How to boil hemp seed for fishing

[Fishing Forum Admin]

How to boil hemp seed for fishing

Ok so this is a quick guide to how to prepare your own hemp seed for fishing

Hemp seed was first used for fishing soon after the First World War by foreign refugees so says the books. Really got going as killer bait from the 70s onwards.

Hemp seeds are a cracking feeder bait as its packed full of flavour and oils that gets the fish into a feeding mode with out filling them up. It’s cracking loose feed for carp, roach, chub and barbel.

You can of course buy your hemp seed already prepared for you from your local tackle shop. But why not try boiling your hemp seed yourself as it works out a lot cheaper !

Boiling Hemp Seed
First you will need the following



Big pot – big enough to take 5 pints of water or more depending how hemp you are going to cook at a time ( if you are going to do this on a regular basis then best buy one just for boiling your hemp as can mess up a pot over time )

Bicarbonate of soda or Salt – helps split and add a bit of zest. I use Bicarbonate of soda but many swear by salt

Hemp Seed – You can get uncooked seeds from most good tackle shops but remember to scout around pet shops too as they can often stock hemp seed for bird feed and coming in big bags but this is much cheaper than a tackle shop will ever be.

To cook Hemp Seed

First get your hemp seed and let it soak over a 24 hour period as this helps them split when you go to cook them. To do this use you’re cooking pot and add about 3 to 4 pints per pint of hemp. Does not have to be exact but just a guide



Once soaked place on your hob and add your bicarbonate of soda ( one tea spoon to a pint ) or salt

Bring to boil and then turn it down to simmer

Keep I an eye on your hemp seeds and as soon as you see them splitting ( little white shots start to show ) turn off the heat and using a strainer drain the water away . IMPORTANT don’t through the water away as it is packed full of flavour and is a killer when used to mix up your ground bait with!



Now what you need to do is spread your seeds out so that they can cool off ( you can just wash them under a cold tap ) a old tray is ideal . TIP remember hemp seed will continue to cook for some time after boiling hence the need to cool them of quickly

Now you have all your hemp seed you can ever use it there and then or like me you will cook a lot of at one time and freeze it into pint size bags so that you can use it in the future.

That’s it! Dead simple and will save you loads of money. If you have any tricks or tips on Hemp seed then please post them below!!

There is another quick way of cooking hemp and that get a big flask ( like the ones you use to keep coffee in ) half fill it with hemp seed the rest with hot water .Seal it up and leave over night and then in the morning your hemp seed will be ready . Dead easy for small amounts of hemp seed but be careful not to over fill the flask as hemps seed expanded

[Norfolkboy]

Cheers Rich

[BoldBear]

I read that the knowledgable and great Barbel angler Fred Crouch never boils his hemp, he just puts it into cold water the night before to give it weight to sink and he says that boilng hemp is a total waste of time because Barbel don't swim along the bottom looking to see if there are any white shoots sticking out or if its been cooked properly, they just eat it. and he says "I don't suppose they can even digest it, they just use it to grind down the soft tissues they are eating and it comes out the other end as roughage"

He has caught almost 11,000 Barbel so I would think he knows his subject.

However I stilll cook mine as It gives me confidence plus I use the water it is boiled in with my feed which wrongly or rightly I think has a nice smell that appears to attract fish.

But when somebody of that calibar says that you dont need to boil hemp it makes me think twice.

I have always suspected that fish mistake the grains for small water snails or something similar but what do I know?

[firemantim30]

You can also fill a thermos flask 2/3 full add a dash of salt/bicarb and leave for 12 hours. Voila, perfect hemp!!

[barbelblanker]

I soak mine with Bicarb at leat overnight.

Now I also throw in some chillie flakes too.

Then I boil the hell out of it till it starts to split , then when a good proportion have split turn the heat off and leave it.

Rich' does mention probably one the best tips though. When it cools DO NOT throw out the liquid . Best bet is to decant it in to a plastic bottle , filll it to 2/3 then freeze it. Strongbow bottles are great for two reasons. First you get two litres of hemp juice and second you have to empty it first :)

[Maddison_Twatter]

Originally Posted by BoldBear

I read that the knowledgable and great Barbel angler Fred Crouch never boils his hemp, he just puts it into cold water the night before to give it weight to sink and he says that boilng hemp is a total waste of time because Barbel don't swim along the bottom looking to see if there are any white shoots sticking out or if its been cooked properly, they just eat it. and he says "I don't suppose they can even digest it, they just use it to grind down the soft tissues they are eating and it comes out the other end as roughage"

He has caught almost 11,000 Barbel so I would think he knows his subject.

However I stilll cook mine as It gives me confidence plus I use the water it is boiled in with my feed which wrongly or rightly I think has a nice smell that appears to attract fish.

But when somebody of that calibar says that you dont need to boil hemp it makes me think twice.

I have always suspected that fish mistake the grains for small water snails or something similar but what do I know?

Very interesting.. I always assumed hemp and other seeds were boiled to prevent them swelling in the fishes stomach causing possible injury or death to the fish. but as you say a man who has caught 11000 barbel is very unlikely to be wrong

[chazyboi]

nice one didnt they ban the old indian hemp we called it giant hemp ( visions of many caned anglers rizzlas at the ready),,,,i save the liquor i boil it in in a ottle and use it in groundbait mix ,nice write up

[BoldBear]

Originally Posted by Maddison_Twatter

Very interesting.. I always assumed hemp and other seeds were boiled to prevent them swelling in the fishes stomach causing possible injury or death to the fish. but as you say a man who has caught 11000 barbel is very unlikely to be wrong

When Fred Crouch was talking about only needing to soak hemp in cold water overnight to give it the weight to sink I am fairly sure he was probably talking about using it with his feed for Barbel. Unlike other seeds and pulses; Hemp doesn't seem to swell up quite as much and doesn't seem to split as much when soaked overnight but it does makes it sink faster.
NB. You can also use several grains superglued onto a cotton hair rig if you want to.

But for anyone who is using seeds and pulses for the first time: never use seeds, pulses or nuts without either cooking them or giving them a good 'long' soak to allow them to swell and soften first; otherwise as Maddison has already said; they can swell up inside the fishes stomache and cause damage or even death.

I much prefer to cook my hemp, and as most anglers who use it will tell you it can be a deadly bait; both when used on the hook and for loose feed; I usually soak mine overnight before I boil it as it seems to split better and much faster; but I boil it using the water left after soaking.

I remember several times when it has been more successful than Caster and Maggots on the middle stretches of the Gt Ouse in Cambridgeshire when fishing fine for Roach, Dace and Rudd; we had to use Style weights to stop us getting false bites from fish grabbing the split shot mistaking the shot for hemp as it sank.
If you have any artificial hemp grains (which some tackle shops sell) you can use it on the hook while using real hemp for loosefeed.
A friend of mine used to use a split shot squeezed onto the bend of his hook with a dab of white tippex on his hookshank, and he still managed to catch fish when they were really feeding well on sinking hemp.

[chazyboi]

talking of false bites i got fed up of trying to hook the stuff ,so i used to use a similar size rubber bead with some white wool pulled through to imitate the seeds, have had loads of quality roach on this method i will do it this week on the local cut and post some pics on here ive also done same with a split shot and white wool

[Maddison_Twatter]

Great post m8, just cooking some up myself now . cheers