Fishermen are forever experimenting with new baits. Everyone wants to find that one bait that no other fishermen have been using to catch fish. It is a fishing bait that the carp will love.
So, do carp like marshmallows? Yes, carp do like marshmallows and carp fishermen have had great success using them both for surface fishing and also on a hair rig. However, compared to other baits I do not think they are the best.
Marshmallows are a lovely cheap bait for carp fishing. I popped into my local supermarket and a big bag of them was £1. If the fish don’t like them or you are not catching fish then it’s one of those baits you can eat yourself, because who doesn’t love a marshmallow?
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Different Ways To Fish With Marshmallows For Carp
There are essentially 2 different ways you can fish these as a hook bait. The best thing to do is to keep it nice and simple.
Floating Baits
This is probably my preferred method to catch carp and it works really well in the summer months. Using some floating baits like bread can be hard work and they fall off the hook quite easily. A marshmallow on the hook will stay on really well and cast really far. Just make sure to pull the hook point all the way through to ensure you hook the fish.
When using them as a floating bait you can either use the small mini marshmallows or the bigger ones and cut them up a bit. Personally, I prefer small pieces as I have just found these have caught me more fish and it’s something I have more confidence in.
Hair Rigged
If you are ledger fishing then using marshmallows on a hair rig is a great option. They work in a similar way to a wafter as they will waft around above the bottom of the lake bed. I like to use them on a method feeder as this is a method that I have had great results with.
You could also use it in a PVA bag with your pellets etc.
When you think about it, a marshmallow is similar to a soft hooking pellet.
Should You Loose Feed Them?
Yes, if I was surface fishing them I would definitely throw a few around just to get the confidence up a bit with the fish.
Carp Have A Sweet Tooth
Carp are known for having a sweet tooth and that’s why companies have developed baits in a lot of sweet flavours. I think marshmallows are a nice, cheaper alternative to paying over the odds. It’s not only carp that have a sweet tooth, most fish love something sweet.
Final Thoughts
Why not give marshmallows a try? If there are some wise, crafty, bigger fish at your venue who are used to seeing all the normal baits then using something a bit different could be a good idea.
Have you caught carp using them as hook bait? Do you think its a good bait? Please let me know your success (or failures) in the comments below.
Mike has over 30 years of fishing experience in carp fishing and general coarse fishing. He is always looking for the latest fishing kit to try out and talk about and needs a bigger shed due to all the fishing tackle he owns. You can read more about him here.