Dan Stacey Bait 25-10-2017 08:11:00

How to make the most out of belachan

Belachan has been amongst the secret squirrels for many years. Prolific big-carp angler Dan Stacey uses it in his armoury with staggering results

Think of the stinkiest, most potent-smelling aroma around. Times this by 10 and you can imagine something a little close to Belachan. It really does reek but is so attractive to our quarry. In short, Belachan is a rich, fermented shrimp paste. It’s full of deep flavours and contains a high salt content – something that carp require as part of their natural diet. Malaysians actually use this stuff in some of their strong food dishes it’s that distinct.

Belachan comes in all shapes and forms but I personally use the CC Moore stuff. It comes in a solid block and has a multitude of uses; from hookbaits through to Stick and spod mixes. I’ve been using it in various situations this year on a local Cambridgeshire water and the results have been phenomenal with carp to over 34lb. Not just any old carp either, fish as old as the hills.

Wrap it up!

The paste itself is of a thick, tacky texture and can be moulded around a boilie or pellet with ease. This is my main use for it. I simply pull off a long section and squeeze it flat between my fingers. Yes, your fingers will stink but this is a small price to pay for hefty old carp. I place the hookbait, which is in the form of a boilie bottom bait, in the middle and begin to wrap it around. I sculpt it as tightly around the bait as possible so that there is no worry of it flying off on the cast.

You can add as little or much paste as you wish but I tend to add a large dollop so that the bait just touches the bend of the hook. The Hair won’t wrap around the shank as a result, eradicating the need for PVA. In other words, it makes your Hair tangle-free!

The Belachan will slowly breakdown, oozing and leaking attraction around your bottom bait. The result is a huge pile of goodness that the carp cannot resist. For those of you that want to go a step further and love the use of braids try rubbing it along the hooklink. The smell and Belachan will seep into the fibres adding even attraction. Try wrapping a chunk around your lead too.

Pinch off a section of belachan, squeeze it in your fingers and then place your hookbait in the middle

Mould the Belachan around the bait tightly

Mega Stick mix

Due to its potency I also love to add it to my Stick mix. It can give you a huge edge and works well in cold water too. To create my Stick mix you will require some Odyssey XXX Stick Mix, Salmon Micro Feed, a few pellets, some Corn Steep Liquor and a block of Belachan paste. Add to this a cheese grater, some Longchuck Funnel Web and a bait tub and you’re one step closer to the ultimate mix.

Pour the two Stick mixes into the tub and follow with a handful of pellets. I then grate the Belachan into the bait tub. The more the merrier. Mix the ingredients with a Kompressa and then begin to add Corn Steep Liquor. Thoroughly stir all the bits until it is damp but not wet. This will ensure that it sticks together and breaksdown nicely on the lakebed.

Putting theory into practise

It was on a mild, winters day that I set the Belachan on my Cambridgeshire water. The lake is around six-acres in size, steeped in history with some of the oldest, best-looking carp in the area. My first port of call was to an area I knew well. It had a good track record and I just knew a few carp could be lurking nearby. The lakebed was soft silt funneling to a harder, ‘polished off’ spot – the perfect area to position a nice, potent hookbait.

A few pinhead-sized bubbles rose and popped on the surface, which gave me hope. As per normal I kept my rigs simple. They were tied from size 8 Wide Gapes, which were attached Knotless Knot style to Silkworm braid. I then steamed a small section of tubing over this just to encourage the hook to flip. For ultimate concealment I then tied the braid to IQ2 fluorocarbon using the Albright Knot.

I slid an out-the-bag bottom bait onto the Hair and wrapped this carefully in my fermented shrimp paste. The hookbait would run freely on the rig ring along the shank, blowback style. I compressed the Belachan without and cracks ensuring that it would hold firm on the cast.

A Belachan Stick was then created which I then attached by going through the middle of the PVA. I like to use a Stick in order to prevent tangles and also to encourage the hooklink to lie flush and straight over the firm bottom. It looked fantastic when I tried it in the edge. It broke down slowly and the hookbait looked extremely appealing over the top.

I then flicked my hookbait towards the spot and felt the light lead down to the bottom. A firm thud indicated a nice hard deck, so I mended the line and allowed it some time to sink – nice and slack.

My lead set-up was a simple Hybrid Clip system mounted on a fluorocarbon leader. This is practically invisible on the lakebed. I mould a few dollops of putty along this to keep it pinned.

Having scattered a few freebies over the area via the catapult, I was soon ready and waiting for my first taste of action.

Two hours or so passed before my bobbin hit the butt and the clutch started to spin. I screwed down and lifted into a powerful specimen that immediately found weed. It was heavy and pretty solid so I held the rod as high as possible trying to coax it out. I walked backwards onto a slightly higher part of the bank and eventually she started to move. As the water boiled and rocked at close quarters, I saw a glimpse of a decent common. As it shook its head from side-to-side I started to make headway and before long slid the net under this bar of gold. It was a beautiful fish with really dark colours. At over 30lb it was proof of the pudding that Belachan can work wonders!