Kief, dust, pollen, fairy dust, crispy critters… Kief is the wonder byproduct of the cannabis world that just keeps on giving!
You know kief, right? It’s that wonderful little collection of weed dust that sits on the bottom of your grinder and coats your fingers after prepping a good mix. Well, since you’re already acquainted, let’s talk about how to use kief…
There are positively OODLES of magical things to do with kief… From smoking it to making edibles or even THC concentrates, it’s potency-laden and perfectly equipped for all kinds of devilish shenanigans.
Put simply, if you are not catching and using your kief, you are wasting your weed!
This is WHY you need to know how to use kief. You definitely need to know if you’re growing cannabis and the dust is just piling up on your grow room floor. And if you’re buying weed, well, utilizing the kief just saves you cash. 😉
Convinced yet? I don’t care (because I’m right!). Don’t believe me? Well keep reading and find out.
This is exactly what to do with kief as a savvy stoner. Don’t let that glittery gold pass you by!
What is Kief?
First and foremost, kief is a byproduct. I.e., it is an incidental secondary product created in the manufacturing of the primary product.
That’s a lotta technical words for smoking weed though. Put very simply, kief is bonus bud!
Kief is the danky and stanky powdery weed dust left over at the bottom of your grinder. (Or all the dusty residue caked over your floor when you trim and beautify your harvest – most high-quality bud-trimming machines even have dedicated kief catchers!)
There are a lot of things you can do with kief weed powder However, the biggest thing to note is kief’s dankitude. As it’s made up of all the tiny, resinous trichomes that coat the buds and leaves of the cannabis plant, kief is essentially a concentrate of all the cannabinoids and terpenes that give weed its signature effects and flavors.
Kief’s THC content packs a punch. Regular flower sits somewhere in the 10-30% THC content range. But the THC content of kief often exceeds that to a whopping 50-80%!
So, in the end, what is kief…? It’s the bonus weed powder at the end of your ounce that smells just as good and hits twice as hard!
There are plenty of bonus highs and secondary smokes to be had in all that glittery ganja gold. It’s no different from other byproducts in that regard except that it can range anywhere from twice as potent to twentyfold.
Because it’s a byproduct of grinding, trimming, or even just handling your bud, kief will naturally collect over time (provided you have a catcher). As for how to use kief and consume all those cannabinoids, well you’ve actually got a myriad of methods!
But first, let’s talk collection. Just because it’s a natural byproduct doesn’t mean there isn’t some nuance to making and collecting kief.
How to Make and Collect Kief
So firstly, kief is ultimately still a byproduct. While it’s easy to know how to make kief, most people are just collecting their naturally formed fairy dust after every so many seshes. That said, there are ways to be more intentional about these things.
So when discussing how to collect kief, there are two main ways to go about it—the incidental method and the intentional:
- 1. Grinding Your Weed (incidental): So, while you can chop weed without a grinder, you shouldn’t: you’ll miss out on all the THC-bomb-worthy kief! That’s because the easiest and most common method of gathering kief powder and dust is by simply using a multi-chamber grinder with a built-in kief catcher. As you grind your bud over multiple seshes, the trichomes will naturally fall off and collect in the bottom chamber. It’s like a passive side hustle—the more you grind, the more pollen you’ll have, and then you just need to decide how to use the kief!
- 2. Dry Sifting (intentional): Ok, so here’s that intentionality! Dry sifting for kief involves using a mesh screen to manually shake and sift cannabis buds, separating the trichomes from the plant material. While it takes more effort, there are some notable pros of dry sifting to consider. Dry sifting produces larger quantities of higher-quality kief while keeping your precious nuggets pretty and perfect for personal use or redistribution.
So generally, most people are just incidentally catching and using kief. But if you intend to REALLY harness and use kief the best way, dry sifting will knock your block into the stratosphere.
The Best Grinders for Catching Kief
Now, a bit more about grinders. The best grinder for kief is undoubtedly the multi-chamber kind.
A standard three-piece weed grinder will generally have a bottom compartment for the ground bud and fallen kief. Alternatively, a four-piece grinder will instead have a mesh screen separating the bottom flower and kief chambers to make things even more efficient. (The kief filters through the mesh screen separating the dust from the ground bud.)
For both options, I would strongly advise shelling out extra cash for a more high-end grinder from a dedicated and beloved stoner brand. Santa Cruz Shredders, in particular, make some of the best weed grinders on the market. By forking out extra now, you’re saving A LOT of cash with all the bonus kief you’ll catch plus you’re now the proud owner of a super nice grinder ready for a lifetime of sneaky smokes!
