Some people prefer their meat on the rare side. “As a registered dietitian, I want my patients to be aware that tasting or eating undercooked meat can cause food poisoning. It’s important to understand what ‘undercooked’ really means as it applies to different meats and cuts,” says dietitian Laura Jeffers, MEd, RD, LD.
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How long to cook meat
Meat may contain poisonous bacteria or parasites (e.g.,E. coli, salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, Yersinia enterocolitica, Listeria, trichinosis). These bacteria or parasites can cause flu-like symptoms such as nausea and vomiting, abdominal cramping, diarrhea, fever and chills. The symptoms can be very painful and sometimes last for several days.
Here are some tips to avoid foodborne illness. Keep in mind, these are minimum temperature requirements, so it’s OK to cook your meat a little longer if you prefer it more well done.
- Ground beef must be heated throughout to a temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Steaks, roasts and pork should be heated to 145 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Poultry should be heated to 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Beef, veal, lamb and pork should also be allowed to rest three minutes after cooking before being served. During the rest time, the temperature of the meat will remain constant or continue to rise, which will destroy harmful germs.
How you can tell when meat is done
Unfortunately, you can’t tell whether meat is safely cooked just by looking at it. Any cooked, uncured red meats – including pork – can be pink, even when the meat has reached a safe internal temperature. A safely cooked hamburger patty may look brown, pink or some variation of brown or pink.
The only fail-safe method for determining whether or not meat is done is to check its internal temperature using a meat thermometer. Of course, this isn’t practical in a restaurant. Restaurants do use varying guidelines to determine what temperatures constitute rare, medium rare, medium, etc. But in most instances, if you order steaks to be cooked at least to medium and burgers to well done, you should meet the minimum temperature requirements.
The dangers of overcooking meat
Turns out, undercooked meat isn’t the only hazard. Meats cooked at a very high temperature can also cause problems.
Researchers have found thathigh consumptionof well-done, fried or barbecued meats is associated with an increased risk of colorectal, pancreatic or prostate cancer.
When beef, pork, fish or poultry is cooked using high-temperature methods, such as pan frying or grilling directly over an open flame, they form chemicals known as heterocyclic amines (HCAs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). HCAs and PAHs cause changes in DNA that may increase your risk for cancer.
Meats cooked at high temperatures, especially above 300 degreesFahrenheit (as in grilling or pan frying), or that are cooked for a long time tend to form more HCAs. For example, well done, grilled or barbecued chicken and steak all have high concentrations of HCAs. Cooking methods that expose meat to smoke or charring contribute to PAH formation.
According to the National Cancer Institute, there areseveral methodsfor reducing your risk of exposure to HCAs/PAHs, including:
- Avoid prolonged cooking times (especially at high temperatures).
- Use a microwave oven to cook meat prior to exposure to high temperatures to reduce the time the meat must be in contactwith high heat to finish cooking.
- Continuously turn meat over on a high heat source as opposed to just leaving the meat on the heat source without frequent flipping.
- Remove charred portions of meat.
- Do not make gravy from meat drippings.
When it comes to cooking or ordering meat in a restaurant, keep these tips in mind to lower the risk of foodborne illness or exposure to HCAs.
FAQs
Note: There are three important temperatures to remember when cooking meat or eggs at home: Eggs and all ground meats must be cooked to 160°F; poultry and fowl to 165°F; and fresh meat steaks, chops and roasts to 145°F. Use a thermometer to check temperatures.
Do steak burgers have to be fully cooked? ›
To safely eat a steak, grill or sear it on high heat. Then bring the internal temperature up to 120-125°F (rare), 125-130°F (medium rare), or 135-140°F. To safely eat ground beef, an internal temperature of 160°F must be reached.
How do you know if burgers are safe to eat? ›
To destroy these bacteria and reduce your risk of food poisoning, cook ground beef thoroughly and use a meat thermometer to verify that its internal temperature reaches 160°F (71°C). It's safest to never eat raw or spoiled ground beef.
Is a little pink in a burger ok? ›
To be sure all harmful bacteria are destroyed, cook all ground beef products to an internal temperature of 160 °F throughout. Ground beef can be pink inside after it is safely cooked. The pink color can be due to a reaction between the oven heat and myoglobin, which causes a red or pink color.
How do you know if ground beef is safe to cook? ›
Color, texture, smell and the expiration date all offer important clues if your ground meat has gone bad or if it's safe to eat. And if you have any doubts about the quality or freshness of your ground beef, throw it out — the alternative could be food poisoning.
Is eating medium rare steak safe? ›
If the fresh meat is a steak, roast or chop, then yes — medium-rare can be safe. That means the meat needs to reach 145°F internally and stand for three or more minutes before cutting or consuming. Unfortunately, even if preferred by foodies, there's no way to guarantee the safety of rare meat.
Can you undercook steak burgers? ›
Why Burgers Need to Be Cooked Through. So, if you serve a burger that's rare or undercooked, any germs that haven't been killed off are still alive and well in the meat, increasing the risk of food poisoning, Siegel added. For ground meat to be enjoyed risk-free, the meat needs to reach 160°F, making it well done.
Is it safe to eat burgers medium rare? ›
No, it is not safe to eat medium rare burgers. Ground beef should always be cooked thoroughly, whether it is used in meatballs, burgers or spaghetti bolognese. Minced beef is not the same as steak, and must be cooked all the way through to eliminate the risk of food poisoning. Even if it's good quality mince.
How can you tell if a burger is undercooked? ›
Color is not a reliable indicator of doneness, so the only way to be sure that hamburgers are cooked safely is to use a food thermometer. Ground beef is safe when cooked to an internal temperature of 160 °F as measured with a food thermometer.
Why is my Mcdonald's burger pink in the middle? ›
When exposed to open air, the patties take on a vibrant red shade similar to the ground beef you might see on display in a grocery store. According to Haracz, the pink that customers claim to see in their Quarter Pounders may simply be caused by the gas flushing process.
Given that meat has a fairly high percentage of water in the lean portions (muscle tissue), the amount of reddish watery discharge from the meat, called the “purge,” could be affected by the ratio of lean to fat, the coarseness of the grind, whether the meat was dry aged or not, the temperature and humidity at which it ...
Why are my burgers raw in the middle? ›
The meat was the wrong temperature
The temperature of the meat before it's cooked is almost as important as the cooking temperature. While throwing a frozen patty on a grill or pan may seem like a timesaver, you'll see better results if you let the meat reach room temperature before it's cooked.
Can you eat steak burgers rare? ›
However, some people think that eating rare burgers are also fine to eat too…but that's not the case at all. Steak and burgers are not the same. Eating a burger that's rare and pink inside can potentially lead to food poisoning, whereas eating rare steak should be OK for some people but not all!
Can hamburger steak be pink? ›
The color of cooked ground beef can be quite variable. At 160 degrees F, a safely cooked patty may look brown, pink or some variation of brown or pink. When a patty is cooked to 160 degrees F throughout, it can be safe and juicy, regardless of color.
Is it okay to eat a medium burger? ›
Ruokavirasto, the Finnish food safety agency, says that ground beef patties that are only cooked to medium-rare or medium internal temperatures (less than 140°F) are at risk for carrying the Shiga toxin-producing E. coli bacteria known as STEC.
Does a beef burger have to be cooked all the way through? ›
'Burgers cooked rare and medium rare carry a higher risk of food poisoning. Unlike a steak, a burger needs to be cooked through to reduce that risk. The Food Standards Agency recommends that children, pregnant women and anyone with a weaker immune system have their burgers well done.
