Hello Again from NDKoze

[NDKoze]

Hi to all of my old friends as well as to the newer folks that I haven't interacted with!

It has been a few years since I have been really active here, but I have been lurking and posting occasionally while not spending as much time on this forum as I would have like to. But, I have more recently been spending a lot of time trying to catch up on all of the great content/information that I have missed.

I see a lot of you who admit to being lurkers and I have mentioned it a few times over the years, but when I first joined this group back in 2014, I lurked for months and no lie read EVERY SINGLE thread/post prior to even ordering my smoker. That being said, this group has grown immensely over the years. So, reading every post today would be a way bigger proposition that it was back in 2014. The great thing is that as large as this group has gotten, it still has the small group/family attitude that it did when I first joined and is one of the main things that sets our group apart from the myriad of other smoking groups out there.

As I mentioned, I have not been super active for the last couple of years. Life sometimes just gets busy and you only have so much time in the day. Don't worry, I haven't stopped using my smoker and the old analog #3 is still plugging away and turning out some awesome eats after 6+ years. But, I am trying to catch up on things by slowly reading all of the posts that I have missed and finding so many things that I missed out on over the years. It is going to take me awhile, but I will get through most of them as I work my way back and catch up with all of the new people and stuff I have been missing out on.

So, I just wanted to re-introduce myself to the group and thank you all for your contributions that have continued to grow this group over the years and have truly made the Smokin-It Forum the "Gold Standard" site that it is.

NDKoze

 

[gregbooras]

Always glad when old friends become new friends again!
Best Greg

 

[Lonzinomaker]

Geez, I didn't realize you weren't active since a lot of searches I have made included posts by you.
Welcome back I guess :]

 

[Grampy]

Welcome back Gregg! I always enjoy reading your posts. I haven't been as active as I once was either but I still check in and keep up with what is going on as well.

 

[NDKoze]

Geez, I didn't realize you weren't active since a lot of searches I have made included posts by you.
Welcome back I guess :]

I have tried to keep an eye on the sausage and jerky forums and have replied to an occasional introduction. But, other than that I haven't really dug into the other areas as much as I usually do for a good couple of years now.

Things have slowed down a little bit with my kids getting older and on their own, so I am finding some additional free time.

My smoker is under a pile of snow at my parents house right now (left it there during deer processing), so I am having to enjoy my smoker vicariously through you all. I will be getting it back next weekend (Yearly Sausage-A-Palooza), so will hopefully be able to smoke something again.

 

[kona77]

Hey Greg-  I bought my 3-D in March/2016 and like you spent quite a bit of time just researching and viewing tips/suggestions from folks like DM..Kari and many other regulars on this forum. I am a big outdoor guy and paid attention to your posts on sausage/hot sticks etc.. We still make our own venison brats/summer sausage by using a smoke house my grandfather built on our family farm but I still enjoy seeing your yearly "sausage party" updates.. Had no clue what terms like Charcuterie and Sous Vide etc meant before I started using the site and I am still impressed by some of the posts I see from folks on these methods (especially the Charcuterie section)..     

 

[NDKoze]

Hey Greg-  I bought my 3-D in March/2016 and like you spent quite a bit of time just researching and viewing tips/suggestions from folks like DM..Kari and many other regulars on this forum. I am a big outdoor guy and paid attention to your posts on sausage/hot sticks etc.. We still make our own venison brats/summer sausage by using a smoke house my grandfather built on our family farm but I still enjoy seeing your yearly "sausage party" updates.. Had no clue what terms like Charcuterie and Sous Vide etc meant before I started using the site and I am still impressed by some of the posts I see from folks on these methods (especially the Charcuterie section)..   

Hi Gene,

Yeah, we don't use my #3 for much of our deer processing anymore. It is just too small for what we do. We have an old German sausage making master in a nearby small town meat market that smokes our sausage and stix for pennies on the dollar and we have always said that until stops doing it there is no sense to build a big smoker of our own.

At some point, we may need to build a large smokehouse and do it ourselves, but we are going to let it ride until then.

We typically make about 100-150 pounds of country style, fry, ring, or whatever you call it (regional term I think) and 150-200 pounds of snack sticks with a variety of other smaller batch things. The most I can fit in my #3 at a time is 25 lbs and that is pushing it.

But, I will keep smoking my butts, briskets, ribs, etc in the trusty old #3 for many years to come. One of these days when I have some extra dough, I may get another WIFI SI unit to dedicate to the lake place as I have a feeling that I may use it more out there than I do at home.

I hear you about the new cooking methods too. I had never heard about the Sous Vide or Charcuterie or making my own bacon until hearing about it here. That is one of the main reasons that I really wanted to get back involved here again, because there is so much great information that I felt like I was missing out on stuff.

The awesome thing is that there are so many people joining the forum here every day, and you never know which new person with be the next Divotmaker, Old Sarge, Pork Belly, SuperDave, GregBooras, SconnieQ, etc (sorry for the too many to count people that I didn't include) and what skills, cooking methods, and experience that they will bring with them.

Smoke On My Friends!!!

 

[MNGuy1959]

Hello Everyone...old and new.  It has been quite a few years since I posted on this forum as well.  I still have my original Model #2 with Auber PID, and use it occasionally.  I also have a pellet grill and won't get into the whole pellet vs electric smokers.  I always have loved my Model 2 and STILL DO.  Greg, great to see an old friend again.  I hope you had a great Winter up in Fargo.  Still here in Minneapolis, and getting anxious for Spring.  I plan on getting my Model 2 out of the garage this weekend with my Jerky dryer and making some great beef jerky.  The Smoking-It models sure have changed with the new WIFI, and I will be investing in a new Smokin-It smoker probably later this year.  I still think that Lazy Q smoking is the easiest and best tasting food available, and anyone on the fence about purchasing a Smoking-It smoker, you never will be disappointed.  Great also to see some old familiar names still contributing such as Old Sarge and GregBooras.  Is Divot Maker (i.e. Tony) still around?  Hope everyone has a safe a fun spring 2020. 

 

[NDKoze]

Hello Everyone...old and new.  It has been quite a few years since I posted on this forum as well.  I still have my original Model #2 with Auber PID, and use it occasionally.  I also have a pellet grill and won't get into the whole pellet vs electric smokers.  I always have loved my Model 2 and STILL DO.  Greg, great to see an old friend again.  I hope you had a great Winter up in Fargo.  Still here in Minneapolis, and getting anxious for Spring.  I plan on getting my Model 2 out of the garage this weekend with my Jerky dryer and making some great beef jerky.  The Smoking-It models sure have changed with the new WIFI, and I will be investing in a new Smokin-It smoker probably later this year.  I still think that Lazy Q smoking is the easiest and best tasting food available, and anyone on the fence about purchasing a Smoking-It smoker, you never will be disappointed.  Great also to see some old familiar names still contributing such as Old Sarge and GregBooras.  Is Divot Maker (i.e. Tony) still around?  Hope everyone has a safe a fun spring 2020.

Hey Gene! I remember you.

We have had a number of super new additions to the community as you may have noticed. Unfortunately Tony hasn't been around for quite a while. He was the original pioneer on this site and probably still the one that I have learned the most from and I still find myself looking back at some of his posts for references on certain subjects.

I haven't messaged with him for a while now, but I still see him active on FB. My guess is that he is just pretty busy with some other things and there is not enough time for everything.

I am still plugging away on the trusty old analog #3, but would love to upgrade to a bigger WIFI SI model someday. I am actually considering a pellet grill for the lake place that would be used more as a grill and oven than a smoker. I still think the SI rules for smoking.

 

[old sarge]

Good to see the senior class reunion ;D