Introduction.
Most of the ingredients that are listed here are available from supermarkets, healthfood shops, pet shops and tackle shops. The ingredients are used to make a base mix. This is then used with eggs and flavour to make boilies. For base mix recipes see the "Base Mix Index" in the "Boilie Making Section" of the navigation menu on the left.
Basic Building Blocks.
Semolina.
This is the basic building block of a lot of mixes. The plain dry white semolina powder is the stuff to go for, not the whole meal version.
It's the ideal bulk ingredient for a base mix, it makes you baits roll well and boil hard. It also has an almost neutral taste and smell, so it will not mask flavours or other ingredients.
In a 16oz mix use between 8 to 6oz, which works out in percentage at between 35 to 50% of the mix.
Available from most supermarkets such as Sainsbury's Morrison's etc. I have noticed that some of the smaller supermarkets don't sell it. Comes in about 500grm packets that cost about 75p.
Soya Flour.
Flour produced from soya beans, provides protein and fat to your bait. It isn't sticky like ordinary flour, hence it's great value in base mixes, it helps the finished mix roll much easier.
Use up to 4oz in a 16oz base mix, this is 25%.
Available from health food shops, for about £1.00 per 500gms. I have found the full fat heat treated version to be the best. Although the defatted version can also be very good.
Tip.
When buying soya flour always get the heat treated, non-enzyme active version. Enzyme active soya flour has a very bitter, almost "grassy" taste and smell. If your not sure which you have, add a small amount of water to some soya flour on it's own. If it smells rich and malty your OK, if it smells bitter and almost like grass then you have enzyme active flour.
Maize or Corn Meal.
Meal made from corn, a coarse yellowish powder. Excellent bulk ingredient that carp like. Helps provide hardness and nutrition to a bait. Used in many commercial fish feeds.
Use up to 4oz in a 16oz base mix, this is 25%.
Supermarkets tend to sell it as corn meal, health food shops as maize meal. It's cheaper from supermarkets, about 50p per 500gms. Also sold by tackle shops for keeping maggots in, but it tends to be lumpy and coarsely ground, but the fish don't seem to mind.
Ground Rice.
Ground white rice. Good bulk ingredient, rather heavy, helps give density to a bait.
I only use 2oz maximum in a 16oz mix, which is about 10%. if you want to use more give it a go, up to about 4oz . Use ground white rice, not wholemeal.
Available from nearly all supermarkets, large or small. About 70p for 500gms.
Milk Powder - 5 Pints.
Spray dried skimmed milk with added vegetable fat. Adds some taste, protein and helps a bait roll.
Don't use to much in a mix as it is very light and fluffy, so to much will have the opposite effect on rolling and make you mix crumble or expand to much during boiling. 2oz is the most to use in a 16oz mix, which is about 10%.
Available from nearly all supermarkets, large or small. Just over £1.00 for enough powder to make 5 pints. Most supermarkets do their own brand name. Always sold in plastic bottles.
Bird Foods.
Nectarblend.
Egg biscuit based birdfood. Contains seeds such as hemp. Forms the basis of many bird food mixes you buy in tackle shops. Can be used ground or just as it comes in the packet from Haith's. I prefer to use it just as it comes.
Use up to 8oz in a 16oz mix, which is 50%.
Manufactured by Haith's of Cleethorpes. See the links page for their website.
Red Factor Canary Food.
Again egg biscuit based but contains Carophyll Red, which is used in canary feed to give them colour, hence you can see red particles in amongst the seeds and egg biscuit I rate Red Factor as one of the very best bird foods available to add to base mixes.
Like Nectarblend, use up to 8oz in a 16oz mix, which is 50%.
Again available from the bird food masters Haith's.
Red Band Conditioner Seed.
Red Band conditioner seed for pigeons. Various small seeds flavoured with aniseed. Again one of the best. Grind up with a coffee grinder and use as part of the base mix, or groundbait. Or give the seeds a quick boil, leave 24 hours and use as a mini particle.
Use up to 4oz in a 16oz base mix, this works out at 25%.
Available from, who else but Haith's. You may be also able to find similar mixes of small seeds in pet shops.
PTX Budgie Softfood.
Sweet bird food that contains Mollases, seeds etc. Try using 3oz PTX 3oz Nectarblend, instead of just 6oz Nectarblend with a recipe. Great with Chocolate Malt, Scopex or any of the creams.
Use up to 4oz in a 16oz mix, which is 25%.
Again available from Haith's.
Robin Red.
The most famous bird food of the lot. Highly concentrated colour food that carp find very attractive. Contains peppers and a very strong red dye - so be warned. Available as ready mixed or highly concentrated - you want the highly concentrated for boilies, ready mixed for pastes.
Use up to 2oz in a 16oz mix, this works out at just over 10%.
Again available from Haith's.
RRR - Spanish Pepper.
Contains sweet peppers, one of my favorites. Everybody is busy adding Robin Red, be different, try this, or a mixture of the two.
Use up to 2oz in a 16oz mix, this works out at just over 10%.
Again available from who else but Haith's.
Cede.
Egg-biscuit food containing seeds, similar to Nectarblend. A very good bird food.
Use up to 8oz in a 16oz mix, which is 50%.
Available from Pet Shops or you can send off for it from Haith's.
EMP.
Again an egg biscuit based bird food that contains seeds. This doesn't seem to get used as much as the bird foods listed above. Maybe that's because it's just not caught on. I've not tried it my self, but I know people who have and they have caught.
Use up to 8oz in a 16oz mix, which is 50%.
Most pet shops seem to sell it, so if you really can't be bothered sending of for bird foods, give this a try.
Fish Meals.
White Fish meal.
Basically ground up fish. Smells like it too! A major ingredient of trout pellets. I tend to use white fishmeal, which is often just sold as plain fishmeal. There are other meals worth a try such as sardine meal etc.
Use up to 6oz in a 16oz base mix, 30 to 35%.
Some larger pet stores and seed merchants are now starting to sell it, about 50p a pound. Now also sold by John E. Haith. If you can't get it use Sensas Magic Carp Groundbait.
Tip.
If you have difficulty getting fishmeal, try the local tackle shop and look in the groundbait section. Companies such as Sensas and Van Den Eynde now sell pure fishmeal as additives for grounbait.
Krill Meal.
An excellent fish meal that carp seem to love.
Don't use to much as it is very buoyant. So far I have gone up to 2oz per 16oz mix with no problems, which is about 10%.