Speaking of bait preparation, Zhang Yang is absolutely a master. With six cups of bait ingredients, it's barely more than a pound or two. In normal fishing practice when preparing bait on the spot, Zhang Yang is so proficient that he doesn't even bother with measuring cups. You could say he can reach the perfect bait consistency just by mixing it with his eyes closed.

However, demonstrating bait preparation to friends on-site for educational purposes is somewhat different from preparing bait for himself to fish.

So, after habitually stirring a few times quickly, Zhang Yang caught himself, slowed down, and began explaining.

"When you usually go fishing, do you have any problems with bait preparation? Here's a good chance to demonstrate and answer your questions on the spot!" Zhang Yang looked up and asked.

Nobody said anything until the question was raised, but then a guy next to him immediately raised his hand like a good student.

"I always feel like I can't control the texture of the bait well, and if I'm not careful, it turns sticky and lumpy. Even though I've watched many people prepare bait, I feel like my process and water ratio are not the problem!"

When the guy mentioned the lumpiness problem, a few others chimed in.

"I'm the same way. If the bait isn't prepared properly, it gets lumpy easily! Sometimes when I don't add enough water at once, the hard lumps really affect the feel. How should we address this problem?"

"I'm also not great at preparing bait. It looks fine initially, but after letting it sit for a while, it becomes too dry to compress. Adding water again messes up the water ratio easily!"

Listening to the problems the guys encounter in their usual fishing activities, Zhang Yang grinned slightly.

"Let's address the first question: why does the bait become lumpy? How can we solve this?

When preparing bait, it's best to add enough water at once and stir it evenly as soon as the water meets the dry ingredients. This minimizes the lumpiness issue!

The so-called lumps are actually areas of bait that have too much moisture clumped together without being broken apart in time to penetrate the core! Once the stickiness is apparent, it's hard to break them apart when they're fully saturated.

To avoid lumps in well-prepared bait, you can rub the bait with your palm after roughly mixing it evenly, like this!"

As Zhang Yang answered the question, he simultaneously demonstrated, spreading his fingers in the heap of bait, scooping it up, and then quickly using both hands to rub it. After the rubbing, he scooped again and mixed the pressed bait with the unrubbed bait to break it apart and incorporate it.

This Yellow Storm bait has a relatively high expansion factor and better water absorption, making it easier to prepare. After Zhang Yang's rubbing and breaking apart technique, any small clumps were quickly dispersed, and after a few tries back and forth, the bait became fluffy.

"See, scoop and break apart the bait, rub a few more times to mix it again, and the perfect state is achieved! In a batch of Yellow Surface bait, some puffed components tend to be sticky, causing more lump issues during preparation. However, this Yellow Storm bait presents far fewer of these problems!

Now, addressing the second question: Why does the bait seem fine initially, but after sitting for a while, it becomes too dry to hook?

This is a common issue for new anglers who aren't familiar with bait consistency. On a microscopic level, the combination of water and bait powder needs time to merge, and the longer it sits, the more complete the integration!

When preparing bait, we feel the water ratio is just right, but as the bait sits, the moisture continues to evenly disperse, reducing surface moisture and making the bait dry.

Therefore, experienced anglers will predict a slight excess in moisture when adding water, feeling the bait is slightly over-moist initially. But after about ten minutes, once the moisture disperses, the consistency becomes just right!

Solving this is simple, just use a measuring cup.

When unfamiliar with a new bait's properties, test different water ratios to find what works best for you. Once you've found the perfect ratio, continue using a measuring cup to add all the water at once and disperse the bait, eliminating all these minor issues!

Why does it seem dry at one point but too wet with a little more water? What's going on?

For those encountering this issue, do you cook often?

If you add too little salt initially, making the dish taste bland, chances are, adding it again will make it overly salty!

What's the reasoning behind this? It's quite simple. The ability of our taste buds to discern saltiness is similar to how our hands gauge the moisture content of the bait, both have margins of error!

The effect of adding salt to increase saltiness and adding water to adjust bait's moisture are not linear. Even a tiny difference can significantly affect the state!

There's no perfect solution to this; you can only practice and experiment. With more experience, adjusting the bait will become second nature!"

"Uh, I've consciously trained for over a year, and I still mess up occasionally! Are there any tips to help us clumsy folks?" asked a friend, scratching his head with a troubled expression.

Seeing his friend ask in such an earnest tone, Zhang Yang turned and retrieved another foil packet from his feet.