Fish Bait Recipes - How to Mix Your Own Bait

Cured Salmon Eggs

If you are fishing for large game fish, cured salmon eggs are the ideal bait. Largemouth bass, muskellunge, salmon, and other large fish species love them.

Here's how to cure salmon eggs to use as bait:

1. Withdraw the eggs from a salmon you are cleaning, keeping the egg sacs intact.

2. Cover a large, flat,moveable surface with 1/4 inch of borax.

3. Cut the egg sacs across the membrane in slits of 3 to 4 inches.

4. Lay the egg sac sections 1 inch apart on top of the borax.

5. Scatter more borax over the top to produce a light coating.

6. Be sure all egg sacs are covered.

7. Move the large mobile surface that the eggs are on to a protected area with good circulation all around.

8. The eggs must not be in direct sunlight and cannot get moist.

9. Allow the sacs to dry for 2 to 3 days, turning them every 12 hours.

10. Pick the egg sacs out of the borax and shake off any excess.

11. Place them in plastic bags or storage containers.

The egg sacs are ready to use when they are completely dry and leatherlike, but pliable. If properly cured, they can be kept in their containers until your next fishing trip.

Cheese Bait

Cheese bait can be utilized to catch catfish, chub, and carp. In fact, carp especially love cheese bait. So if you're seeking to catch any of these species or a huge carp that's been hanging around your fishing hole, here's how to construct your own cheese bait:

1. Use 10 ounces of pie pastry and roll it flat on a chopping board or counter top.

2. Smear the pastry with aged cheddar flavor.

3. Add 6 ounces of grated cured cheddar cheese and 4 ounces of Danish blue cheese, crumbled to fine grains.

4. Fold the pastry over the cheese, so it is entirely covered and roll out.

5. Repeat this process until the pie pastry and the cheese are thoroughly mixed and the cheese is absorbed by the pastry.

6. Form the paste into a big ball and knead by hand.

7. Add 10 drops of the mature cheddar flavoring to a freezer bag and place the cheese paste ball into the bag.

8. Place the bag into the freezer.

When thawed, this bait has an appealing consistency and texture, and a very powerful odor. Roll the thawed paste into small balls and place them into a container for your next excursion.

When you place a cheese ball onto your hook, adjust the hook's point into the center, cast and wait patiently for the fish to bite. Your wait should be short and the catch satisfying.