If you are a fan of fishing for catfish then you already know that catfish have an incredible sense of smell. The best way to catch a catfish is to take advantage of this keen sense of smell with the bait you use. This is how catfish punch bait came to be.

Punch bait is characteristically smelly and it can be used in a variety of ways while fishing for cat. The type of cat you are fishing for doesn't really seem to matter either. They all love and respond well to the stinky punch bait. So if you want to catch a cat, no matter where in the country you are or what species of cat it is, here are some ideas to help you with bait.

Types of Catfish Punch Bait

Catfish punch bait, also called stinkbait often, is a mixture of different ingredients to produce a scent that while usually quite offensive to us, will be quite delicious to a catfish. A good rule of thumb is the worse it smells, the better it is!

You probably already know that the bait is one of the most important aspects of catching your cat fish. They will use their very keen sense of smell to find. There are of course, many other types of catfish bait and punch bait is typically a concoction of some sort mixed up in a large container and stirred together- like punch (although you don't want to try to drink this).

Recipes for Catfish Bait

Now that you know what it is and why it is important, how can you make some for yourself?

Here are some recipes to help you with your next cat fishing trip:

Chum Bait- Chum bait is another popular choice. This is a great way to attract the fish to the area you are fishing in by dumping the chum into the water. They will smell this from many miles away and flock to your location to see what it is, in hopes of a quick meal.

To make chum bait you need to chop up your main ingredients very well and place them into a large bucket or container. You can use shrimp, mullet, shad or other bait fish then add surf water and mix it up in a blender. Once it's all ready, you can place it in freezer bags and freeze it to keep it fresh until you need it.

Lye Soap- Using Lye Soap to catch catfish is a technique that has been in use for quite some time. So how can you do it for yourself? Start out making this bait by pouring lye into a container then stir in water until the lye is dissolved and then let it sit until it reaches room temperature.

Next, place animal fat on the stovetop until it melts and then let it cool down some. Before the fat gets cold, you should start distributing the lye mixture into the animal fat and stir with a wooden spoon until it becomes thick. Now you need to add an ingredient such as cheese, garlic salt, anise extract, etc. to make it smell.