How To Smoke Hash

Beloved for its aromatic taste and potency, people have enjoyed hash (hashish) since ancient times. From delicious bubble hash to handmade finger hash from Afghanistan and charas from India, this guide will cover all the different ways you can smoke (and vape) hash. In no time at all, you’ll be a hash-smoking pro!

WHAT IS HASH?

Hash is a type of cannabis concentrate made from the pressed cannabis crystals (kief) or resin glands of female cannabis plants. The traditional way to make hash is by hand—that is, by rubbing or agitating cannabis plants to mechanically extract as much resin as possible.

Modern methods utilise solvents like ice water to separate the crystals from the buds, collecting the resin using various sizes of mesh filters. This resin is then pressed to make bubble hash. Hash can be yellow, greenish, red, brown, or black in colour, and it can be soft and pliable or hard and brittle.

Cannabis aficionados like hash because it contains much more THC than weed, which makes for a potent high that lasts quite some time. They also like it for its aromatic, incense-like flavour and smooth smoke. Compared to bags of weed, a small piece of good hash is more practical to carry with you, and may also be easier to store.

Hash can be consumed in many ways, and can even be infused into edibles. But, of course, the most popular ways to enjoy hash are smoking, vaping, and dabbing.

HOW TO PREPARE YOUR HASH FOR SMOKING

The great thing about smoking hash is that it’s not all that difficult to prepare. In fact, you can pretty much smoke it as it comes. Like you would with regular weed, you’ll want to crumble the hash to increase the surface area and potency of your smoke. If your hash is a little hard, simply warm it by running a flame over it for a few seconds; it will crumble easier.

Depending on your preference, you can smoke the hash pure, mix it with tobacco, or even some bud. Tobacco will add a more stimulating effect, while bud makes for a unique terpene experience. If you have soft hash that doesn’t crumble, you can roll it into a long snake to add to the middle of a joint.

THE BEST WAYS TO SMOKE HASH

There is no “best” way to smoke hash; the list below is to inform and empower you to make your own decision. Feel free to experiment!

SMOKE HASH IN A SPLIFF OR JOINT

This one is easy. Take a piece of hash and warm it with a lighter to make it easier to crumble. Add some tobacco to make a spliff, or throw in some bud for a super-potent and pure joint. Instead of weed or tobacco, you can also mix your hash with other herbs. How about damiana or passionflower to amp up your experience?

SMOKE HASH IN A PIPE OR BONG

Smoking your hash from a pipe or bong isn’t just easier than rolling a joint (an art some struggle to master), but it also involves fewer potentially harmful substances like paper and tobacco. Just like before, prime your hash a little by warming it up. With a pipe or bong, you’ll definitely want to use a screen if one isn’t already built in. Put some hash into the bowl, and use a normal lighter (no torch) to light the hash. As soon as you see a small flame, blow it out. Keep blowing to get the hash to burn steadily (if necessary). Once your hash burns continuously like a tiny piece of coal, you can inhale.

Although there’s no need, you can also layer your hash with weed or tobacco. Start by putting a layer of weed on the bottom of the bowl so no hash falls through. Now, sprinkle a layer of hash on the weed, and top it off with some more bud.

SMOKE HASH IN A HOOKAH

Hookahs are “in” right now, and they’re especially awesome when you smoke in a group. To smoke hash from a hookah, start by rolling it into a small ball and placing it on top of the hookah. Fill the hookah three-quarters full of water, heat the charcoal, and once it’s red hot, place it on the hash. You can now smoke the hash through the tips on the hoses.

DAB IT

Dabbing your hash is a bit more involved as you need a dab rig and a good torch lighter. A dab rig is a smoking device that looks like a fancy bong, but instead of a bowl it has a dab nail. Point your torch flame at the nail until it becomes red-hot. Now, put the glass dome over the glowing nail (if applicable). Use a dabber tool to apply some hash directly on the nail inside the dome. You can now inhale and enjoy your hash.

SMOKE HASH USING KNIVES

Hot-knifing hash is a very old-school method, and we really don’t recommend it unless you have no other way to enjoy it. The reason for this is that burning your fingers isn’t fun, especially not if you’re just trying to get high. But for the sake of completeness, we want to mention this classic hash-smoking method.

You’ll need two butter knives, a straw, oven mitts, and a source of heat. Best is a torch lighter, but a stovetop works also. Heat up the two knives until they are very hot. Take a piece of your hash, place it between the two hot knives, and press the knives together. Your hash will instantly start to burn and smoke. Inhale the smoke with the straw. Be careful that the straw doesn’t melt or burn as well. And keep your fingers off the hot knives!

PIN AND GLASS METHOD

This is another very old-school method that still works. Great if you don’t have a pipe, bong, or rolling papers! What you’re doing is capturing the smoke in a glass and then inhaling it from the glass with a straw.

Take a small piece of cardboard, cork, or Styrofoam and stick a pin upright into it. Place a small piece of hash on top of the pin. Take your lighter and light the hash until you see a flame. Remove the lighter and blow out the flame. Put the glass upside down over the hash. The glass will fill with smoke. Take the straw, lift up the glass just a tiny bit on the underside, and inhale the smoke.

VAPING HASH

You can also vape hash, but know that the experience is not as straightforward. Most modern vaporizers are designed to work with buds and/or waxy concentrates. Hash has a consistency somewhere in between, and thus, it doesn’t always vaporize consistently. Also, because hash is compact and sticky, it can make quite a mess in your vaporizer. For that reason, we don’t recommend vaping hash as a first choice. However, to guide you in the right direction, you can read our article on the best vaporizers for hash.

Like the smoking methods, vaping hash requires crumbling the product to increase surface area and make for even vaporization. Furthermore, you will want to use a temperature of about 200°C. Vaping hash can be done, but you need to go about it the right way!

Luke Sholl

Luke Sholl has been writing about cannabis, the wellness potential of cannabinoids, and the positive influence of nature for over a decade. Working with several cannabinoid-centric publications, he publishes a variety of digital content, supported by strong technical knowledge and thorough research.

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