NWWC BAIT LAB: KISS tiger prawns = Keeping It Simple with Sugar
POSTED June 14, 2010 / 7:40 p.m.

PUYALLUP, Wash. - The facts are like this: Steelhead like sweeter bait.

If you're skeptical about a steelhead's addiction to sugar, the next time you're curing up eggs for steelhead fishing, try curing some of your skeins with a slightly higher salt base, like you might do for salmon (or as you normally might do with your home brew). Then try doing some of your skeins with a good’ol helping of table sugar, or raw sugar if you can find it.

Make sure you keep track of how each one performs and catch’s fish. The results may surprise you.

But I digress. This is about creating one of the best summer steelie baits that’s not only deadly, but very versatile in how you can present it. And, it's extremely cheap to make.

The following is an easy method of curing/preparing raw tiger prawn for steelhead fishing, whether you're going to drift fish, side drift, tipa jig or run bait under a float.

Step 1 - Buy and thaw
First thing you need to do, the next time the wife or spousal unit is at the grocery store, is have her pick up a bag of raw tiger prawn  (51/60 count).  I might even go as far as to sneak into the kitchen and add it to the shopping list, if you don’t have time to make it to the store yourself. You can get a 2-pound bag of raw shrimp on sale for under $10.00.

Now that you have your shrimp you’ll need to thaw them out. I usually do half the bag, so about 1 pound.

"But wait, Duane are you suggesting frozen uncured shrimp?" you ask.

Why yes I am, but don’t worry, no need to panic: we humans like them, and fish do as well. I’ve been asked several times, fresh vs. frozen, what’s the better choice? Well, if I’m making a nice dinner for my wife - maybe a little shrimp scampi, asparagus and some white wine - of course fresh is better.

But let’s face it, I’m not making dinner and I’m pretty sure no matter how good my Steelie Candy turns out, it’s not going to put her in the mood. So no wine needed. I’ll just drink my beer and prepare my frozen giger prawn, for slaying the summer steel the next day.   

Step 2 - Shell, cut
Now that your prawns are thawed out, you need to remove the shells.

Next, the task of cutting them into the proper size bait. For summer fishing, with the exception of tipping a jig (more on that later), I like to cut them length wise. I don’t like to chunk them up, I know some folks do, and that’s fine.

I prefer to cut them lengthwise as it produces a longer, thinner bait which has more action, and more pulsation in the water.

I think the more you can have bait that looks as if it is naturally floating and tumbling along at natural current speed, the better. 

Step 3 - Adding the cure
Now that I have my prawns cut into the right size pieces, I add the curing ingredients. Simple, straightforward: 1/4 cup non-iodized sea salt and one heaping 1/4 cup of raw sugar, if you have it.

Now with a gloved hand, gently stir them around a bit to get the shrimp, salt and sugar blended nicely. Let them sit in the bowl, in their own juice they produce from the sugar and salt, for about 30 minutes.

Step 4 - Drying out
After a good soaking in Mother Nature’s shrimp juice, I'll dump them into a strainer and let them drip for about 15 minutes. When my Steelie Candy is done dripping off most of its juice, I will dump the pile onto some paper towels. About four towels seem to do the trick.

Next, I make sure all the shrimp is evenly spread out on the paper towel, for consistency. I will also place some towels on top and gently press down with my hands to get all the wetness off the shrimp.

Step 5 - Pack 'em up and fish
At this point the shrimp will be moist and tacky but not extremely wet. I can now peel them from the paper towel and place them into the container that I plan to fish from the next day. I'll usually place a folded paper towel in the bottom of the container to absorb any extra moisture. 

There you have it. It’s simple, it’s cheap, and you can even make them in the kitchen and not have to worry about staining up the counter tops with non-removable dyes.

At right you'll see one piece of Steelie Candy in the egg loop, accompanied by a cheater or corkie,  Bon appétit.

Final thoughts
Give them a try for some summer lovin', fishing them plain and natural with a hint of sweetness. I’m sure you’ll enjoy how well they actually fish.

Next time we hit the Bait Lab, we’ll discuss a number of ways to add color to your tiger prawn for fall salmon and winter steelhead. I'll also show you some other ideas on how to cut these little critters specific to other presentations.

Let's not get ahead of ourselves, though. Summer has just begun and there are plenty of steelies in pursuit of some good candy.

-DI

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