What Is Decarbing and How You Do It?
Updated: May 3, 2021
A Brief Intro Into Decarboxylating Your Cannabis/Hemp
If you have come to this article, you must have a lot of questions such as what the heck is decarbing? Or why do I need to do this and how do I do it? All of these are very common questions when looking to create your first infusions.
What is Decarboxylating
Let's start at the beginning, in order to understand what decarboxylating is, one note you may be surprised to learn is that the effects of THC and CBD are not immediately active in raw cannabis. Raw cannabis contains THC-A (Tetrahydrocannabinolic acid) and CBD-A (Cannabidiolic Acid).
In order to activate the effects of THC and CBD the "A" (acid molecule) must be removed from the chain. Removing the acid molecule is achieved through a process called decarboxylation ( often called decarbing). Decarbing occurs when an acid molecule is released from the carbon chain, this is achieved through heat and time. When cannabis is inhaled through smoking or vaping, it is instantly decarbed upon combustion. This is not the case when it comes to edibles.
Why Decarboxylate Your Herb?
If you want to create THC rich, potent canna-butter, canna-oil and tinctures, decarboxylating (decarbing) your flower is an important step in the process.
Depending on your method of infusion, if your flower is not decarbed prior to infusion, you will most likely be infusing more THCA than THC into your butter, oil, alcohol or vegetable glycerin. The only outlier is when infusing overnight using the "crock pot" method. If you choose to infuse in 3 hours or less, decarbing your flower prior to infusion will yield a much more potent end product.
How to decarb your flower
When decarbing flower that has not undergone my cleaning process, preheat your oven to 240ºF, spread bud evenly on a sheet pan, and cover with foil. Place pan in the oven for 40 minutes.
If you have pre-cleaned your bud prior to decarbing (following my cleaning process), place damp cannabis on a sheet pan, cover lightly with tin foil and put in the oven for 60-75 minutes at 240ºF. Remove from the oven and check if the flower is dry (it should be bone dry). If it's not completely dry, put it back in the oven for 15 minutes and check again. Repeat the last step until the flower is completely dry (any residual moisture can cause your oil or butter infusion to create mold.)
How to use the Levo hack for decarbing
The first step in the process is to take your Levo potency Increaser (available in our shop), flip it upside down, and place it in the Levo reservoir, making sure that the edges are evenly against the walls of the reservoir. Do not use the small magnet for this process. Place your bud on top of the hack screen and begin the decarbing process by pressing activate (follow the same time requirements mentioned above.)
Once your flower has been decarbed (activated), remove your flower and flip the screen over. Place the Levo magnet on the center of the screen (over the guide ring). The edges should be flush against the reservoir walls. Now place your plant matter on top of the screen and your desired infusion ingredients such as oil, butter, or vegetable glycerin. Infuse. (Click here for my suggested Infusion Time & Temperature guide.)
For Proper dosing please use the THC/ CBD calculator:
http://jeffthe420chef.com/calculator
The 420 Gourmet By JeffThe420Chef:
http://jeffthe420chef.com/cookbook
Website: http://www.jeffthe420chef.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The420Chef/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeff_the420chef
Instagram: https://instagram.com/jeffthe420chef/