Most everyone loves a sweet gummy treat, and when it’s filled up with THC goodness it’s even harder to turn down. These delicious bits of cannabis candy can be a pricey purchase at the local dispensary, so why not try making your own at home? There are a lot of recipes online that say they show you how to make cannabis gummy bears in the home kitchen but results can often be disappointing – Soft, jelly-like edibles that end up turning runny at room temperature or even melting out-right.
So what if you want to make cannabis gummies that have real store-bought quality? Turns out there’s a secret ingredient used by the pros in their weed gummy recipes that makes the difference between a snappy, chewy gummy and a soggy, weepy mess. It’s time to break out your chefs hat and arm yourself with your favorite whisk – We’re going to talk about the science of how to make cannabis infused gummies in your very own home.
What are weed gummies?
On the surface weed gummies look a lot like regular, non-THC gummy snacks, and the temptation can be to look up a regular gummy candy recipe and follow that, simply adding in a bit of concentrate as you go. To understand why that won’t work let’s discuss candy making for a moment.
Candy making is, at it’s most basic level, the act of taking sugar and cooking it until it melts; add nothing (or a bit of water) and the sugar turns into a brittle hard candy when it cools. Add gelatin and the sugar will set into a gelatinous or spongy form, resulting in gummies or marshmallows. Add an oil or fat, such as butter, and you get a chewy, soft caramel. And it’s right there where the problem comes in.
THC concentrate of any fashion is always an oil; even THCA diamonds and shatter, both of which are set and hardened, turn into an oil on applying heat. Once you add enough oil to your candy it will not set properly – Oil does not want to combine with the hard, crystalline candy structure, a process referred to as “emulsification”. Without proper emulsification you’ll get candy that’s runny, tacky to the touch, or weeps liquid.
Why make THC gummies?
Smoking is the most common way of getting consuming cannabis — and for good reason. It’s easy, fun, and more or less 100% of the time it works every time. But comparing smoking weed and eating edibles is like comparing water polo and synchronized swimming — they’re both played in a pool and both are good ways to waste the whole afternoon, but they’re still very different sports.
When you eat edibles, the high can be totally different from smoking. It’s an immersive experience that you can feel tingling across your whole body, creating a happy, giggly, often downright euphoric feeling that can have you glued to the couch or laughing at the screensaver on your TV for hours. Because they can take well over an hour to kick in and the high can last for a few hours, they may not be the most convenient everyday sort of high, but make no mistake — edibles can be well worth it.
Also, if you’re trying to avoid smoking but still want to get high, or you’d like a way to take your medicine without stinking up the house, edibles are a convenient treat that’s hard to beat.
You’ll need the following
- ⅛ oz Cannabis flowers (10 – 12 grams ABV/ Rosin Chips)
- ½ tsp Sunflower/ Soy Lecithin
- ¼ cup Coconut Oil
- ½ cup Water 1 oz Unflavored Gelatin
- 1 pack 6 oz Jello (any flavor)Decarb Cannabis:1
Grind, manicure and decarboxylate cannabis in an oven safe dish in an oven preheated to 250° F for 25 minutes.Infuse Oil2
Combine the decarbed cannabis, crumbles rosin chips (if using), Sunflower (Or soy) lecithin and coconut oil in oven safe container and mix. Cover, put in a water bath and place in oven still set at 250° F for 2 hours. (Remove and stir halfway through.)3
Remove the oil from oven and let cool for a couple minutes then strain the oil through a fine mesh strainer or filter. Press the oil out of the cannabis. Measure out ¼ cup for the recipe.Make Gummies4
In a small saucepan over medium heat combine the water and the infused oil and whisk together as you bring it to a boil.5
Whisk in each container of the unflavored gelatin one at a time while continuing to whisk.6
Whisk in the flavored gelatin and keep stirring for about 5 minutes and bring to a rolling boil.Mold Gummies7
Reduce heat to low, spray molds with cooking spray. Fill each mold to the top with a dropper or spoon. Keep stirring your mix periodically.8
Place molds in freezer for 20 minutes or fridge for an hour to firm up.9
Unmold the candies to enjoy right away or store in airtight containers for 2 – 3 days at room temperature. Freeze for extended storage.
Safety with gummies and other edibles
Most seasoned edibles consumers probably have a story that reads as follows: I ate the gummy and nothing happened so about an hour later I took more and then it all kicked in and uh….I need you to come pick me up.
Edibles can easily take about an hour and a half or more to kick in so patience is key. If you don’t feel anything after an hour, just kick back and wait. Your metabolism may be slower or perhaps you still had a full stomach when you ate the edible. Either way, when eating edibles, your best bet is to just start with a small dose or the typical amount you take, and then just be patient and wait.
Another thing to keep in mind when making cannabis gummies is safety. To an unsuspecting child they’ll look and taste more or less just like regular gummy bears. To avoid a trip to the emergency room and a call from Child Protective Services, make sure to keep your weed gummies safely sealed and stashed away from any little ones in the house.
Both THC and CBD are fat-soluble, which means they need to be consumed in fat in order to be metabolized by the body. When making cannabis oil, the THC, CBD, and all types of other cannabinoids, terpenes, and flavonoids are infused in the mix, which can then be broken down by the body.
My uncle has diabetic nerve pain in his feet so we made him a batch and they really helped. Great recipe. Thanks!