How can I figure out marijuana dosages when cooking?
How much marijuana do I use in my cooking?
What is the right marijuana dosage amount to use when I make cannabis butter or marijuana oil?
How Much Marijuana To Use for Edibles is a common theme among the most common questions I get. I get it, especially a s a beginning cannabis cook, it can be tricky.
But it is vitally important to realize that it is impossible for any recipe writer to make an across the board recommendation for the proper marijuana dosage or amount of cannabis a given dish needs to be effective. Far too many variables come into play.
It is important for the cook to always understand that the marijuana dosage listed in the ingredient section of any recipe is only a recommendation that is to be used as a rough guideline.
Marijuana Dosing Considerations
Before you can determine exactly how much marijuana to use for edibles, there are some important key points that need to be understood:
All cannabis is not created equal!
The same amounts of different strains of marijuana will NOT be equal in potency. Identical strains from different growers or even different crops of the same strain, from the same grower, will vary. Just because you have cooked with a given strain in the past does not mean that you will know the strength of the food made from the same strain from a different source. But strength of cannabis is vitally important when determining how much marijuana to use for edibles making. Think it doesn't matter much? Think again and consider the fact that 20% cannabis will yield double the dosage of 10% cannabis!
Aside from potency, every cannabis strain is different, each containing varying degrees of specific cannabinoids. This is why some strains make you sleepy while others make you energetic. If you are cooking with a new strain, test its potency and effects both before cooking and before eating a normal portion in order to estimate its strength.
Everyone experiences the effects of cannabis differently!
Everyone's cannabis needs and tolerances are different. Five mgs THC is going to be too much for some folks, while 100 mgs THC is not going to be enough for others. Most of us are somewhere between those extremes.
The weight of the person eating the food will sometimes alter how much they feel the medication. Naturally, larger people usually need larger doses and small people smaller doses. I say sometimes because again, different individuals have different metabolisms and tolerance levels and likewise react to cannabis in different ways. I do know some thin people with massively high cannabis tolerance levels and some large ones who are cannabis lightweights. Likewise size is not always a reliable metric when it comes to cannabis dosages.
Consuming marijuana edibles on an empty stomach will cause you to feel their effect more quickly and profoundly than if you had consumed them after eating other foods or in conjunction with other foods.
Alcohol can compound the effects of cannabis and for many people the mix of alcohol and cannabis produces an unpleasant paranoid effect. Reduce, or better yet eliminate, alcohol consumption when using marijuana.
Finally, all the dosing numbers and ranges in the world do not mean a thing if you do not know your own personal ideal dosage. Click here to learn how to determine yours.
What if the Marijuana Dose is Too High?
Getting too strong a dose is a common problem, especially with people who are new to using edible marijuana. In fact, there is no easier way to get too much marijuana than by eating it. Because it can take an hour and a half or more for the medicine to take effect (two to three hours if you didn't take it on an empty stomach), some people think it's not working and eat more. By the time it all kicks in they realize they've over done it.
If this happens to you or someone you know, first and foremost, do not panic! It is impossible to ingest a toxic dose of marijuana. Don’t take my word for it. Here’s what the World Health Organization had to say on the subject:
“There are no recorded cases of overdose fatalities attributed to cannabis, and the estimated lethal dose for humans extrapolated from animal studies is so high that it cannot be achieved by users.”
So overdosing on marijuana will not kill you. It just does not work that way in the body. It does not slow your respiratory system or cause organ failure even in extreme doses. So calm down. You don’t need to worry about those things.
That said, it is definitely possible to ingest more marijuana than you need or want. When this happens you may have feelings of uneasiness, anxiety, or even paranoia. You might also feel dizzy, groggy, nauseous, or get chills. Your coordination might be effected and likewise you may have trouble talking clearly and could lose your balance when walking. Some people experience heart rate acceleration, which can further increase the anxiety.
