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Excellent looking sticks! I also use a little vinegar in the casing soak water. I've had some casings that were so tough you could hardly bite through them. The vinegar seems to help.
Nick if the ones you air dried are case hardened , or dry on the outside and not the center, try placing them in a baggy and see if the moisture equalizes. I've never tried it but it should work if they aren't petrified on the outside. either way they do look great! Nice Job!
These came out of the drying fridge after 4 days and about 8 hours air drying at room temp. The fridge temp was 50F and 80% humidity. They turned out great!!!!! No case hardening at all.
How long did you soak your casings? Sometimes if you don't get all the salt out, the casings will be tough. Also what temperature do you smoke your Kabanos? I usually smoke Kabanosy no higher than 145 degrees , them put into a roasting pan covered with water and bake at 180 for 45 minutes. It sounds counterintuative to bake in water a dried sausage, but by cooking in the water you don't get the dry tough out skin like with hot smoking. Here is a pic of my kabanos http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/g/i/166614/sort/display_order/