College students have long ago discovered the effect marijuana has on your taste buds and appetite, but with the legalization of marijuana, weed and food pairings have become part of an upscale dining trend in Colorado. At Cultivating Spirits, food, wine and weed pairing dinners are sold to interested diners from about $250–$450 per person. The website claims that these pairings can be the next big trend in dining, and judging by a few gushing Yelp reviews—and even more on Facebook—customers agree. But until marijuana becomes decriminalized in Philly, we're left to our own devices to whip up these combos.
We've got our standard list of favorite high foods—Wawa Mac and Cheese, Oreos and peanut butter (straight from the jar)—but we can do more to enhance these flavors.
The first step to making you high food experiences better is to know what strain of marijuana you're smoking. Like wine, certain strains go better with certain foods.This is largely due to the terpenes and flavonoids: the substances in fruits, vegetables, plants, and wine that give them their aroma and flavor. These factors, along with the type of high one will achieve, help define the type of strain marijuana is.
For example, sativas offer a more uplifting high, and would pair better with lighter foods, while indicas have a calming effect, and go well with heavier options. Some suggestions? Pair your sativas with foods like fish and vegetables; mix your indicas with red meats and heavier pasta dishes. You can even get creative with your late night junk food munchies with some thought—make sure you think about what you smoked earlier in the night when you order in. Many strains of marijuana are hybrids of the two, which can lead to even more types of effects on taste buds.
A key part of these pairings is matching food to your high moods. If we understand how each strain affects us, we can better pair our weed and food, and ultimately have more satisfying munchies. Move over wine and cheese parties: weed is here to elevate (pun intended) your food experiences.
Photo courtesy of Creative Commons/Wikimedia Commons.
