London born and bred, West Ham through and through. And I love a smoke, it's totally against my religion, but hey, this is a religion in itself!
I've seen quite a few forums, but this is for LED growers (I've just got my Helios 6 from Quantum LED), and it's quite new, and everyone seems like a nice bunch... no haters (yet). So I'm here to stay, and learn and share.
I picked up this recipe for something called Green Dragon... it came with all sorts of warnings, but looks reasonably simple and safe to make. I'm gonna do some for Christmas to brighten things up a bit at the In-Laws.
I have to admit, I've not made it yet, but I had something similar in Thailand once, and it was the bollocks. I would love to hear what you think... give it a try!!
This is a simple and efficient 4 step process.
Ingredients
* 1/8 oz high quality weed (an eighth)
* 2oz Bacardi rum 151 proof
Process summary
1. Chop weed very fine (coffee grinder)
2. place in a shallow baking tray (or Aluminium foil) and bake at 325F for 5 mins.
3. Remove from oven and place weed in 2 oz of 151 proof Bacardi rum.
4. Simmer in water bath for 20 mins at 170F
5. Strain mixture and store
Dosage
1ml is very nice, 2ml is a knockout and effects take 1.5hrs to begin and last for 7-8 hours (2ml). Mix a ml or 2 in a small amount of water and drink it on an empty stomach or 30 mins before a meal.
Reasoning
Baking at 325F converts THCA (tetrahydrocannabolic acid) to THC via a decarboxylation reaction. In whole plant cannabis, THC content is actually expressed as THCA prior to decarboxylation into THC when the cannabis is heated during cooking or smoking. THCA is a mild analgesic and anti-inflammatory but does not have a good affinity to our CB1 receptors. In order to make a THC rich tincture (with the same theraputic effects as smoking or ingestion), it is necessary to convert THCA into THC before extracting it in an alcohol soak.
As THC vapourises at 380F, you bake at 325F max. 5 mins in gas on foil, longer if electric and on a thicker pan or cookie sheet.
Use the highest proof alcohol available. 151 is the max and bacardi do it, there are other makes though.
Simmering in alcohol is a concern. If you were to extract UNBAKED cannabis, you would have to soak and wait for 2-6 weeks! I had some in Thailand years ago, the Guy had it buried in his garden, and it was like tar, but WOW.
Baking and then simmering in alcohol improves the efficiency and extraction rate. The boiling point of ethanol is 173F so we heat the bath to just below that at 170F. It's safer in a hot water bath. Place 1 inch of water in a wide vertical edged pan (9" diameter, 3" high). Bring the water to a low simmer. The rum/weed mixture should be in a small 1 pint jar uncovered. Use a thermometer and the alcohol should be barely boiling. Use good extraction. After 20 mins, the alcohol should reduce by half. If you leave it longer, it just concentrates it even more
Strain and store. You should be left with about 1oz green dragon after straining and then squeezing the pulp in a garlic press. A standard eyedropper will dispense about 1ml or 1g of liquid, and there's 29ml in 1oz. You should get around 30 or so full eyedroppers of green dragon. It should be greenish brown (more brown than green), if it's emerald green and smells like grass from the chlorophyll, then the baking time wasn't enough.
Good luck and enjoy.
