Cannabis Shake: What Can You Do With It?

If you’ve ever been to a cannabis dispensary, it’s likely that you have seen or heard about cannabis shake. While it’s clear that shake is a fairly common product, what it is and what you do with it may not be so clear. Luckily, we’ve got some answers.

Cannabis Shake vs. Cannabis Trim

Many people confuse cannabis shake with cannabis trim, but they are not the same. Trim is the bulk of leaves and bud bits intentionally cut off a grown cannabis plant after it’s been harvested. Growers complete this trimming process to create more potent and visually appealing products for consumers.

Shake, however, is all of the loose trichomes that fall off packaged cannabis flower and gather at the bottom of the container it’s in. There’s nothing intentional about it; shake just occurs naturally when flower is moved and handled. Shake generally includes kief—cannabinoid-rich trichome powder—and small buds that have broken off the flower.

You’re probably wondering, “Which is stronger?” Trim has low cannabinoid content, which is why it’s generally not smoked and rather used for other purposes. Considering that shake is part of the flower—and is sometimes very high in the trichomes that house the plant’s THC—it can actually be just as potent as the cannabis it came from. This isn’t always the case though, depending on how long the shake has sat and dried out at the bottom of the container.

Ways to Utilize Cannabis Shake

Shake is very versatile, and many cannabis consumers look forward to giving new life to the little bits at the bottom of their stash. Aside from preventing unnecessary waste, repurposing shake instead of just throwing it away helps you get more bang for your buck. Keep in mind that if you want to reap the benefits of the shake’s cannabinoids (THC, CBD, etc.), you will first need to decarboxylate it.

Smoking

While most people aren’t rolling up cannabis trimmings, it isn’t uncommon for people to smoke their shake. In fact, some folks specifically purchase bags of shake, which is drastically cheaper than top-shelf flower, from dispensaries. Shake is generally considered a lower quality product, but it still has lots of phytonutrients to offer.

Tea

Making cannabis-infused tea is a great way to utilize shake. Simply add your desired amount of shake to the water when preparing your favorite tea and allow it to steep for several hours before straining the plant material. Add sweetener, lemon, or any other additives that you prefer as usual.

Edibles

Cannabis shake can and is commonly utilized to make a wide variety of edibles. We recommend using your shake to make cannabutter, cannabis coconut oil, or cannaflour, which can be substituted for standard butter, oil, and flour respectively in a wide variety of recipes. Remember, when making homemade cannabis edibles from whole plant material, you must first decarboxylate the cannabis to activate the cannabinoids.

Tinctures

Shake is also a very affordable and effective way of making your own cannabis tinctures at home. Tinctures have been made and consumed by various cultures for centuries and are great for microdosing or medicating due to their precise doses. Green Dragon tinctures are one of the most common in the cannabis space.

Concentrates/Oils

Shake’s decent concentration of cannabinoids makes it a great candidate for use in the production of cannabis concentrates and oils. Various extraction methods can be used to turn cannabis shake into concentrates like shatter, wax, rosin, and a variety of oils. Shake can be utilized to make Rick Simpson Oil (RSO) and full-extraction cannabis 0il (FECO).

Bonus Tip: If you create a Green Dragon tincture, you can utilize it to make FECO at home in an Instant Pot with ease!

Salves

Use your shake to create a topical product such as a cream or salve. A simple salve base can easily be made at home utilizing the recipe found here and then added to your favorite existing cream or lotion or to an ingredient such as beeswax to create a thick salve. To customize the topical infusion to your preferences, you can also add other ingredients such as vitamin E and/or essential oils.

Beverages

Want to spice up your favorite beverage? You can add shake to water, vodka, or anything in between (just remember to decarb and finely grind the shake first). Check out some simple instructions for making cannabis-infused milk, vodka, juice, and coffee in this post—just substitute the trim for shake.

Key Takeaway

Cannabis shake is a diverse, semi-potent, and affordable cannabis product that can be used to make a variety of infusions. Or to keep things simple and quick, just smoke it! The quality of your shake might differ from time to time, but you should always be able to find a use for it. If you’re interested in using your shake—either alone or in one of the products suggested in this post—to medicate, talk to a medical cannabis doctor in your state to determine the best treatment plan.