It goes without saying you should not be driving or operating heavy machinery. The most common real danger in over medicating comes in the form of falls or accidents related to impairment of motor skills. Likewise you should especially exercise caution and consult your cannabis physician if you have a medical condition that already causes any of the symptoms listed above. You wouldn’t want to dismiss serious signals your body is sending because you attributed them to over medicating on marijuana.
The best remedy for ingesting too much cannabis is to simply sleep it off. The peak of the effects should take place about an hour after you begin to notice them and then begin to dissipate after that. It's common to feel anxious or hyper active in the first hour, before becoming tired afterwards. Lie down, go to sleep, and when you wake up a few hours later it will all be over. Unlike indulging in too much alcohol, you won't even have to deal with a hangover.
Should you discover a given batch of any recipe is stronger than you want it to be, don't discard it! The remedy is simple, consume a smaller portion next time in order to adjust the dosage downward.
For more information and practical actionable tips, check out What To Do When You Eat Too Much Marijuana.
Homemade Perfectly Dosed Marijuana Edibles Every Time!
Never again will you make marijuana edibles that are too strong or not strong enough. No lab testing required! My free online dosing class will teach you how to determine the dosage in your homemade edibles. does the work for you and a gives you a milligrams of THC (or CBD) per serving for all your favorite recipes when using infusions like marijuana butter or marijuana oil.
After taking my free Marijuana Edibles Dosing class there will be no need to fear the edibles you are eating are too strong…or too weak. You will know in advance how what dose each serving contains.
Imagine cannabis edibles made to your individual needs and specifications. It’s easy when you understand how. No lab testing required!
Even better, my easy to use dosage calculators even do the math for you and make adjusting recipes a breeze!
Marijuana Cooking Dosage Chart
OK, no matter how much I recommend you do so, some people are not going to bother to take the free dosing class or do the math to calculate dosing even with the calculator tool. If that's you, the following chart will give a dose range for using leaf/trim, bud, and concentrates. There is a large range, as you can see. This is because each strain is different, containing a different mix of cannabinoids in varying strengths. The dosage range for concentrates is even wider.
I will stress again that the information below is a very general guideline that needs to be weighed against the factors covered above when determining the amount of cannabis to use in your recipes. The amounts are suggested for a person of about 150 pounds. Try to determine an amount that seems reasonable for your needs, taking into account the strength of the plant material used, your individual tolerance range, and the factors listed above. When you've finished cooking, eat a small amount and wait in order to test the strength of a given batch of edibles.
Cannabis Material Recommended Dosage Range Per Individual Dose
Marijuana Leaf/Trim 1/4 to 1 1/2 grams
Average Bud 1/8 to 3/4 gram
High Quality Bud 1/16 to 1/2 gram
Kief or Hash 1/16 to 1/2 gram
Hi, what if i have 100% pure cannabis oil, what dosage would you recommend if i were to make say 12 muffins? should i make cannabutter with the oil? im just abit weary about the dosage i dont want to use too much
thanks 🙂
When you say 100% cannabis oil what do you mean? RSO/ BHO? It is impossible to tell you how much to use as dosing is a very individualized thing. It will depend on the strength of the oil and your personal tolerance levels. For instance, I need a minimum of 100mg where that would put others under the table. As to whether you can use the oil, sure. No need to make cannabutter for this. Stir into your batter until well combined (warm oil stirs in easier). You are making 12 muffins so in theory 12 servings, now you need to determine how much you need, which is not something someone else can do for you. I would start with a little less than what you inhale per serving and test the waters. Hope this helps.
Maybe I’m missing something here, but is the recommended dosage for kief correct? When the, necessarily broad, dosage of good bud is: 1/8 to 1/2 gram and the dosage for kief is 1/8 to TWO (my caps) grams, with kief being such a denser concentration of trichomes, it just makes me wonder if these amounts aren’t flipped? Any help on this?
