Does 85% lean ground turkey have the same amount of fat as 85% lean ground beef?
I'm not a cooking expert so I'm not exactly sure what the notation means. I always thought that turkey was a much leaner meat than beef. So if turkey is labeled as 85% lean, does that mean it has the same fat content as 85% lean beef? If so, does that mean that the fat percentage is simply higher than that of turkey in general?
Best Answer
Yes.
"85% lean" means that 15% is fat... regardless of the type of meat.
"95% lean" means that 5% is fat...
Much of ground turkey is made from turkey breast, which is naturally nearly fat free, which is why it's often sold as "99% fat free", meaning there's only 1% fat.
The turkey that's 85% lean is usually dark meat - legs and thighs - which are significantly higher in fat than the breast meat. This is generally standard for most (if not all) fowl.
Here's some numbers:
Ounce for ounce, white turkey breast meat trumps dark meat, calorically speaking. Per 3 ounces, opting for white meat over dark will save you 45 calories and 6 grams of saturated fat: 115 calories and 0 grams of saturated fat versus 160 calories and 2 grams of saturated fat, respectively.
In general, sources tend to say that dark meat is more flavorful and more moist, which is generally true of higher-fat proteins.
Beef doesn't have as many sections that are similarly lacking in fat and ground beef is often made from trimmings from all sorts of parts of the cow, not just one part.
As a note, I regularly see ground beef as low as 70% lean (this is the lowest it can be - as stated by USDA law)... but I've never seen turkey lower than 85%, that I can think of.
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Quick Answer about "Does 85% lean ground turkey have the same amount of fat as 85% lean ground beef?"
Side by side, both 93% and 85% lean ground beef have slightly more protein than turkey of the same fat percentages for about the same number of calories. Beef also has less total fat, but turkey contains less saturated fat than beef.Does ground turkey have more fat than ground beef?
Ounce for ounce, ground turkey has slightly more calories, fat, cholesterol, and sodium compared to ground beef. However, ground beef has more protein, iron, zinc, and B vitamins. Saturated fat is where they differ (though not by a ton), and that's usually why turkey generally gets more \u201chealthy\u201d points than beef.Is lean turkey better than lean ground beef?
Surprisingly, Hueschen says there aren't major nutritional differences between ground turkey and beef. \u201cThe nutrition panel (calories, sodium, cholesterol, etc.) for ground turkey and ground beef is very comparable, as long as you select the same ratio of lean to fat,\u201d Hueschen says.Is 85% lean ground turkey healthy?
The 85/15 turkey is not as healthy as the 90/10 ground beef from a calorie and fat comparison. In fact, the ground turkey had a lot more calories and fat.Which is healthier ground turkey or ground beef?
Ground turkey. Lower calorie taco meat? Turkey. Generally speaking, ground turkey is leaner than standard ground beef, a nutritional advantage, especially when it comes to heart health, but this protein pick can leave something to be desired in the flavor and texture department.Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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