Cutting Up with Julia Lafavor
Custom Butchery From Pasture to Package
When it comes to food, no two words perk my ears up faster than “Hidden Gem.” Who doesn’t want to hear about a local treasure that’s tucked away from the mainstream and promises to tantalize your taste buds and satisfy your soul?
I recently had the privilege of spending an afternoon with local butcher Julia Lafavor, a true hidden gem, who represents a combination of unique technical talent and focus on quality, thoughtful food. Julia has been working in the meat processing industry for almost a decade and exercises her butchery talents at Urban Agrarian in Oklahoma City. We chatted while she broke down a quarter beef carcass into primal cuts.
How did you get interested in this line of work?
I moved to Oklahoma from Minneapolis in 2014 and I needed to get a job. It so happened that down the road from my home was a meat processing shop, Country Home Meats, and they were hiring. I started out as a meat wrapper, but I was curious about butchery and watched for an opportunity to start cutting things. I knew it would be important for me to have a trade skill and eventually they let me try it for myself.
What’s the most fulfilling part of butchery?
In the beginning, there were a lot of cuts and trial and error. Literally blood, sweat, and tears! But I enjoy it. I love the role I play in completing the food chain. It’s satisfying to transform the beef carcass into packaged beef. And I know, it takes a special kind of person to find joy in this!
What’s the biggest challenge in butchery?
Time and gravity. I need to work quickly in order to process the carcass while maintaining a core temperature below 40°F. Another challenge is hoisting and maneuvering heavy primal cuts with my shorter frame (she stands tall at 5’7”).
What’s the most satisfying step of the butchery process?
Knowing how to best get to certain cuts of beef. The repetitive nature of butchery builds both confidence and skill. Sometimes it’s a trick someone taught me of pulling a certain tendon or other times it’s knowing where two muscle groups meet. There’s always a new trick to be learned!
What should people know about butchery?
I want people to have a curiosity and awareness of where their packaged meat comes from. I want people to know that how the cattle lived and were raised and prepared matters. I want them to know that custom butchery involves intentionality and care and all of those things are able to be realized at the dinner table.
What are your three favorite cuts of beef?
New York Strip Steak, Flat Iron Steak, and Tri-Tip
I was so swept up watching Julia craftily process the hanging carcass that I neglected to ask my final question:
What’s something about you that might surprise people?
Via text, she sent a photograph with a brief, surprising caption as her answer: “I have a mini pig named Shugg.” A butcher with a much loved pet pig - a match made in heaven!
You too can enjoy the skills of butcher Julia Laflavor when purchasing meats from Urban Agrarian, one of the few shops in Oklahoma that sells custom grass-fed beef cuts direct to the customer. UA locally sources their beef from BF Farms, a fourth generation family farm located in Enid, Oklahoma.
Inspired by my time in the kitchen with Julia and her three favorite beef cuts, I’ve created a few simple recipes to test next time you pick up a cut of meat from your local store.
