When we were in Kashmir several days ago, we made a side trip to a nearby mountainous region called Naranag. As we were sitting in the car, our host pointed out to us a particular wild plant that grew in abundance on the roadsides. It was weed. And it was everywhere. We could actually smell it as we drove by. Now you know why Kashmir is called 'paradise on Earth'.
At the campsite, just as soon as we finished unpacking, our host started to roll a joint which we shared among us. But because I never learnt to smoke properly no matter how many times I tried, it was wasted on me. So our mountain guide, Riyaz was sent on a task to gather some weed from around our campsite. We were making weed tea, or as they called it, 'mountain tea' or 'green medicine'.
First, we separated the leaves from the stems, and put them in the pot.
Then we boiled the leaves with water and sugar for around 5 - 10 minutes, I think. But it felt a lot longer, so I'm not very sure. Time gets distorted when you're in the mountains. 😉
And cheers!
What I didn't know then was that you're supposed to add butter to the leaves, because the THC (tetrahydrocannabinol, a.k.a. the good stuff responsible for making you high) is fat-soluble, not water-soluble. Butter helps release the THC into the water. Simply steeping the leaves in boiling water means much of the THC stays in the leaves, giving a much milder effect to the drinker, if at all. If you don't like the taste of butter in your tea, you can use milk instead. But it has to be milk with a high fat content. Weed tea is supposed to be quite potent when the brewing is done correctly.
Oh well. I guess the mountain people weren't so knowledgeable about herbs after all.
I drank two cups because my partner only took a sip from hers and let me finish the rest. Based on my experience with space brownies, it would take approximately 30-40 minutes for the weed to take effect on me after being ingested. I waited the whole day, but there was nothing. I only felt like I needed to pee, which was not a fun feeling when you were in the wild with no toilet or tap water.
