Check out the meat facts - all you need to know about including meat in a healthy diet.
Is meat good for you? The answer is a qualified "yes". Red meat and poultry are valuable sources of protein and other nutrients, and can certainly form part of a healthy diet.
You do need to choose the right kinds of meat, and overall it's a good idea to eat less, rather than more. When you're planning a week's meals, cut down on the number that include meat, and increase the number that are based around fish and vegetables. These useful meat facts can help you choose what to serve.
Meat Facts: Choosing Meat and Poultry
Bacon Contains about 16g fat per 100g. Is also very high in salt, and usually contains nitrites which, once in the stomach, may form substances linked to cancer. Smoked foods also been implicated as having cancer-inducing potential. Use bacon in small quantities, and eat only occasionally.
Beef Contains about 5g of fat per 100g. About half this fat content is monounsaturated fat, similar to the fat found in heart-healthy olive oil. If you buy minced (ground) beef, make sure it doesn't contain too much fat. The meat facts on beef show that it's fine to include from time to time in a healthy diet.
Chicken Skinless chicken contains around 3g fat per 100g. If you're worried about calories, remove the skin, where most of the fat is found. Chicken is a good source of nutrients. Choose organic whenever you can, both to avoid supporting the battery farming industry and because the flavour is much better.
Duck Contains 11g fat per 100g meat. Duck contains a lot more saturated fat than either chicken or turkey. It's a good source of iron and zinc. Eat only occasionally, and use in recipes where the skin is removed, such as stir fries.
Ham Contains about 3g fat per 100g. Also high in salt. The meat facts on ham don't make very pleasant reading. Packaged ham is often made from off cuts of pork which have been ground, reconstituted with water and starch to bind, then pressed and shaped into 'ham'. This kind of ham may be high in fat and additives. Buy lean ham from a butcher or delicatessen, cut from a joint. Eat only in moderation.
Lamb Contains around 8g fat per 100g. Lamb is quite a fatty meat, particularly cuts like shoulder. But, as research continues, it's unclear just how harmful saturated fat is to the body. Lamb is not often reared intensively, and in moderation is a good addition to a healthy diet.
Offal Liver and kidneys are lower in fat than meat and are nutritious foods. This is a definite case for buying organic, because the function of both the liver and kidneys is to detoxify the animal's body, and so they may contain harmful substances if the animal has been intensively reared. Pregnant women are often advised to avoid liver because of its high vitamin A content, which could be harmful to the foetus.
Pork Contains about 4g fat per 100g. The vast majority of pigs are intensively farmed, so apart from the miserable lives these animals have had, there's a risk that their meat will contain chemicals such as anti-biotics used in factory farming. Look out for organic or 'freedom' meats - these pigs are reared out of doors in communities, and have freedom to roam.
Sausages Contain around 25g fat per 100g. Mass-produced sausages are not only high in fat, they can also contain fillers, additives, lots of salt and mechanically retrieved meat. Buy sausages from a farmer's market or reputable butcher, who should be using better quality ingredients. Eat only occasionally.
Turkey Contains around 1g fat per 100g. Star of the meat facts list, turkey is one of the super foods, and an excellent lean source of protein, also rich in B vitamins and zinc. Buy organic.
Venison Contains around 2.5g fat per 100g. Some venison is wild, some is farmed, but even when farmed deer are seldom raised intensively. Excellent healthy choice for those who like a robustly flavoured red meat.
Meat Facts: Organic Meat and Poultry
Whatever type of meat you buy, go for the very best quality you can find. It's better to have a smaller amount of good meat, than a large serving of a meat that has been factory farmed and processed.
Animals raised organically are less likely to be intensively reared, and will have been treated humanely. The meat is less likely to contain chemicals from pesticides, and will sometimes have been fed on grass rather than grain, which makes for a higher proportion of healthier omega-3 fats in the meat.
Avoid cheap processed meats like burgers and sausages, or made-up dishes like lasagnes and shepherd's pie. Often the meat content is very low, and the food has been bulked out with fat, rusk or other filling agents. Check the ingredients list, and shun anything that has a long, long list of additives. Buy burgers or sausages from a reputable, preferably organic butcher, and check the meat content. It's always better to buy fresh, unprocessed meat and make your own dishes - cook big batches and store some in the freezer if you're short of time.
Meat Facts: Cooking Meat Healthily
Eat less red meat, by using other ingredients to replace some of the meat in a recipe. Canned or dried pulses (soak and cook according to packet directions) such as beans, lentils or chick peas, are a great addition to dishes using minced (ground) meat, like bolognaise sauce. If you are making a stir fry, use less meat or poultry and add another vegetable, like broccoli florets.
Start collecting vegetarian and fish recipes, and gradually add them to your regular repertoire of recipes.
With a meat roast, serve more vegetables, and perhaps a stuffing, and cut down on the portion size of meat. A healthy portion of meat is about the size and depth of a pack of cards in its box.
Use just a couple of rashers of bacon, finely chopped, or some pancetta, to get that smokey under-flavour into meat sauces.
Get to know the meat facts, so you can make healthy choices when shopping for meat.
Cut off all visible fat before cooking, and skin poultry. Brown minced (ground) meat in a pan until the fat runs off, then tip on to kitchen paper to drain off as much fat as possible before continuing with the recipe.
Experiment with vegetarian meat substitutes. Some of the tofu slices and sausages are good, and Quorn works well in recipes that use minced (ground) meat. If the sauce is well-flavoured it can be very hard to tell the difference between Quorn and meat. Only problem is that some people find that Quorn creates gas in their gut, so serve in small portions to begin with.
The meat facts show that making wise choices and eating meat in moderation can work just fine as part of a healthy diet.
