What Is Hashish & How You Can Make Real Homemade Hash

What is hashish, and why do we “need” it so much all of a sudden? 

Like any other industry, the cannabis business is introducing alternative ways of consuming marijuana to gain higher revenues. With the latest trends in cannabis concentrates, hashish fits perfectly.

Since we hope that hashish bars will be present on the shelves of our favorite dispensaries, the time is right to learn something more about hash. 

In this article, we’ll talk about the positive and the adverse effects of hashish, and you’ll also learn how to make it on your own.  

Here’s a closer look at these cannabis “brownies.”

What Is Hash and What Does It Look Like?

Hashish is a drug made by processing and compressing trichomes of the cannabis plant. It has been used in Pakistan, Afghanistan, India, Iran, Morocco, and Lebanon for a long time. It’s also popular in the US and Europe.

Its etymology is linked to the Arabic word hashīsh, which means “dried herb,” although hashish is known under many names (depending on the country and native language).  

For example, hashish in Hindi is called hharas. It’s also known as hasheesh, bhong, and ganja. Its first attestation can be found in a pamphlet published in Cairo in 1123 CE. The pamphlet speaks of Nizari Muslims as the “hashish-eaters.” 

History aside, from the biological point, hash is a concentrated substance made from the marijuana resin, which can come from different species of cannabis (Cannabis Indica, Cannabis Sativa, or Ruderalis). 

Hashish contains a staggering amount of THC. In fact, if we make a hash vs weed comparison, you’ll see that marijuana has 10–20% THC, while THC levels in hashish can range from 20% to all the way up to 60%. In other words, hashish is not suitable for beginners.

That said, hashish can take different forms depending on the production method. Its color varies from dark green or yellow to reddish-brown to almost black. 

For example, opt for Afghani, Kashmiri, and Manali strain if you want to find black hash (on the outside). If you’d instead try greenish or brown hash, go for Moroccan strain.

With regard to how it is obtained, the looks are pretty different. Some hashish bars are dark and shiny, while other hash drug pieces are matte and resemble a piece of soap. 

Hash textures can also vary — some are hard and dry, so they crumble when you break it, while others are more flexible and moist, like clay.

If all other attempts to identify and define hash fail, there’s always the pungent, distinctive smell of smoking resin to count on. 

Hash should always have a robust, earthy, or spicy smell. If it doesn’t, then it most probably isn’t hash at all. The many forms that hashish can take are also a huge problem, as it is hard to discern between the original and the (dangerous) fake.

What Is Kief and How to Use It

If you wish to make hashish completely on your own, then you first have to make yourself some kief, keef, or keif, as it is commonly misspelled.  

Kief is a pollen-like substance located in the trichomes (hairs) of the plant. It’s also known as “Dust,” “Chief,” and cannabis crystal. Most of them are found in the flowers, though they can be present in the other parts as well, but in lesser concentrations. 

When you take a nug, look at the sticky crystals covering it — that’s your kief right there, filled with cannabinoids and terpenes. After using one of the extraction methods, you should get fine, brownish powder that you can use in a number of ways.

Now that you know what kief is, you can use it according to your preference:

• Sprinkle some kief onto your joint, and it will boost its impact. It also works for blunts and Thai sticks.
• Use it to make edibles – due to its potency, you’ll need less of it than you would oil when making your favorite dish.
• Make moonrocks – this is a special type of weed bud dipped into kief.
• Add it to your bong to improve low-quality weed.
• Finally, you can press it, heat it, and make hashish.

And here is just how to do it.

How to Make Hash: Two Basic Methods

There are several ways the weed resin content can be extracted from trichomes and concentrated, and corresponding to this, several types of hashish. 

You can make hashish using two different methods: solventless and solvent-based method.

Solventless Method

This method doesn’t involve solvents. Instead, you need to use mechanical means, such as using your hands to rub the dried herb onto a screen to separate the trichomes. Once you’ve turned the trichomes into kief, you need to heat them and press them into blocks.

Solvent-Based Method

How is hash made using the solvent-based method? You need to extract cannabinoids and terpenes from the trichomes using propane, butane, or CO₂.

Keep in mind that the solvent residue must be purged. To do that, you can use a hot plate to whip it into wax, or you can put it through a vacuum desiccation chamber. We do not recommend using the latter technique since it’s highly flammable and dangerous.

How to Make Hash from Kief

Naturally, first you need to get yourself some kief. You’ll also need a mason jar, parchment or wax paper, scissors, and tape.