If you can swing the premium prices, Santa Cruz’s grinders hit the exact sweet spot of what you need to collect and use kief effectively. They’re made from high-quality aluminum for super smooth and sensual grinding action with a rounded bowl-like bottom chamber to further simplify the scraping and collecting of kief.
Trust me: there is a VERY noticeable difference between a top-quality and a budget grinder. You can, of course, get a cheap solution… But if you’re serious about the sift-life, I can tell you from personal experience that more IS better when it comes to weed grinders.
Try a Santa Cruz Shredder and you’ll see what I mean.
3-Piece Aluminum (Cheaper + No Screen)
FULL 4-Piece Grinder With Screen
As for how to kief out of the grinder, there are usually picks, brushes, or scraper tools included when you buy one. Otherwise, things like plastic loyalty cards or keycards, toothpicks or keys, or tightly folded paper can do the trick.
You can use these objects to scrape out and collect the kief. I actually find well-folded paper shaped slightly into a spoon to be the cheapest method (and super effective when combo-ed with a kief scraper).
How to Store Kief
Right! Now you’ve collected your golden powder… However, before we can discuss what do with your kief, we need to talk about how to store it. This is vital, and especially for anybody growing cannabis; NOT saving and using all the kief from harvesting and trimming is a key common error many beginner growers make.
Realistically, kief storage isn’t much different from weed storage. In much the same vein, the primary objectives are:
- 1. Use something airtight…
- 2. Store in a cool, dark place…
- 3. And away from direct heat and sunlight.
This is all crucial for mid- to long-term storage of kief as it maintains its potency. For an even more long-term storage solution, you can keep kief in the freezer. However, for this, it NEEDS to be in a properly sealed container to prevent any moisture from ruining your stash.
In terms of containers, tiny glass kief jars are a common go-to. Alternatively, silicone containers also work. Mostly, you just want to avoid plastic as kief can cling to the material (meaning you’ll need to scrape it up again).
OR (for the bespoke solution), you can get yourself a dedicated odor-free pollen storage container. They aren’t expensive, hit all the marks of good kief storage, and double as bud storage too!
How to Use Kief: 3 Best Things to Do
So now that we’re well aware that all that kief is LOADED with THC, we just need to how to get it in us! Much like storage, the methods of consuming kief aren’t much different from the best ways to consume cannabis—just with a bit of extra nuance.
First up, let’s talk about the best way to smoke kief.
How to Smoke Kief: Joints, Pipes, and Bongs
Smoking kief powder is a popular and quick way to tap into its concentrated potency. But, please note, kief burns quickly. Mixing it with flower, another smoking herb, or even tobacco is the ideal choice to smooth out the burn and maximize the kief’s effects.
Now, due to its more potent but fragile state, there is a lot of nuance to smoking “dusties” (as we call them Down Under!). There was enough nuance, in fact, to warrant a second article more closely detailing how to smoke kief properly and with maximum effect. If you want the full breakdown of info, tips, and ways to smoke kief, I’d suggest reading that.
But in short, here are the top crispy critter combustion methods!
- Pipes and Bongs: Smoking kief with a pipe or bong is my preferred method for its straightforward impact. You can go pure, but kief burns so fast and harsh that it’s generally better to smoke it with flower or some additive like tobacco or herbal blends. As for loading the pipe, you can either sprinkle the pollen on top of your flower or mix (called a “kief topper”), mix it in entirely, or go for a nicely layered approach with the powder in the middle for a delish kief sandwich.
- Joints: Pipes are my preferred method for a straightforward dustie. But for style, flair, and a dash of luxury, it’s good to know how to smoke kief without a pipe. AKA a joint!
Level one is mixing kief into your ground weed and rolling it up per usual. This will add some serious potency to your joint. Orrrrrr, for level TWO, you can learn how to make a kief-covered joint (i.e. a “twaxed” joint). Twaxing involves rolling a joint and then moistening the paper very lightly, either by licking it or with dab oil, before finally sprinkling kief on the outside of the paper.
So in summary, yes you can smoke kief! Remember to adjust your usual methodology. Simmer the bowl with gentle or indirect heat: don’t just blast it with the flame. And kind of sip the drag of a pipe, bong, or joint to slow down and sustain the burn of the kief.
But nuance aside, smoking kief is fuuuun. It works as both an extra special sesh or for an emergency last resort between stock-ups.
But failing that, you can always just om-nom-nom it!
How to Cook with Kief: Decarboxylation and Cannabutter
Cooking edibles with kief is super possible! In fact, if you’re an experienced 420-chef, making kief cannabutter isn’t all too different from any of the other best ways to make cannabutter.
