How To Make Cannabis-Infused Olive Oil

There was a time when making high-quality edibles at home was seen as a near-impossible task. With many people's first attempts resulting in coarsely ground bud in brownies or cookies, it was enough to put anyone off.

However, while mistakes have been made in the past, thankfully, this is no longer the case with today’s edibles. The technology behind cannabis concentrates has certainly come a long way in recent years, allowing you to create almost any edible you can think of. In this article, we’ll be taking a look at how you can create a flavourful, THC-rich cannabis olive oil.

What Is Cannabis-Infused Olive Oil?

As the name suggests, cannabis-infused olive oil is made by submerging cannabis in cooking oil to produce a product you can use for cooking, baking, or simply drizzling on whatever you choose. Cannabis-infused olive oil is long-lasting and has many uses.

Since most store-bought edibles have a short shelf life, there has been huge demand for products that can be used over a longer period of time. This has led to a resurgence of crafting edibles at home, such as cannabis flour, cannabutter, cannabis coconut oil, and other cannabis-infused fats and oils.

While infusing may seem like a tricky task, it needn't be! We'll give you a step-by-step guide shortly on how to do it. But first, what are the advantages and disadvantages of using cannabis-infused oil?

Advantages of Cannabis-Infused Olive Oil

• Long-lasting: Like most edibles, a little goes a long way, and this is no different with cannabis-infused olive oil. All you’ll need to add is a splash to meals or baked goods to benefit from all that cannabis goodness. Plus, you can infuse as much oil as you'd like to ensure you don't run out any time soon.

• Versatile: Whether added to salads, pizza, or just having a spoonful, the applications of cannabis-infused olive oil are only limited by your imagination.

• Good for you: There's a reason olive oil is such a prominent ingredient in the Mediterranean diet. Olive oil has many health benefits and contains a large amount of antioxidants.

• Easy to make: While there may be a little trial and error involved in the first batch, infusing olive oil with cannabis is a relatively easy process. The only difficult part is choosing which strains to put in it!

• Potency: While most store-bought edibles have set levels of potency, with oil, you can add as much or as little cannabis as you like.

Disadvantages of Cannabis-Infused Olive Oil

• Potency: This benefit can also be its downfall. Like most edibles, it can be easy to overindulge and experience a much more intense and long-lasting high than you bargained for. Take your time and proceed with caution.

• Preparation: Although easy to make, the process will certainly take longer than lighting up a joint or pulling from a vaporizer.

Does Cannabis Oil Get You High?

Unless you select a high CBD strain specifically, cannabis-infused olive oil will contain THC, so you will certainly get high from ingesting it. Obviously, you can also opt for CBD-heavy strains to eliminate the chance of getting high, or choose a 1:1 strain to benefit from both cannabinoids. But, ultimately, if you’re going the traditional route, and follow the directions correctly, your canna olive oil will get you stoned.

How to Make Cannabis-Infused Olive Oil

While it may feel like a daunting task to make cannabis-infused olive oil, it is in fact pretty straightforward. With just a few ingredients and pieces of equipment, coupled with a little bit of patience and spare time, you'll have an infused olive oil you can use again and again.

What to Consider Before You Start

Before tossing your weed in some olive oil, you’ll first need to decide what strain to use. Perhaps you’d like to complement the natural flavour of the olive oil with an earthy or “cheesy” strain, or you can go rogue with a sweet option. It’s totally up to you.

Second, you need to decarb your cannabis. Decarboxylation is the process of heating cannabis to the point at which its active constituents (THC, CBD) become viable. This happens automatically when applying a flame to the end of your joint, but when cooking, we have to take a different route.

POT by NOIDS Herb Cooker

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Grind your cannabis into coarse pieces—don’t go too small or powdery—and lay the pieces on a baking tray covered with parchment paper. Place in the oven for 45 minutes at 110°C. Give the cannabis a good stir a couple of times throughout, and allow it to cool for a bit once out of the oven.

Ingredients & Equipment

• Olive oil
• Cannabis (ground and decarbed)
• Strainer (cheesecloth)
• Slow cooker, saucepan, or double boiler
• Large bowl
• Sealable glass bottle for storage

Directions

1. Measure out the olive oil and cannabis. As a rule of thumb, work by a ratio of 2:1 oil:cannabis. You can always add more, but to begin with, stick to this rule and you can't go wrong. So, for example, you could infuse as little as 2 cups of oil with 1 cup of ground bud.

2. Place the oil and cannabis concoction into a slow cooker or saucepan and heat gently for a couple of hours, making sure it doesn’t boil or smoke (this will damage the cannabis and also affect the flavour of the oil). With any signs of bubbling, simply turn down the heat.

   Alternatively, you can use a double boiler to avoid your oil making any direct contact with the heat. Instead, the oil will be heated by the steam from the water below.

3. After about two hours, turn off the heat, and let the oil cool down naturally. Once cooled, strain the oil and cannabis through the cheesecloth into a large bowl.

4. Once strained, decant into a bottle of your choice, and your cannabis-infused olive oil is ready to go.

What Is the Shelf Life of Cannabis-Infused Olive Oil?

Stored in a cool, dark place, your cannabis-infused olive oil will easily last months. Just think of how long your regular olive oil lasts when stored correctly. But it also depends on how often you use it. This flavourful oil might not last long if you keep adding it to your favourite dishes!

Top Tips for Cooking With Cannabis Olive Oil

As mentioned, the uses of cannabis-infused olive oil are only limited by your imagination. From drizzling the oil over a salad to garnishing bruschetta, it will provide that earthy cannabis flavour that complements the other ingredients so well. Drizzle over meat dishes for an added buzz during dinner, or use in baking to add a complex flavour that will have your dinner guests asking what your secret ingredient is.

Dosing Cannabis-Infused Olive Oil

Keep in mind that you really do want to take it slow when it comes to dosing cannabis olive oil. A small amount of oil separates “just high enough” from “uncomfortably stoned”. Toe the line with caution; if you’re drizzling over something small, start with just a teaspoon or less. For larger dishes or social snacks, you can move up to a tablespoon or more. Just use your best judgment, and have fun experimenting!

Adam Parsons

Professional cannabis journalist, copywriter, and author Adam Parsons is a long-time staff member of Zamnesia. Tasked with covering a wide range of topics from CBD to psychedelics and everything in between, Adam creates blog posts, guides, and explores an ever-growing range of products.

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