Instructions on how is hashish made from kief can be summed up in the following steps:

• Put the kief on the parchment paper. 
• Fold the paper around the hash in squares. You can also use tape to keep the paper tightly folded. 
• Use the scissors to cut off the excess parchment paper. The paper must cover every inch of your kief. 
• Fill the jar with boiled water and fasten the lid. 
• Roll the jar back and forth across the parchment paper for up to 10 minutes. 
• Put the parchment paper in the freezer and leave it there for an hour. This way, the hash will be easy to separate from the paper.
• Take the hash out of the parchment paper.

Easy Way How to Decarb Kief  

Decarboxylation is the process of removing a carboxyl group and releasing carbon dioxide. By decarbing the raw cannabis flowers, you’re basically helping THCA become THC. This process is usually used when making oil and butter.

To decarb kief, you’ll need to follow these two steps: 

• Put the kief on an oven-safe dish.
• Put the dish in the preheated oven (250 degrees Fahrenheit) and bake for about 20 minutes.   

Decarbing the kief will also make the edibles more potent.

How to Make Bubble Hash 

Every respectable American cannabis user has heard of it. After all, it is only the most common hash in the country. 

To get bubble hash, you need to separate trichomes from the buds (flowers) using ice, water, and filter bags. You can use different methods to carry out the procedure. 

For example, you can use a camping washing machine or use your hands, a spoon, and a bucket. 

The easiest way of making bubble hash is by using a bucket of ice-freezing water. 

• Soak your marijuana and stir to separate the trichome glands from the plant. 
• The mixture should then be filtered through three or five mesh screens. 

Once you dry it, you’ll have yourself some 70–80% THC in a light or dark brown color. For 100 grams of weed, you’ll get about 10 grams of hash.

How to Make Royal Afghani/Royal Border Hash 

Now that you know what is bubble hash, have you ever heard of Royal Afghani hash? Royal Afghani is black on the outside and dark green or brown on the inside. It smells and tastes spicy but can be somewhat harsh on the throat. 

How to make Royal Afghani hash?

• First, you’ll need a hash press, also known as a kief press, and some cannabis Indica. 
• Start pressing the flowers by adding a bit of water or tea until you feel the mass has become flexible and started to smell strong. 

This is a sure sign you can mold the material into small balls and later into bars.  

How to Make Lebanese Hash

There are two kinds of Lebanese hashish: red and yellow. The smell and taste of Lebanese hash is also spicy. It’s even harsher than Afghani. 

To make Lebanese hashish, you need to dry the plant completely. 

• Collect it from the field and hang it in a barn (like tobacco). 
• Rub the dried buds with a silk material
• Put the powder in plastic bags and leave it to “age” until wintertime. 

After that, you can press it into yellow or reddish-brown slabs.

How to Make Blender Hash

How to make hashish from trimmings is very easy and practical:

• Take the trimmings and put them into a blender with some ice and water. 
• Mix everything, and when you turn off the blender, the trichomes will have sunk to the bottom of it.
• Pour the mixture through a screen so water and trichomes can go through it. 
• Allow the solution to rest for thirty minutes so you can see the trichomes at the bottom of a jar. 
• Leave one-third of the water in, and put it in the fridge for ten minutes before pouring it through a coffee filter. 

The coffee filter will have your precious resin-rich trichomes, and you are left with some nice kief to mold.

How to Make Finger Hash

This method is similar to making bubble hash, but this one really includes ice in the production. When you complete the weed harvest, your fingers will be sticky with all the trichomes from dealing with the crops. 

If you had gloves on, you can put them in the freezer and later easily remove the resin content off them. However, such hash is low quality until you purify it. 

This method is the oldest one in the books, as harvest workers would simply rub their fingers until they made a small ball of hash.

Once you master the process of making the best hashish in the world, you could also learn the process of making hash oil.

You would need to buy some strong alcohol (vodka or brand of nearly pure ethanol like Everclear) and then add some ground marijuana to it and let it sit for 24h before you filter it out with a coffee filter. 

Then, you leave the mixture in an open jar for an additional 24–48h, and you’ll finally have your share of hash oil.  

How to Smoke Hash Like a Real Pro    

Here are all the ways you can smoke your hard-earned hashish:

• Joint or cigarette. Just crush a block and add it when you’re preparing a joint. It can be added to both tobacco or weed. 

• Pipe or a bong. This is not as powerful when we talk about the potency of the “high,” but it is much more friendly for your lungs.

• Hookah. This Middle Eastern way of smoking allows for more than one person to relish the hashish effect.

• Vaping. A very convenient way to consume hashish oil nowadays.  

• Dabbing. What is hashish without dabbing? Similarly to other cannabis concentrates (wax, shatter), hash is very easy to dab.

• Hash globe/bottle. These are similar in a way that in both cases, you should insert a piece of hashish, or cannabis with kief, light it and inhale the smoke.

