To save money, I learned how to make crock pot cannabutter (weed butter or ‘budder,’ if you will) that I could use in homemade edibles. I’m not an expert, but I am a cancer patient with chronic pain, insomnia, and anxiety.
When it comes to medical marijuana, I prefer edibles. For me, the pain relief is better and lasts longer. The downside? Dispensary edibles cost a small fortune. So here’s my budget-friendly recipe for how to make cannabutter in a crockpot.
Crock Pot Cannabutter Recipe
The first time I made slow cooker cannabutter, I was overwhelmed with advice. Everyone had a different recipe and a different method. My chemo brain just couldn’t handle all that. I needed a crockpot cannabutter recipe for dummies, so I whittled away until I could identify the most basic steps:
Step 1: Decarb the weed
Time: 30 minutes
If you don’t decarb marijuana before making cannabutter, the effects could be really disappointing. The THC needs to be activated by this simple process, and a few minutes in the oven will do the trick. Here’s what to do:
Materials
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- 6-7 grams of marijuana, ground
- Oven
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 250 °F (120 °C). Place marijuana on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake on the middle oven rack for about 30 minutes.
Notes on Decarbing
The science-y details of decarboxylation can be found here for anyone curious.
Break up whole buds into smaller pieces first. This increases surface area and allows things to heat more evenly.
Some people are very particular about breaking bud, recommending you do it by hand or with a manual grinder. (Get your pieces too small and they might burn or be hard to strain later.)
But because of cancer fatigue, I’m from the School of Do Everything the Easiest Way Possible. I recommend giving whole buds a couple of quick pulses in a clean coffee or spice grinder, being careful not to overdo it.
That said, it’s even easier if you use shake. Shake is essentially just the debris left after trimming and handling buds. There’s no need to grind it because it’s already the perfect size.
Added bonus: because shake’s ugly and contains some stem pieces, it’s a lot cheaper than whole flower.
Step 2: Slow Cook the Weed to make Cannabutter
Time: 3 hours
Materials
- Small crock pot (1.5 to 2 quart capacity)
- Reusable basket coffee filter
- 3/4 c. unsalted butter
- Crock pot liner for easy cleanup (optional)
Instructions
Warm 3/4 c. (1 1/2 sticks) butter in the slow cooker on the lowest heat setting until it is completely melted.
Put the decarbed weed in the reusable filter and place the filter in the melted butter. Steep for about three hours, on low stirring occasionally. The butter will turn murky and green as the THC magic happens.
Turn off the crock pot and let the cannabutter cool for about an hour. The goal is to cool it enough it won’t burn you, but not so much it becomes too thick to strain.
Lift the filter basket out of the cannabutter, letting the liquid drain completely back into the crock pot. If the cannabutter looks disgusting, you’re doing it right. Discard the used marijuana, unless you’ve got plans for the butter-soaked remains.
There may be fine bits of marijuana and really gross looking milk solids floating in your butter. To strain these, simply pour the cannabutter through the emptied filter basket and into a clean container.
After straining you’ll end up with about a 1/2 c. of cannabutter.
Potent Cannabutter Dosing
The most important thing to keep in mind if you’re new to slow cooker cannabutter or edibles in general: YOUR MILEAGE MAY VARY. Start small, give it a couple of hours to kick in, and adjust as necessary.
Effects aren’t immediate. I usually feel them between 90 minutes and 2 hours after I’ve eaten. If, after only 15 minutes you think “this isn’t doing anything” and you keep eating food with really potent cannabutter, you could end up like the cop who made pot brownies and called 911 because he thought he and his wife were dead.
Personally, I find the cannabutter I make using these ratios to be nice and potent. But then I’m really sensitive to edibles. For example, if I use cannabuter as-is on an English muffin, I will only need a pat about the size of a pea. But this could also be suitable if you have a higher tolerance and are microdosing.
How to Portion Edibles
For example, if I make a 9 x 13 pan of brownies with this cannabutter, I will only need a brownie about the size of a mini candy bar (that’s right Mini—the smallest size, not to be confused with her big sister Fun Size).
Since I typically only take weed before bed, a pan of brownies can last 9 months—no exaggeration—saving me literally a thousand dollars over dispensary prices. (Pro-tip: Cut cooled brownies into portions for a full week of edibles, vac-seal, and freeze. I use a FoodSaver.)
Step 3: Use the Cannabutter in Your Favorite Recipe
Time: Varies by recipe
Cannabutter has a distinct flavor that you might find off-putting, especially if you’re a first-timer. I think it tastes the least offensive in things like brownies and peanut butter cookies.
You can use this crock pot cannabutter in any recipe you want, though, not just sweet treats. If it calls for more cannabutter than you have on hand, simply make up the difference with regular butter.
When I make a 9 x 13 pan of Cannabutter Brownies, I use 1/2 c. cannabutter and 1/2 c. regular butter.
You probably already know this, but just in case you don’t: you can replace most fats in your recipes at a 1:1 ratio. So you could swap 1 c. of vegetable oil with 1 c. of melted butter (and therefore cannabutter) if you wanted. What I’m trying to say is: you can also turn that boxed brownie mix in your pantry into something SPECTACULAR.
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Googled how to make cannabutter in a slow cooker, and here it is! Thank you for breaking it down for a noob! 🙂
Happy to share! Hope you enjoy.
I used a crockpot liner
Great idea!
I repurposed a mocha pot.I bought a ‘small butter maker ‘& after inspection I looked at my bigger mocha pot and a ahah moment inspired me to try.
