How long do I air dry salmon after the brining.Do I need a fan.
I always go until it is tacky to the touch 4-6 hours in the fridge is when I start checking
You don't need a fan but I find it does speed things up....
1 1/2 - 2 hrs. with a fan will do the same. Like 10.5 said, tacky.
How long it takes for the surface of your fish to dry out ("form a pellicle") depends on the temperature and the humidity, and also on whether you blot some of the brine off the surface of your fish before you start drying it. The surface will dry off slower in cool humid air than in warm dry air, and slower in still air than moving air. So if you take those fillets out of your fridge or out of your garage in cold weather and spread them out inside on racks in front of a fan, their surface will dry off faster. But don't leave the fish at room temperature too long, as bacteria may start to grow on it. After the surface of the fish gets somewhat dry, you can finish off the drying more quickly by putting the fish in your smoker at 100 degrees without any smoke for a while. When the surfaces gets dry and tacky, turn on the smoke and start ramping up the temperature.
The air is pretty dry where I live in Montana. Last night I did a smoker load of small thin kokanee fillets. After leaving them on racks inside for an hour in front of a fan, I stuck them in my smoker for half an hour at 100 degrees with the vent wide open and my smoker fan circulating the air inside my smoker. That's all that was necessary to form a pellicle. Then I cranked up the temperature and turned on the smoke. But in different temperature and humidity conditions, it could take a lot longer to dry off the surface of your fish.
thank a lot guys.
You've gotten some great advice here, Icerat4!
A word of caution though...When using a fan (and I normally use one), keep your eye on the product as the fan does indeed speed up the pellicle forming but at the risk of severely drying out your fish if you lose track of time...drying won't really kill the great taste but it sure makes the end product dry...