Why Smoke and Waste When You Can Grind and Taste?

Over the last year or so, our very own sweet Mary Jane has been at the centre of a debate in the land of the free and home of the brave. The use of both recreational and medicinal marijuana has been legalised in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington. America may have given birth to Donald Trump, but with this move, they’re making up big time.

In the home of Bharat Mata and Daddy Shiva, things are different. In spite of our rich, intensely trippy bam bam bhole-chillum baba legacies, legalisation seems like a pipe dream. The powers that be are more interested passing an old law banning beef rather than passing a fat one. In these parts, the iconic characters Cheech and Chong won’t be viewed as the funny stoners they are world over, they’d be labelled low-life “ganjedis” and thrown in the slammer.

The problem may lie more with the iconography of cannabis than the plant itself; the chillum, the bong or the dank smoke smell that clings to the said ganjedi. After all, bhaang flows aplenty every Holi, cannabis deep-fried in pure ghee has been used for medicinal purposes in Ayurveda, and chutney made with the seed stem is common in many parts of the country. Which makes me think that people are getting their knickers in a twist about the act of smoking – not the substance being smoked. If that’s true then edibles are the way to go. And the fact that they also come with a kick more powerful than that of a doob, makes me think we should all be spicing our food with some delish herb action. Like the age-old wisdom goes, “Why smoke and waste when you can grind and taste?”

Which is why, in parts of the US, the edibles industry is booming. Whoopi Goldberg recently invested in an entire line of marijuana edibles and chefs are exploring innovative ways to cook with weed. From weed-infused Cannabutter and oil, to Chrontella (a cannabis-infused Nutella that blows my mind every fucking time) and Pif (a weed-infused peanut butter), edibles have come a long way since good-old pot brownie.

Besides being a trained chef, I am also a herb aficionado – which compels me to create a tasty-as-fuck, won’t-get-you-into-trouble-with-mama pot recipe of my own. Here’s presenting a Herb-Infused Red Bean Hummus. Why hummus? Well, why not hummus?

Note: I’m using “oregano” in place of pot, because I’m a law-abiding citizen. You could replace the “oregano” with weed, we’re not saying you should, but you could.