Fitness Friday Girl Answers More of Your Questions, 2nd Edition: Beef vs. Turkey

Andi writes: Okay, Fitness Friday girl, these recipes sound great. I only have one “beef” with them. Why the ground turkey? Did you know that one pound of lean beef has the same amount of fat and cholesterol as lean turkey? I don’t understand this big exodus from the consumption of beef. I realize you did a post on how scary the beef industry is, but I eat only free range beef that is organic. Of course, all of my beef is raised by my dad in his pasture, and he never uses hormones or anything like that, so I guess it is easy for me to come by. My thoughts are that if people would actually buy free range organic beef, people like my dad would not be struggling (as much, he’s a farmer, so struggling is part of the package)to make ends meet.

Anyway, as usual, I love your post and will keep coming back. I don’t mean to offer criticism, I just get tired of seeing everything with turkey instead of lean organic ground beef.

FFG Says: Soapboxes are always welcome here, as long as you are nice about it. Which you are. So, It’s all good. I know I answered you through e-mail, but I thought the other readers may be interested in my response. Which I jazzed up a bit for the post.

For the record, I am not “anti meat” or “anti beef.” Not to get all spiritual on the readers, but I try to live my life adhering to the Bible as much as I know how. And the Bible says,

“Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother’s way. As one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am fully convinced that no food is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean. If your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy your brother for whom Christ died.” (Romans 14:13-15)

That particular passage is discussing whether or not it is okay to eat meat offered to idols, but I think it can apply to all food. So, I’m not in the business of banning real food that God clearly put on this earth for humans to enjoy. I know some people have strong moral reasons for not eating meat. I am not one of them.

That said, I do not condone or partake in the eating of disgusting, chemical-laden, laboratory-created food. That, by definition, is not food. I also do not condone or partake in the eating food produced in the craziness known as the conventional U.S. meat and dairy “farms.” It is cruel and inhumane, not to mention, unsanitary and gross.  I DO have a moral reason for not participating in that insanity.

From what I have gathered from my limited research and years on this earth, eating real food (including meat) from organic or local farms is cool. So, “Yay, Andi’s Dad!!!”

THAT said, I have never loved beef, even as a little girl. I would eat it…a good steak, a good burger or a roast. But I’ve always been a little grossed out by the texture. And heaven forbid if I accidentally came across a bone or a vein or a tendon or something. It would ruin me for weeks.

One of my earliest memories as a child is hearing my mom tell other people, “She’s not a meat eater.” I would force myself to eat it (probably the way many people force themselves to eat vegetables) because I thought it was good for me and I needed the protein, especially when I started lifting weights regularly.

I pretty much cut red meat out of my life a few years ago when I had the revelation that there were many other protein sources out there that I like better. And since I’m the cook in my house, our entire household went beef-free at that moment. But almost everyone else in my family occasionally orders beef when we eat out.

As for using the ground turkey in the particular chili recipe you referenced, that was unusual, as I don’t like ground meat in general, and therefore, don’t really use it in recipes. I had it on hand because I saw it in bulk at Costco and picked it up. I know: perfect logic says, “I never use ground turkey, so LET’S BUY IT IN BULK!”

I lose all perspective in Costco. And Target.

I had always read that beef had more saturated fat than turkey, and consumption of saturated fat has been directly linked to heart disease. But honestly, I had never really done the research before your comment, because I assumed it was common knowledge. A quick google search revealed what I thought to be true. And you KNOW, if you can find it on a quick google search, it HAS to be true!

 Here’s the skinny on what I found, with links if you want to delve further.

For turkey information, a good site to visit is http://www.eatturkey.com/. Ground turkey does come with varying amounts of fat. Ground turkey with more fat such as an 87% lean product contains both white and dark meat. The dark meat has more fat. In a 3 ounce cooked portion of 87% lean ground turkey there are 200 calories, 11 grams of fat, 3 grams saturated fat, 87 grams cholesterol and 23 grams of protein. Ground turkey that is 99% lean has more white meat. In a 3 ounce cooked portion of 99% lean ground turkey there are 98 calories, 1.5 grams of fat, 0 grams saturated fat, 45 mg cholesterol and 20 grams of protein. This is your leanest ground turkey.

For beef a good site to visit is http://www.beefnutrition.org/ . 85% lean ground beef, 3 ounces cooked contains 204 calories, 12.2 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 77 milligrams cholesterol and 22 grams protein 95% lean ground beef was the leanest I could find, 3 ounces cooked contains 162 calories, 5.4 grams fat, 2.4 grams saturated fat, 62 milligrams cholesterol and 23.2 grams of protein.

 Basically, ounce per ounce, the leanest ground turkey compared to the leanest ground beef has fewer calories, less saturated fat and less cholesterol.  And all of this can be found here

How do the rest of you feel about beef?  Did I sufficiently answer your beef questions or did I make it worse?  Do you have any other questions for me?