Thank you for pointing it out, there was a typo, it should have said (and now does) !/2 (one-half) gram kief on the high end. Somehow the 1/ got left out when we put up the post. Cannabis dosing is such a fine art. The differences in tolerance from individual to individual are astounding. The tiniest amount effects some people profoundly, while others can safely ingest high doses with no ill effects.
Hi, I make edibles on a regular basis w/all foods and have been having a hard time finding the kief to ounce ratio for making butter. I make 2cups of butter at a time in my butter machine. The last time I made kief butter I used 2g for 2cups (recipe from Internet) and it was ok but didn’t seem as strong as when I make butter or coconut oil from buds. So I’m trying to find how much kief equals an ounce of cannabis. I do know it is different w/strains, where it was stored etc but the ratio seems all over the place when I look for it.
I use medical cannabis w/THC in the 20’s and keep my sativa and indica seperate.
The most consistent I see is 2g – 4g kief = 1oz bud. Hoping you can help and was also wondering the CBD ratio of AVB (already vaped materiel) to an ounce if this is possible.
Thanks and Cheers????
Dosing is somewhat of an art, as you are discovering. THe amounts given are always widely varied for the reasons you cite, different strains have different strengths and people metabolize them differently. The amount of CBD will be impossible to know as that will vary from strain to strain. As to the amount of kief, I generally aim for 1/4 gram per serving in a finished recipe, more or less depending on strength and tolerance of the person I am cooking for. I generally do not make butter from kief, but rather skip the process and just add decarboxylated kief directly into recipes, without making the infusion first, although you could also do it that way. So if infusing, I would determine how many individual servings I wanted to get out of the amount of butter or oil I am infusing and dose accordingly. For instance a cup of butter equal 16 tablespoons, if I wanted a tablespoon to be a serving, them I would use 4 grams. Hope this makes sense. However, I think you are doing it correctly by experimenting to find what works best for you, hopefully you are keeping notes too so you will have things to compare to next time.
I want to make muffins and I’m wondering how many grams of THC distillate I should use
I have no idea. For why not, see this article.
https://www.cannabischeri.com/food/cooking-basics/how-much-marijuana-for-a-stick-of-butter/
Thanks for the quick answer, I really appreciate that and appreciate the advice.
What you said does make sense with the dosing amount for kief and is the best answer I have found. I do sprinkle kief on tomato based dishes as I read the THC binds better and I do find it works quickly when sprinkled on spaghetti, etc.
The reason I like to make kief butter is that you don’t have that strong taste of cannabis, though I am finding things that hide taste.
I am always working on recipes and making things that I can eat in the morning and on the go so do like to have my cannabutter, canna coconut oil & canna corn syrup prepared as I never know what kind of day my body is going to have.(spinal cord injury) It’s a lot easier to just pop a lozenge in the morning, although I would like to try something(?) in my morning coffee.
With the CBD I totally get that as I have been trying to figure it out but when I have mixed all the strains in my AVB its a guessing game.
The CBD is mainly for my poor old dog who has arthritis, hip & joint issues, sight & hearing and a cysts on spine and joints. I make her biscuits that are free of dairy & wheat. She has a sensitive stomach as well so the biscuits are made w/things a dog can easily digest. I started her on a very very low dose and slowly increased to the point where she isn’t holding her leg up or limping when walking plus she loves her medicine. I did a lot of research before I put her on them as dogs are much more sensitive than us so no THC, just CBD biscuits.
Yes, I have started taking notes now which is making a world of difference in my successes but do need to start make more detailed notes. It really does make it easier I’m learning. ????
I must say that I love your site. It’s very informative, eye appealing & helpful. I have learned more on your site in the past few days than anywhere else.????
Thanks and Cheers????
Thank you for the kind words. I give my dogs cannabis too when they have needed it. THC and CBD but extremely low doses.
You might also want to check out another site that I am editor for, http://www.SeniorStoner.com. I am not sure of your age, but even if you are not older, there are a lot of great medical articles there, written by my friend Lanny Swerdlow, who is a registered nurse. So you might find some of that information useful in your journey.
All the best,
Cheri
I’m still a bit confused here. How can the dosages for bud and kief be the same?
Hi, the dosages are different and they are used for different purposes. Figure Kief at about 30% -40% the and bud at 10% to 20% the.
Hi Cheri, thanks so much for all the information- your website is great! I cook with kief and love your recipes. Do you know the conversion for kief grams to teaspoons? Thanks very much, Kat
This is a great question. The problem is, one is a weight and one is a volume. So the teaspoon measurement will not be consistent. Different densities of kief or hash may have more or less volume for the same weight. But it will be relatively close.
I will weigh out a teaspoon when I get back to the test kitchen and let you know. At least that will be a ballpark idea.
Thanks for the great question. I think I will have to do a blog post on this topic. How much to use if you don’t have a scale.
I know this is an old thread, but I’m still trying to figure out this answer myself, am wondering if you ever did figure out an approximate conversion of kief to tsp?! MAHALO!
There is no absolute measuring of kief by the tsp. It’s best and more accurately used by weight. Figure about 30%-40% thc when doing calculations.
Thanks Mitch. Waaay back when I used to do some measurements that way, but quickly discovered different densities of kief, depending on strain, have different volumes. So it is best to weigh.
Thanks so much Cheri. I thought there must be a difference in conversion for various dry weights but I couldn’t figure it out.
I’m a medical user so I think my dose for edibles might be higher than some folks. I’m in California and grow my own outside.
I started doing 5 teaspoons dry kief to 1 cup of butter or coconut oil. It was good but I thought making the oil stronger would help me avoid having to eat so many doses. So, I’ve doubled it.
I use dry kief and I do infuse it in oil because it seems to make it go so much further. I decarb in a pyrex bowl with foil and its lid, then I put the oil ( with lecithin) right in that dish and cook on low in the oven for a few hours.
After it cooks, and after it cools, I put that same dish in the freezer.
The kief has settled to the bottom. When I take it out frozen I just cut the dark bottom part filled with the kief residue off and wrap the clean frozen oil above up to use later.
I take the dark funky kiefy part and fill capsules with it. Works really well when half frozen- the capsules pack easily.
The oil above is extremely clean and tasty. I do cook off the dairy proteins before using butter so I don’t have that stuff in the bottom with the kief residue. (So, I use coconut oil more often because I’m lazy.)
This process has been very effective for me, but I want to share my edibles with another patient and need to know more about dosing. I’ve watched your video and it’s very helpful.
Thanks again for everything, Kat
Great site! Any suggestions for how to infuse a large quantity leaf/trim into a lowish amount of coconut oil? Would splitting the leaf/trim up and doing several repeat infusions be the best way? Or possibly using an oil/water mix to accomodate the extra trim? Thanks in advance
I lik using water in my infusions, so I woul go with that.
I had one ounce of alright pressed hash and infused into 16 ounces of honey…and then today mixed that same 16 oz infused honey with a 5 lb jug of organic honey with a little bit of canna oil in there also because someone told me it was a waste because THC won’t bind to honey…but it looks potent and smells it and I’m too high to judge right now…but it does look excessive on too potent is that true?? Or is my buddy right and it’s a waste?
It is not a waste. Your friend is correct that THC binds better to fat, but there are many fat free foods that are infused and potent. I usually advise eating these along with another food or drink that contains some fat though.
Can you cook keif and hash togeher in butter? I have abt .5 gr keif, could I add 1-2 gr hash at the same time? Or start the hash cooking while I decarb the keif? Also, for someone wih a high tolerance, would you reccomend those amounts for 1 or 2 sticks of butter? (Nestle TollHouse cookies / if 1 stick will cut the recipe in half).
Thanks!
Yes you can mix kief and hash together. As to how much to use, it depends on the strength and your tolerance level. It sounds like it should come out strong, but how strong? Use my free dosing calculator tool and run some numbers on what you are cooking with and your recipe. http://www.Cannademy.com
Thanks! I can’t find any good info on how much THC I should expect from the keif and hash. The kief is all from high-quality buds (over 14% THC)., mainly sativas, and the hash hihgh but not top quality…
If you know the percentage (you mentioned 14%) then use the dosing calculator at http://www.Cannademy.com the same way, input the THC percentage, the amount you will use will be less than infusions. If you are adding kief or hash directly to the recipe without first infusing it into a butter or oil, just enter a 1 in those fields and it will carry the math down (I hope this makes sense, I think it will when you do it).
Also, would that come out strong at ~200 gr butter? Or would it be better to cut it in half? I want to impress someone…
Sorry, I am not sure what you are asking me here. Amounts to use differ though depending on the tolerance level of the person using it. People are DRASTICALLY different. A 10 mg dose is too much for some folks while 100 mgs is not enough for others.
I have really top shelf stuff, however it knocks my block off. I purchased some CBD and was going to add 1 drop to the oil. I wanted to use the oul as medicinal but not be stoned, too old for that, but more for pain relief. It is Durban Gold
The more CBD you add, the more the psychoactive effects of the THC will be mitigated. At least in theory. As always I will add the disclaimer that everyone reacts differently to cannabis.
Hey there, after reading several articles about how to properly make cannabis infused coconut oil I’ve begun the process. However many articles are contradicting in one way or another so I’ve tried to take them all into account as to have a general guideline to go by. I used about 20-25 grams of shake with a low THC percentage , (after grinding it was equivalent to 1 cup of herb) with which I put in a cheese cloth and is now sitting in a slow cooker crockpot on low heat in approximately 2 cups of coconut oil. From what I’ve read I’m stiring the oil every 45minutes and slow cook the oil for4-5 hours, while flipping the cheese cloth half way through cooking time. I guess what I’m asking is does anyone have any suggestions to help me create a more successful batch of oil?
You are correct, there are many methods. There is no one correct way. What you are doing sounds like it should work, what is it you are not happy about in the finished product? For me I would skip the cheesecloth while infusing — just put the plant material in the pot and use the cheesecloth to strain later. I do not like to finely grind my plant material either as what you are extracting is on the plant not in it and fine grinding just puts more plant material (and yucky taste) into your oil. I would also suggest decarboxylating the plant material first. It will debarb during infusing but lab tests show slightly more potency by decarbing first. Here is a link for more instructions. https://www.cannabischeri.com/food/cooking-basics/how-to-make-marijuana-oil-stovetop-and-slow-cooker-methods/
Hi, how do I work out my dosage if I’m using just hash and keif, it can’t be the same as using weed. Sometimes I use 24g of weed and 3 g of hash, Sor far I’ve added on 7g for every 1 g of kief or hash, I thought it would take about a quart to make 1g of kief.
Dosing with hash and kief is covered in my full cooking course and advanced dosing course, but the formula is the same, the only thing the changes is the percentage of THC (usually in the range of 40-60%).
I took 7 grams of shake and decarbed it for a hour in a mason jar at 240 for a hour, burping it and shaking the bud so it rotates every 15 minutes (Smelled good as hell when i vent it) then I added a stick of butter (1/2 cup) put the oven to 220 and baked for 3 hours shaking it every 20 minutes and burping it.. strained with a cheesecloth and I’m not sure how strong it is? It was Lemon G with about 13% thc a.. it came out to about 3 oz of Cannabutter so somehow i must cooked off a oz? But anyway looks good but bottom looks like keif I’m wondering if i didn’t strain it enough? And now that i have the Cannabutter will i burn the thc off if i cook with it? I think you said 375 is the highest you can cook with it and that’s what the recipe calls for but i might just do it at 365 so i don’t burn it trying to make cookies..
