Making ABV Butter

Anyone who uses a dry herb vaporizer should always save any ABV (Already Been Vaped) also known as AVB (Already Vaped Bud). The ABV still contains THC and other Cannabinoids that can, with some preparation, still be used.  Many people just dispose of this waste and miss the opportunity to get baking and make some ABV edibles.

Below I am going to set out how exactly you can make an easy ABV butter that takes no skill, just a little time and can be used to make all kinds of potent and delicious edible treats. 

No Decarb Required

One of the great things about baking and infusing with already vaped weed is that you will not need to carry out a process called Decarboxylation first. Vaping your bud has already converted the THCa to THC. Normally when making edibles this needs to be completed first and can be a little complex if you do not have either an expensive piece of kit like the Nova Decarboxylator or a very accurate oven.

Butter to ABV Ratio

I have experimented a bit along the way to find a ratio that works for me. What works for you may be different so do experiment. I use 14g of vape waste that is light brown (see above photo) and mix this with 100g of butter. After the ABV Cannabutter is made you are then left with around 80g – 90g of cannabutter. This makes around 30 servings depending on what you decide to make and your tolerance. If in doubt start small and build up. There’s no going back once you have too much!

What You Need

The list of what you need to make this is pretty small, but it is worth making sure you have everything before you start. When I make ABV butter I like to use a crock pot (slow cooker to those of you reading in the UK), this ensures that you do not overheat and burn your ABV butter. It is also the easiest way to make this infusion as you do not need to be constantly checking and stirring. Those of you with cash to burn can also look into buying a Magical Butter Machine to aid the process.

My recipe also uses water, this is added to clean out some of the impurities and remove the bad taste of burnt herb. If you want to go a step further you can wash the bud first.

  • Crock pot (Slow Cooker)
  • ABV/AVB (14g)
  • Butter (100g)
  • Cheesecloth / muslin
  • Plastic Tub
  • Rubber Gloves (optional but are useful)
  • Butter Knife
  • Water
  • Weighing Scales
  • Spoon

ABV Cannabutter Recipe

  1. First, empty your collection of ABV into the bottom of the crock pot. I use 14g of light brown vape poo to 100g of butter. You can also add any stems and sugar leaves you have saved up to this for more potency.  
  2. Add around 500ml of water to the crock pot along with the butter.
  3. Cover and turn onto a low heat. Do not use the higher temperature as this could burn your butter and it will taste dreadful.
  4. Slowly simmer for 24 hours (this will ensure you extract every last Cannabinoid and have no waste what so ever) checking every 6 to 8 hours. When you check give it a quick stir to stop the vape waste clumping and add some water if you feel this has simmered off.
  5. Turn off the heat and, using your cheese cloth, strain all of the butter into the plastic tub. Once it has completely drained give the cloth a little squeeze to get any remaining butter into the tub. This is where you will need the gloves as the liquid is hot and also will turn your fingers green and make them very greasy.
  6. Put into the fridge uncovered for around 8 hours until set. I have covered it before and this keeps the steam in. This has ruined batches as it can create little pockets of dirty water in the final ABV cannabutter.
  7. Using the knife, gently go round the edge of the butter to release it from the sides. Then remove the butter and drain the dirty water into the kitchen sink.
  8. Use your ABV butter to make cookies, cakes, scrambled eggs or add it to your coffee. If you’re feeling lazy you can just spread it on toast!