Ulla Kjarval
Farm: Spring Lake Farm Meredith, New York
Tell me the story about how your family got into farming. How did your father and mother become farmers?
My father was sent to spend time on farms as a boy in Iceland. This is an old Icelandic tradition where city kids were sent to farms to work for room and board. His family was pretty large and having one less mouth to feed helped. It was at these farms that he got “the farming disease” which we joke is when you need to be farmer at the expense of reason. Most farmers are this way, actually.
My mother, who is a native to New York met my father in Iceland and they got married and started a family. My father decided that he wanted to farm but my mother was a bit apprehensive about becoming a farmer’s wife in Iceland so they moved to NYC and started to look for farms. They found one in Warwick, New York with a very old Greek revival farmhouse. It was there that I spent my childhood: on a hundred acres, surrounded by sheep, rabbits, geese and cows.
What made you decide to join them?
If you were to tell my 16 year old self that I am currently working with my parents she would not be impressed. I think a lot of farm kids work with their parents and I am excited at working towards doing direct sales in NYC of our grass-fed beef, lamb and pastured pork.
What made you want to become part of the dialogue about grass fed vs. the mass-produced meat system?
For many reasons. I grew you as a farm kid in a community that was becoming suburban. My peers had no idea about farming and were not at all interested in how endangered our farms where becoming. I also saw my father struggle up against issues of consolidation: many of our custom slaughter houses started to close and as we lost neighbouring farms (to McMansions) and our neighbors became less sympathetic toward our animals breaking fences. Basically, it had become an unpleasant place to farm.. This really has impacted my world view, if there is one thing I would like to inspire is that people think about their food and the farmers behind the food and the rural economies necessary to support small farms.
What do you wish people knew about grass fed meats?
Grass-fed meats are very lean and flavorful. I have found that once you introduce yourself to them it is hard to eat anything else. This is a personal preference, but the flavors and leanness are something I love. If you eat pasture raised chicken and pork you will also find this to be true, that flavour is so much more intense. I like flavour. For me it is like the difference between a ripe home-grown tomato and one in the super market. There is so much more to the meat. Also there many environmental benefits to grass-fed meats.
Tell me about your experience as a farm girl in a modern world?
There are certain situations where being a farm girl is funny, I was always the bug killer in college and I am not easy grossed out.
What do you think the future of the grass-fed meats movement?
Grass-fed meats are a whole new food category that is here to stay. Consumers want the taste and environmental benefits. From a farming perspective, it is gaining a lot of traction amongst farmers because it is a low input system that gives a fairer price for producers. We have lost so many small farms because of a system of high input costs and low commodity prices. I foresee a bright future for grass based agriculture especially as water is an increasing environmental concern.
How do you think we can get this movement to be more massive? (the movement which is really just us pushing back against the mass production style of meat production, as opposed to actual farming)
This movement is happening all around us. It is taking the form of cooking, homesteading, gardening, farmers markets and new farms. It is so positive. Will it grow? Yes, because good honest, tasting food speaks for itself. It is about passion for food and it is catching like wild fire. In terms of making it more massive, we need to make it positive, we need to inspire make people garden, frequent their farmers markets and cook! I would love to see more families raising pigs. This movement is growing and it is not going away!
I find when I eat meats that are hormone free and grass fed, I fill up faster. The meat is heartier and it takes less to satisfy. Your thoughts on this?
Yes, I think the flavor of grass-fed beef is very satisfying. I have never thought of it in that way but I do think that flavor does fill you up. Also, because grass-fed and pastured meats are more expensive you might treat it with more diffidence and serve it with more vegetables which I think is also filling.
How can people access this great meat?
Farmer’s markets, online ranchers, and local CSA’s there are also a lot of food co-ops that carry grass fed and pastured meats. My father is letting me sell two steers using social media tools, so if you are in the NYC area, you can purchase some grass fed beef from me!
What can people do to help spread the word about these great meats?
Cook with them! Tell your friends, share recipes, blog about it, create a club where you cook for each and talk about the farm or breed you’re enjoying, simply SAVOR your food.
What is a typical day in the life of a farmer?
In the winter you have to feed the animals hay and make sure they have water. There is always something that comes up on a farm whether it is a fence break or a tractor breakdown. It is a 24 hour 7 day a week job. In the summer we rotate the steers and take the sheep in at night because of coyotes. During the spring there is a lot of lambing and calving so we have to pay attention to make sure everything is going smoothly. Life on a farm is centered on the animals; it is about keeping them safe, fed, watered and healthy. We think our animals are pretty happy too!
Do you have any farm family traditions that center around food?
My mom is an excellent cook and a very talented gardener. Summer was filled with amazing vegetables. I really never realized how lucky I was. Meal time was a big deal on the farm. We actually have 6: Breakfast, Coffee, Lunch, Tea and then Dinner. On a farm you need breaks and lots of fuel because you are running around all day. So food would be the most important part of our farm.
Do you have a favorite recipe grass fed meat to share?
Cooking and home cooks are just as important as farmers in this movement. Cooks that are willing to use non-prime cuts are heroes in my book because they like the challenge and support us. Less than 20% of a finished steer is center meat, so there is a lot of non-prime cuts. It really is important to eat the whole animal! There are ways of making tough cuts elegant enough for a dinner party, one of my favorite recipes is Irish Beef Stew. This recipe feeds a big party of 8-10!
IRISH BEEF STEW
Ulla Kjarval
Ingredients:
4 lbs stewing beef
5 tablespoons olive oil
1/3 cup flour
Salt and freshly ground pepper
3 large onions coarsely chopped
1 can tomato paste or 2-8 oz cans of tomato sauce
2 cans of beef stock or two boullion cubes with water
1 bottle of Guinness stout
3 cups carrots
5 stalks of celery
3 portabella mushrooms, or 2 cups of another type of mushroom
handful of chopped parsley and chives.
Preparation:
1. Toss stewing beef in flour and one tablespoon of oil season with salt and pepper.
2. Heat remaining oil in a stew pot at a high heat, brown beef on all sides then add onions, garlic and tomato puree.
3. Cover and cook gently for about 10 minutes.
4. Add half of the Guinness bring to boil making sure to get all the beef scrapings on the bottom of the casserole, add the rest of the Guinness, carrots, water and beef stock.
5. Cook at a low heat for 1 hour.
6. After an hour add celery and mushrooms and chopped herbs for another 1-2 hours at a very low heat.
7. You can also place the casserole in the oven at 300 for 2 hours.
8. Enjoy with Irish Style mashed potatoes called champ!