First, you do need to know how to decarboxylate kief.
Decarbing weed is the step that must occur before any great cannabutter can be produced. It’s this heating process that converts THCA and CBDA into their psychoactive counterparts (THC and CBD respectively) with the activated (decarbed) cannabis primed and ready for some edible recipes.
Meanwhile, decarboxylating kief weed is much the same with only a few tweaks to the process to compensate for kief’s more fragile state. Here’s what you do!
- 1. Preheat your oven to 220°F (105°C). This is a slightly lower temperature than for flower
- 2. Spread the kief evenly on a baking tray lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Since kief is powdery, make sure it’s in a thin, even layer.
- 3. Bake for 20-30 minutes, checking it occasionally. Unlike flower, kief doesn’t need to be rotated as much – just monitored. It will turn a deeper golden color and release a mild aroma when finished.
- 4. Cool it down before handling. Kief is more fragile when hot, so when you remove it from the oven, let it cool completely before storing or working with it.
Once decarbed, all you need to do is follow along with any good recipe for cannabis butter. Knowing how to make kief butter (or, for a healthier alternative, how to make kief oil) isn’t all that different from making cannabutter with regular bud. However, since kief is so potent, you’ll want to use less—maybe about half the amount you’d use for flower to start and then get experimental from there.
Once you’ve decarbed your kief, you can also use it as an additive instead of an ingredient. Pollen works a charm in drinks – like kief coffee, tea, or hot chocolate – or you can sprinkle it like a garnish on things like salad too. It’s a super versatile way to get your buzz on in the kitchen!
How to Press Kief and Make Other Products: Hash, Dabs, and Moon Rocks
Option #3 of how to use kief is to turn that byproduct into another product entirely! If you know how to press kief, then you’re halfway to making it into hash, dabs, or moon rocks.
By using a kief press (a tool for compressing the powder into a more solid form), we end up with something called a ‘puck’ or ‘kief puck’. This puck is easier to store, handle, and, most of all, create other fun ways to get high!
- You can make hash with kief, and this is probably the simplest option. You have to heat WHILE pressing the kief, with the end result being a nice chunk of hash—a denser, stickier concentrate that’s easy to smoke or vape. There are also more DIY ways to make hash from kief that don’t even require buying a press!
- Dabs take it up a notch. You can use kief to make dab-able concentrates like rosin, but it takes serious pressure and heat. For this, you’ll need a more advanced press called a rosin press designed to simultaneously apply extreme heat and pressure. This creates a sticky, waxy substance that’s perfect for dab rigs or vaporizers and hits like a truck.
- Or for true cannabis connoisseurs, moon rocks are a wild ride. A moon rock is kinda like a stoner’s chocolate truffle: you take a nugget of weed (chocolate ganache core), layer it with a concentrate like cannabis oil, wax, or hash (the melted caramel layer), then sprinkle the pseudo-truffle with kief (like covering a truffle with nuts!).
You actually don’t need a kief press to make moon rocks. However, if you want to make hash or another concentrate from kief for the middle layer, like hash, you will need a press for the best results.
Kief presses can get pretty specialized (particularly if they press AND heat). However, for a simple but high-quality press, you can try this one from BZBMGMO. Long-term, there are probably more advanced models worth trying, but this is a great starting point for making some no-fuss pucks from your kief.
What’s the BEST Way to Use Kief?
I think the best way is a matter of preference. Me personally? I loved smoking a good kief joint or pulling a dustie cone through icy bong water.
But that’s also cause I’m low-key a bit slack! If you’re motivated to decarboxylate kief or make concentrates like hash with it, that is easily just as good of a way to utilize pollen.
One final time, if you’ve learned nothing else from this article, buy a grinder. Dry-sifting aside, you simply can’t even begin to learn how to use your kief until you have a grinder to catch it.
Then? Well, then it’s all just experimentation, isn’t it?
Roll those twaxed doobies. Make that kief cannabutter and all those concentrates. Find YOUR best way to use kief.
While you’re at it, get a vape! Combo-ing kief collection alongside collecting and using vaped weed (aka ‘Already Vaped Bud’ aka ‘AVB’) is a golden-green ticket to bonus buds. Savvy stoners recycle!
So on that note, if you have more ways you personally like to use kief, let me know down in the comments—I’d love to hear ’em! And otherwise, recycle, ami-grows: stay green.
In more ways than one. 😉
FAQs About How to Use Kief Effectively
Got a few more queries about kief, chief? Let’s cover this in brief!
