3 min read
Every aspiring angler or fisherman, at some point, dreamed of making and using their own hand made boilie to catch carp. In this article, we simplify the boilie making process and provide a succinct guide that will transform you from a mere admirer to an amateur boilie maker.
What are Boilies?
Boilies are specialized boiled fish baits made up of a combination of diverse ingredients, which include, but are not limited to, milk protein, bird foods, soya flour, fish meals, and binding agents- eggs. Boilies come in different sizes, colors, and flavors and are made for one sole purpose- attract fish and get them on your hook. Carps have been historically known to favor boilies over other major species of fish. This is why they are a staple in every angler's fishing kit.
How to make your own boilies
While there might be thousands of great boilies recipes, flavors, and products available on the market, none of them feel quite as rewarding as making your own special boilie recipe and catching fish with it.
The ingredients you need
Before you mold and boil your first boilie, you need to know about the ingredients that make up this lovely carp bait.
Dry ingredients
As the name implies, these are dry boilie ingredients. They typically make up about 80% of your average boilie, and they are mainly flours or powdered plant or animal products. They include fish meal, milk whey, blood meal, soy, semolina, bird food, chickpea flour, wheat flour, etc. These are a few of the more popular dry boilie ingredients, you are not, in any way, limited to these ingredients.
Wet ingredients, flavoring or binding agents
Wet ingredients are the binding agents that hold the dry ingredients together after mixing. The most common and accessible binding agents are eggs and oils. Some companies and experts also promote the use of alternate ingredients like essential oils, liquid foods, and amino acids.
Attractants are the metaphorical icing on the cake. They attract carps by releasing a sweet and enticing smell into the water. Some of the more popular attractant flavors are tutti frutti, strawberry, chili, and curry. Not all boilie makers use it, but if you feel it’s something worth experimenting with, we recommend research before investing in any product.
Tools you will need
A sausage gun fitted with a nozzle proportional to the diameter of the boilie rolling table. A boilie rolling table. Boilie rolling table comes with different diameters ranging from 8mm to 24mm.
A simple recipe you can work with and a step by step guide
The definition of a basic boilie recipe will differ depending on you ask, but all basic recipes should look have most of this:
Dry ingredients
- 150g Semolina
- 150g Soya flour
- 150g Maize meal
- 100g Milk powder
- 50g Wheat Germ
Wet ingredients
- 5eggs
- 1tbsp of your preferred sweetener.
How to prepare
- Using a food scale or measuring cup, accurately measure out the dry ingredients and carefully mix in mixing bowl.
- Whisk the eggs and slowly add other wet ingredients while continuously whisking. Don’t stop until you get a smooth and consistent texture.
- Add the base mix slowly to the mixture using a wooden spoon to prevent clumps. As the mixture thickens, use your hands to knead the dough in. Keep kneading until the mixture becomes smooth and non-sticky. Roll into balls and cover in cling wraps to keep the dough from drying.
- Using a boilie gun, and a boilie table of your choice, squeeze out and roll out perfectly shaped boilies with equal sizes- about 18mm to 20mm should do.
- Once you’re satisfied with your boilies, then boil your boilies for about 90 seconds in hot boiling water. You can go a bit over 90 seconds but anything more than 100 seconds, and it will be too solid to be used as convincing fish bait.
- Leave it out to dry for about two days and then freeze them to retain the boilie freshness.
Final note
It’s important to emphasize that this is a basic recipe, and as such, it can be improved or altered depending on your tastes. You can roll the boilies in flavor mixes after you finish boiling to attract carp. Or you can add different ingredients or binding agents you'd like to experiment with. You could also choose to increase or reduce the size of each boilie ball. As long as you stick to this single recipe format, there are really no limits to what combinations you can try.