Brining Baits

This area is for those questions about bait how to catch it, keep it alive and so on.
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Leadslinger
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Brining Baits

Post by Leadslinger »

So this week the pilchards finally showed back up in force. Of course that means the freezer was filled. However, while out fishing yesterday I noticed my baits were getting pretty soft a little quicker than I like. Just to give you a better idea, pilchards were in a bucket of saltwater then placed directly into gallon freezer bags, flattened and air removed before going into the bait freezer. Took the bag out, tossed it sealed into a bucket of saltwater for thawing on the ride out, about halfway through the bag I noticed they were getting a little mushy.

Figure on the next round I'll salt them like I do for cut mullet but curious if anyone has a better method.

Yes, I did read through a thread here from a few years ago before asking lol.

SaltyDog
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Re: Brining Baits

Post by SaltyDog »

i used to put them in baggies with kosher salt i believe then freeze with the salt in the bag didnt work too bad.

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Leadslinger
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Re: Brining Baits

Post by Leadslinger »

SaltyDog wrote:i used to put them in baggies with kosher salt i believe then freeze with the salt in the bag didnt work too bad.
That how I do chunk mullet, wasn't sure how it would work with whole pilchards or ballyhoo though.

fiveeight
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Re: Brining Baits

Post by fiveeight »

You need to put ice in the bucket of saltwater. You have to get the water so cold it almost freezes them. This will firm the bait up. When you get home pat them dry and put brining salt. When done correctly the bait will stay firm.

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Rare
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Re: Brining Baits

Post by Rare »

I freeze gallon jugs for the ice slush. I add a box of kosher salt, one bag of ice, and seawater. The gallon jug keeps the water super ice cold. I want to stick my hands in there, when i feel like a millions needs are poking me...its super cold. As soon as the bait hit the water its lights out. Pat them dry, hit them with kosher salt and stick in the freezer for a few mins to firm. My son is in charger of the bagging the bait. He wants to go fishing, he needs to learn to get his bait ready, no free rides here. This is my backup bait and hold very well as fresh when i cut the bag....I will still put the time to get fresh bait, but sometimes if they are not around this is nice to use asap on the go.

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Hlaf the bait bagged and sealed
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The other half
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swordfish
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Re: Brining Baits

Post by swordfish »

That is awesome! Good stuff. I love that machine!

-Swordfish
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Kingofthesea
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Re: Brining Baits

Post by Kingofthesea »

"No free rides here"........Rare I really like your style. How old before the boy graduates from 'bait baggin' to prowling the bridges with the old man?
Those old queen slave owners that wrote our Constitution 200 years ago were brilliant.

"Every four years Americans get the President they deserve".

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Rare
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Re: Brining Baits

Post by Rare »

Kingofthesea wrote:"No free rides here"........Rare I really like your style. How old before the boy graduates from 'bait baggin' to prowling the bridges with the old man?
Chris has been doing that since birth... ch2 is his bridge. Last time i'll post that many pics from the phone...was that pain full
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He knows the sound of the baitrunner
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Lost his first mack trying to flip it....
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Leadslinger
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Re: Brining Baits

Post by Leadslinger »

Thanks Rare. I dropped a few scoops of ice in the saltwater I had in the bucket. By the time I got to the last few handfuls I could have slammed that cold dead hand in a car door. I don't have time to run around the harbor looking for live bait, so fresh frozen is my go to. Shy of dropping two rigs on the bottom then sabiking up something live I seldom go live bait out here.

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STRIZ
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Re: Brining Baits

Post by STRIZ »

Nice to see the right stuff in the freezer lol

Cool beans Chris managing the Vakuum sealer

Top notch
KEEP YOUR HEAD UP HIGH
EVEN WHEN THE NECK IS DIRTY

crashmister
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Re: Brining Baits

Post by crashmister »

Secret is in the vac bagger. I've done both, home brine in salt water, drain, dry, bag and freeze. And catch, drop in a cooler with fresh ocean salt water and a frozen gallon milk jug or 2. As my friend and bro, Rare stated, instant lights out and they do freeze to a certain extent. Once home just lay out on news paper, pad dry, vac bag and freeze quickly!!!
You don't want to give them time to thaw at all if possible. Done right, you should have trouble telling the difference between this and fresh. Works for, mullet, Goggle eyes, Pilchards, Sardines, Ballyhoo, blue runners, pins, pretty much any bait.

I posted a how to on this sometime back.

Diggin posted a recipe for brine ice bottles. Which is an excellent upgrade to the above method. Lowers the water temp at least 10 degrees. As Nels said, it hurts to put your hand in the water.

One other thing, when bagging, figure out what kind of fishing your bagging bait for sort accordingly. You don't want to thaw a bag of a dozen baits for a couple hours on the pier. They don't refreeze well at all. So I fill a dozen bags with 5 or 6 baits just for that. The rest are for trips and all day on the boat. Investing in a good bait cooler is a good idea as well.
Nice Boat! Now get it outa my driveway!

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