• The knife method. Take two knives and heat them on the stove, or use a lighter until they are extremely hot. Remove it from the heat, put a little hash on one, and put the other on it. For better inhalation, use a straw to take in the smoke.

There are plenty of creative ways, but don’t forget hash will make you much higher than a regular joint.  

What Is Hashish Good (and Bad) For

While the internet is overflowing with articles on how hashish is made, how to recognize fake hashish, and what the best way to consume it is, little is said about its effects. 

The only thing that we read about hash is linked to its high THC content, which makes you feel “stoned” beyond your wildest expectations. 

That said, we are going to dig a bit deeper to find out more about its positive and negative effects.  

Important Hash Benefits

Basically, discussing hash medical benefits comes down to the studies about the effect of THC on our health. Here is what THC can be good for:

• Fighting insomnia
• Pain relief
• Reducing nausea
• Battling Alzheimer’s
• Stopping the progress of cancer cells
• Appetite booster
• Helps with PTSD
• Anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory effects
• Preventing seizures

Moreover, hashish is also filled with other cannabinoids and terpenes, which act together with THC in what is known as the entourage effect. 

Negative Hashish Effects

The concentration of THC may be too much to handle for CBD in hashish (CBD offsets some of the negative impacts of THC). Hence, this is what you may expect if you choose to go on a hash trip:

• Nausea
• Altered perception of time and space
• Anxiety and depression
• Increased heart rate
• Sleepiness
• Weight gain (increased appetite)
• Stomach cramps
• Apathy
• Moodiness
• Respiratory issues (due to hashish smoke)

So, what would the final verdict be? Is hashish good or bad for us? 

That would be almost the same as if you were to ask if marijuana has any health benefits. Hashish can help us in more than one way. 

Just like marijuana nugs, pills, creams, or drinks, a physician can recommend it, and you can buy it with your medical card if need be. 

Nevertheless, if we are to feel its advantages, we should do so with great caution. Remember, the dosage is key. As much as hashish bars and THC give immense pleasure, this can also lead to a kind of psychological dependence and even overdosing.

Which Is Better: Buying or Making Hash?

Since hashish is not available at every single dispensary, or it gets sold out fairly quickly, it is only too easy to succumb and accept the kind offer from your best friend, or a friend of a friend, selling or giving you their own homemade hash. 

However, you may be buying just another “soap bar” or contaminated hashish, which can be extremely dangerous.

Experienced smokers who know how to make hash know better than to experiment with suspicious bars. 

At the very least, it may contain some bee wax, spices, or ground coffee. Still, the other extreme could have you smoking fecal matter, pesticides and rat poisons, mold, glue, henna, or shoe polish.

One of the easiest ways to detect fake hash is to look at its edges. Soap bar mixture is usually sealed into plastic bags to form the bar shape, so you should avoid smoking hash whose edges are gleaming and slightly curved. 

If you know what is hashish, you will also know that when you burn it, the fake hash will have a really unpleasant smell, and it will turn gritty instead of looking malleable or sticky.

Admittedly, there are some ways to purify contaminated hash, but ask yourself if it is really worth the effort when it’s extremely hard to get rid of all the harmful ingredients (and you don’t know which ones they are in the first place).

In terms of hashish vs weed price, the former is more expensive than regular marijuana, but you mustn’t put a price tag on your health. 

If buying hashish from a regular, reputable dispensary is too pricey for you at the moment (or illegal), then make your own, or just give up on it. Not a fun thing to do, but certainly the safest. Or would you rather be smoking some poop?

Hashish vs Charas

Charas is a special type of hashish that’s produced in northern India. Charas is made from a fresh plant, not a dried one. The process of making charas involves rubbing the flowers between your hands until the cannabis resin starts to stick to your palms. 

Since you can produce only a few grams per day, its selling price is quite high. 

Charas is traditionally smoked from a clay pipe. However, you can also smoke it in a joint. You should avoid splitting charas into small crumbs because your joint won’t burn, and small pieces could fall out of it and burn your hand. Remember, this charas is very potent, so start small. 

Conclusion

Hashish is still one of the quickest ways to get stoned, but also a kind of medicine prescribed when one would benefit from an extremely high content of THC. 

If you feel like it, you can make your own version and be sure what exactly goes into your psychoactive “play dough.” A variety of ways it can be consumed is also appealing, with smoking or vaping being the most popular. 

Just remember the hashish effect is extremely strong, and experimenting with poor-quality hash is simply not worth the trouble.

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About the Author

Bojana Petkovic

A cannabis enthusiast, fascinated by the plant’s healing powers and the ever-changing world of the marijuana industry, trying to work out what is going on and let you know all the fun details — that’s my mission here. Keeping you high and healthy!

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