Don’t waste money on a butter making machine and buy a used much cheaper and bigger mocha pot for the same butter expensive machines produce.Cant blame them for making a buckBUT….
In a coffee grinder powder bud.Add to crock pot butter several hours on high stir often let cool pour in ice cube cntrs.No need to toss expensive bud and ice nnever,decarbed it why?Is very strong half bud half butter.Taste so yummy,grat for pain,focus and sleep.ty
Thanks Emily, haven’t made cannabutter in many moons so this was the perfect explanation 🥰
Yay! Glad it was helpful 😁
Thanks for the tips …I don’t throw away the strained kif …I use it to make bliss balls …no seeds or big stalks… I pick them out after its steeped,
then just add melted dark choc about a 250g size and I add variations to change things up golden raisins or cranberries
,mashed up mejool dates,dried mango …even a big table spoon of marmalade once when other ingredients were not available, and all of them are yummy …variation is the nice
tosuit your mood or what’s in the cupbord 😍 The texture is just like coconut dessicated in a cookie or ground almonds ,its fine why waste it …everyone who has tried mine loves them.
This is a perfect, cost-effective recipe. My dispensary sells shake of different bud blends. It is absolutely the greatest butter I’ve ever made and it couldn’t be easier. If you want to take an extra step and double infuse, you can add real vanilla bean, or go savory with things like a bouquet garni. it’s also cost-effective
I use Amish Roll Butter for my cannabutter. It has a higher butterfat content than domestic butters.
Interesting. I’ve never heard of it, but would like to try it! Will be on the lookout for it.
So I am currently following your recipe to end up with half a cup of Canabutter. However, when I make these boxed Krusteaz Meyer Lemon Bars, that only calls for 2 TBSP of melted butter, am I going to end up w super WEAK pot lemon bars?
On the other hand, I could make some bagged Betty Crocker Pumpkin Spice Cookies, that call for 1/2 a cup of butter. These should end up pretty potent as you say?
I can say with certainty the lemon bars would be weaker. What I can’t really tell you is if you’d personally find the cookies to be potent enough. But you can always up your cookie dosage to get where you’re going, provided the extra calories aren’t a problem.
My experience is slow cook in a crock pot over night. I tried the shorter cook time and they were weak but maybe there were other factors??
Thanks for the suggestions! Seems like there are a lot of things that can affect the final result.
I prefer overnight too
Never tried de carbing it, Going to do that next time. Could be the difference 👍
Let us know how it goes!
Oh
How did it turn out without decarbing?
Not sure if this question was intended for me, but I want to answer just in case: it’s just weaker, which is a problem for me because I need to pinch my pennies.
Hi i use stockings to strain the butter and squeeze as much as I can out,I find you end up with more butter
Awesome. Thanks for the tip!
Thank you all for your help this is my second batch I’m making. Hopefully it will turn out better than my first 😃
Oops it’s Cindy 🙄
Fingers crossed for you! 🙂
Thank you so much for your assistance. This is the best information on making cannibus butter for sure!
Glad you found it helpful!
I recall a guide that uses clarified butter (ghee), so it had an extra step before mixing. What are your thoughts?
Might be easier but a little more expensive? Most of this stuff comes down to personal preference. I say try everything until you find your favorite. 🙂
Thank you for this recipe it is helpful. I hope you are doing well
Thank you. Hanging in there.
hi again can I use a cheesecloth to strain it?
Absolutely.
This is a great way to make canabutter. I have tried several different methods and like this the best. I just put everything in the crockpot and strain it with cheese cloth at the end. I think that what you can squeeze out at the end is the most potent as it normally has more tricombs in it. I have also started using coconut oil instead of butter and I think that it does a better job on the extraction process.
I like the idea of using cheesecloth. Pressing with a spatula is not the greatest. Thanks for the tips!
I have made it once before and it was a wile ahi needed a refresher thanks so much
just made my cannabutter following your instructions and turned out really good! thanks so much for sharing
Awesome! Enjoy! 😊
I’m probably a little late to the party, but I have a question.
For context, I live with roommates who aren’t fond of the smell so I don’t really have much access to an oven to decarb. However they do have a toaster over the said I could use.
Would a toaster oven even work? And how long would I have to put the shake in for one of those? Assuming that would work anyway.
I have heard there’s a higher burn risk with a toaster oven, but haven’t tried it myself. Don’t want to steer you wrong, especially if money is a concern.
You can decarb In the oven just use a cookie sheet, mason jar and a small kitchen towel to keep the mason jar still while in the oven. Shake the jar of flower every 25 minutes
I’ve used an air fryer plenty put it in there from 5 or 10 minutes and it works perfect but beware the next time you use the air fryer if it’s not properly cleaned out you will be high as a kite I promise
Whee! 😂
wait what does 1/2 c. Mean? Cup? And how potent will they be?
Yes, 1/2 c. means half cup. The equivalent of one stick (8 tablespoons) of butter in the US.
For me the butter is very potent, but I can’t predict your experience as your tolerance, portion size, type of cannabis, decarbing method, etc. will all influence the final product.
When in doubt, start small as I suggested, particularly if you’re new to cannabis.
If I wanted to make more at a time, say double your recipe..would that change the cooking time as well? The slow cooker we have is 8qt so idk if making such a small amount would burn it over the greater surface area.
Keep the cooking times the same if you’re making larger batches, and you should be fine. When you’re decarbing more flower, just make sure you have pieces that are similar in size and spread them out evenly.
I keep reading to find an easy way to make budder. My question is Do I need to use water?
Do some people prefer to make it with water? Yes. Do you have to use water? No. I make it without.