I also bought a permanent coffee filter that was more like a silk screen as opposed to metal.

The result is a 100% clean cannabutter. No plant material what so ever. It is a beautiful pale green/pale yellow green (I haven't even washed it yet. Just the initial cooking) and will probably get even lighter.

I will be making some cookies for a trip I'm taking this weekend and I'll report back with pictures of the butter and the results of my latest batch. Wish my luck.

Bsmack · #47 (**permalink**) Jul-26-2008, 02:59

Stinky, i had a question about the type of bud i use in my cannabutter. If i use a high quality bud, (around here in CT i get something called beasters which is equavlent to probably decent headies, its indoor indica strain im pretty sure) then can i use less bud and a larger amount of butter then the ratio you suggested? Would this give me a decent, long lasting high still? Or is it just worth it buying an ounce of mids and using that to make cannabutter at the ratio you suggested. I fear that im not going to feel the effects of the cannabutter and not make my butter potent enough.

Thanks

dragonrider · #48 (**permalink**) Jul-26-2008, 03:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by stinkyattic

Make them on a day when the air is quite dry, or in an air-conditioned room.
Wrap them individually in waxed paper immediately, and put them in mason jars with some rice in the bottom, then put them in the refrigerator. They get melty at room temperature, and tend to scavenge humidity from the air.
Yeah. I feel sorry for you...

lol

Thanks for the advice. I'm leaning toward the caramels, not the brownies. I think I'll make the special caramels and a batch of just regular brownies to eat when I get the munchies. I'm gonna get fat.

**stinkyattic** · #49 (**permalink**) Jul-26-2008, 09:09

Hi bsmack and welcome!
Let's talk Beasters. I loathe them- really, truly, despise the damn stuff. Now, I'm up in MA and what we get as 'Beasters' can mean one of 2 grades of Canadian, and only one is correct:
Both are smei-compacted, but not bricked.
Both have a very uniform and rather furry appearance.
Both are grown indoors in Canada, but there the similarities end.

There's a grade of bud I've seen tagged as the Beast that is actually really nice, with VISIBLE SURFACE CRYSTALS and a perfectly nice high. It's actually not Beasters at all; it is grown further East and comes over in the St. LAwrence region. I like it, and I have a couple zips right now, lol! It's not really 'Nooks' because it is indoor herb, but it's desirable. I pay $800/qp for it and consider it a really respectable substitute for when I run out of homegrown.

The one that is TRULY Beasters looks pretty but if you inspect it carefully, you see that the surface seems to have few to no crystals on it, but if you break it open, you find that some ARE visible... WTF! you might ask? Simple. These things are grown by mostly gangs of SE Asian immigrants in British Columbia, in warehouses, from a strain called M39, which was bred for yield yield yield- did I mention yield?- and is actually upposed to run 9 weeks, but they chop as soon as bulk is attained, dry kinda half-assed, and then -this is the kicker- tumble the buds in screen drums to let the trichomes fall through. Basically, real Beasters are a byproduct of the hash trade, if you look at it that way, lol! Also, the early harvest means an uneasy up high with a hard crash.

If you have the former, save it for smoking.
If you have the latter... yeah. Go ahead and cook that shit like Iron Chef. And the ratios of butter:bud weight will actually me the same. While that STRAIN may be a higher % THC than a birck commercial strain, the trichome removal evens the playing field a bit.
Otherwise, I'd go with a lower-priced brick product of your choice.

Bsmack · #50 (**permalink**) Jul-26-2008, 14:00

Thanks a lot for the info. Damn i wish i would have the knowledge about them as you apparently do lol. Im pretty sure the beasters i get are the ones that you said you buy when you run out of homegrown. The beasters that i get i know are grown in the USA and go for about 850 a QP so it sounds about right. You can also see the trichroms all around the bud and inside so im not too sure if its tumbled to make hash before i buy it lol. Ill post a good picture when i grab some next time and let you decide. I wish i could get some better quality bud but for the price its a deal imo. So if i used an ounce of mids then i would be using about 14 grams of butter correct?

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode