How to Make Cannabutter

Ingredients & directions

The cannabutter recipe

Ingredients

Equipment A gram scale, heat-safe bowl and saucepan or double boiler, fine sieve, cheesecloth, and a clean lidded container.

Four sticks of butter beside dried cannabis flower and folded cheesecloth

Prepare the flower separately if your recipe calls for activated THC. Follow the decarboxylation guide before heating the butter. Use the cannabutter calculator to estimate potency from your inputs.

Directions

  1. A bowl of crumbled cannabis flower on a kitchen scale beside four sticks of butter

    Weigh the ingredients

    Set out four sticks of butter and weigh the dried flower in grams. Write down the flower weight and any tested cannabinoid content from its label. Break the flower into coarse pieces so the sieve can catch them.

  2. Unsalted butter gently melting in a heat-safe bowl over a saucepan

    Melt over a water bath

    Set a heat-safe bowl over a saucepan of barely simmering water. Melt the butter in the bowl, then stir in the measured flower. Keep the bowl steady and the water below its base.

  3. A wooden spoon stirring melted butter and cannabis in a bowl over a water bath

    Infuse gently

    Hold the water at a gentle simmer for about four hours. Stir the butter occasionally, check the water level, and top it up with hot water as needed. Keep the pan attended and the butter below a boil.

  4. Golden butter pouring through cheesecloth set in a sieve over a glass measuring cup

    Strain, chill, and measure

    Take the bowl off the heat and let it cool enough to handle. Pour through a cheesecloth-lined sieve into a clean container. Measure the recovered butter, then cover, label, and refrigerate until firm.

Storage Label the container with the contents and date. Chill promptly and keep it secured away from children and pets.

Video · YouTubeWatch the cannabutter methodSee the cannabutter method on video.Cannabis videos may require YouTube age verification.Watch on YouTube ↗

After straining

Measure what you actually made

Measure the yield

Four sticks start at 2 cups. Some butter stays behind in the sieve and plant material. Record the recovered amount before it firms, then weigh the butter used in your next recipe for more consistent portions.

Chill and label

Refrigerate the covered butter promptly or freeze it in measured portions. Label it clearly as cannabis-infused and keep it in a locked container away from children and pets.

Edible effects can take 30 minutes to 2 hours to appear. Keep the batch labeled and secured apart from ordinary ingredients.

Common questions

How much cannabutter will four sticks make?

Start with 2 cups and expect less after straining. The amount left in the flower and filter varies, so measure your batch before scaling a recipe.

Why use unsalted butter?

Unsalted butter gives you control of the salt in whatever you bake next. If you use salted butter, adjust the salt in the finished recipe.

Can I know the THC per tablespoon?

The flower label and recovered butter weight support an estimate. The THC potency calculator can estimate strength per portion once you know your batch size. A lab test is how you establish the finished strength.

Sources and safety guidance

Updated

Set it low · Slow cooker option

How to make cannabutter in a slow cooker

A slow cooker can hold the water bath for cannabutter. Start with the same 2 cups of unsalted butter and weighed, prepared cannabis flower from the recipe card. Keep the butter in a separate heat-safe vessel and monitor the bath near 180°F (82°C) for about 4 hours.

Golden butter in a stoneware bowl and jar beside a slow cooker

Set out a slow cooker, a thermometer, a heat-safe vessel compatible with your cooker and a fine sieve lined with cheesecloth. Check the manual for approved inserts, supports, and fill levels. If your cooker cannot safely hold the insert and a steady bath, use the stovetop method above.

  1. Get the butter and flower ready

    Unsalted butter in a small stainless vessel

    Measure 2 cups of unsalted butter. Weigh the flower and write down any tested THC or THCA from its label. If the flower needs preparation, follow the decarboxylation guide and let it cool before using.

  2. Set up the water bath

    Melted butter in a clear heat-safe bowl

    Position the heat-safe vessel so it sits level and cannot tip or float. Add water to the cooker insert around the vessel, leaving the water below its rim and within your cooker’s fill limits. Heat the bath and check it with a thermometer. Melt the butter in the vessel and stir in the weighed flower. Keep the vessel unsealed.

  3. Hold a gentle heat

    A heat-safe bowl holding melted butter inside a slow cooker

    Use the setting that holds the bath near 180°F (82°C), typically low once it is warm. Cover the cooker if the setup allows and monitor for about 4 hours. Check the water level and temperature periodically and stir the butter carefully. Add warm water as needed without splashing any into the butter.

  4. Strain, weigh and label

    Golden melted butter passing through a fine sieve into a clean container

    Switch off the cooker. Lift out the vessel with dry oven mitts and let it cool enough to handle safely. Strain into a clean container. Measure the actual yield, then cover, clearly label, refrigerate promptly and store locked away from children and pets.

Can you tell how strong it is by color? Color and cook time cannot tell you the THC per spoonful. The cannabutter calculator gives a planning estimate from known inputs and finished yield. Lab testing is needed to establish the finished potency. Use labeled products with known strength when portioning an individual recipe.

Further reading Emily Kyle’s slow-cooker water-bath method and CDC guidance on cannabis edibles and locked storage.