What is at the bottom is likely bits of plant material. but you can strain again if you like. As to temps, you can cook at higher temperatures as long as the food itself does not get that high, and it usually doesn’t (for instance a Thanksgiving turkey spends hours in the oven at 350 or more but when cooed is only about 160 degrees F).
How much of a tincture do I use, and what can I use it in? I used your recipes to debarb, then soaked it in 180 proof Everclear. But the dosage chart above does not mention tincture, nor can I find any recipes using the tincture. I am new to all this, so I just amde a tiny amount of about .25 of a gram bud steeping in less than a 1/4 cup of alcohol. Thanks.
The calculations are actually quite easy using the dosing calculator from Cheri’s FREE dosing course at http://www.cannademy.com.
.25 gram of bud, if it’s 10% THC (this is just a guess), is 25mgs of THC. If you put it in 1/4 cup (2 oz) of alcohol that means your tincture will be about 13mgs THC per ounce. That’s actually not too strong when you are using only drops to medicate with. I hope this helps.
Thanks for replying Mitch. Perfect.
Is 1 gram of kief and a stick of butter about the right ratio for a beginner.
I have no idea. There is no such thing as a right ratio “for a beginner” or anyone else because there is NO SUCH THING as an ideal dose that works well for everyone. I state this over and over and over again, but people seem to have a difficult time grasping the concept that ALL marijuana dosing is highly individualized. I know this is not the easy answer you are looking for, but it is the truth. Five mgs THC will be too much for many people while others will need 100 mgs or more.
That said, how much kief is in your butter is not so important as to much butter is in each dose of your finished edible. My dosing calculator, included with my free dosing mini course can help. I go into more dosing with kief and hash in the paid advance course and comprehensive cooking course, but figure your THC percentage in kief between 40-50% depending on quality and use the calculator accordingly. Find all my online classes and courses at
http://www.Cannademy.com
But before that, I suggest doing some experiments to determine what your individual dosing needs are. This article will help.
https://www.cannabischeri.com/mary-jane/learning/how-much-marijuana-how-to-determine-your-ideal-cannabis-dosage/
Is 1 gram of kief and a stick of butter about the right ratio for a beginner.
I love your site and I appreciate your FREE dosing course, I try to help people that are terrified of edibles understand the importance of careful dosing and responsible consumption of cannabis infusions.
This information should be available to everyone, for free and by gosh, it is.
Thank you Cheri, you’re my new hero!!
Awww, thank you! Keep teaching. Edibles are great, but you are right, too many people get turned off to them before they ever realize the benefits of them. Dosing is different for everyone and not just a little different, DRASTICALLY different. I have a new post and video coming out this Wed about just this topic.
Hey, love your site.
I decarbed about 2 grams of 23% THC and am now cooking it on low in about a third of a cup of olive oil.
Think I’ll get anything out of it?
Hope you’re having a great weekend.
Of course!
Depending on how well you decarbed, that third cup of olive oil should have between 340 – 360 mgs THC.
It’s a blatant lie that a person can’t due from too much cannabis. THC is reputed to be one of the most toxic chemicals in cannabis.
That is utter NONSENSE! It is a blatant lie to say that anyone has died of cannabis. There has never been a single death credibly attributed to cannabis. THC is far fro toxic, it one of the powerful therapeutic substances known to man. Do your research and stop drinking the Kool-Aid.
Hi Cheri! Your site is amazing! If I was using Marijuana Leaf/Trim and making canna butter how much shake would I need to include to get a 12 ounce mason jar at 3,000 mg THC?
I am not sure, but you can figure that out. First estimate the THC percentage in your trim (see this article https://www.cannabischeri.com/mary-jane/learning/what-is-marijuana-shake/).
Next take by free dosing class and use the dosage calculator tool to play with the numbers until you come up with the amounts that give you the dosage you need.
https://cannabischeri.teachable.com/p/precise-marijuana-edibles-dosing