IMPORTANT LEGAL DISCLAIMER. I am a cook, not a food safety expert. The temperatures recommended below are similar to the temps professional chefs use. These temps may be slightly different from those recommended by USDA guidelines. To be absolutely perfectly safe from a microbial standpoint, you should follow USDA guidelines exactly. I cannot be responsible for your health or safety if you do not follow USDA guidelines. Click here for an article on food handling and safety.

* the colors for veal and pork will be much paler

About this table. I want my food tender, juicy, and flavorful, but I also want it safe. Getting there is a balancing act requiring temperature control and a good thermometer. Nothing will improve your cooking so much as a good instant-read meat thermometer and a calibrated oven. Click here for a buying guide to thermometers.

Chefs vs. USDA. The official government meat regulatory agency, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has long published a guide for proper cooking temperatures. The USDA charts are designed to make sure your there is no chance of any pathogens surviving, and it seems they assume that you do not have a precise thermometer. The problem is that some of their recommended temps can lead to dry and tough meat when there is minimal risk if it is cooked a bit less and if you have a precise thermometer. Since I like my meats tender and juicy, I have a good thermemeter, and this is the table I use. For example, USDA recommends that you cook all steaks and roasts to 145F. That's medium well. At that temperature, every steakhouse in America would go out of business. On the other hand, the USDA recommendations for ground beef, chicken, turkey, and eggs are nothing to be trifled with. Chicken, turkey, and eggs are almost always contaminated and one must approach them as if they were poisonous. Ground beef has another problem. Why? See below.

It's not blood! I know a lot of folks like their meat well done, but it's a scientific fact that well done meat is tougher and drier than rare meat. Some are turned off by the red juice that is commonly called "blood". It is not blood and we should stop calling it blood. It is myoglobin, a protein. Just call it juice. At about 140F red meat begins to turn pink as the myoglobin begins to change. As the temperature rises above 140F myoglobin starts to go from pink to clear, and the meat turns tan. At that temp the meat starts to toughen as the proteins denature. Click here for more on meat science.

Resting meat. When my trusty thermometer says the meat is ready, I take it off and let it rest for about 10 minutes. During the 10 minute resting period the temp will usually rise about 5F. This is called carryover. Actual carryover can vary depending on the shape of the meat. Thick roasts will not rise as much as steaks. It also has to do with the cooking temp. If you are cooking hot, carryover can be up to 10F. If you are cooking low, it might not go up the full 5F. But 5F is a good rule of thumb for most meats. Resting is also important because meat is mostly water, and heat makes the water expand and generate pressure within the cells. Some of the liquid is driven to the surface. When the meat is removed from the heat the pressure drops a bit and the juices reabsorb into the muscle. When you cut into the meat, less juice is spilled and more juice makes into your mouth. For properly cooked, tender, and moist food, remove the meat from the heat when it reaches the temp below in the thickest part and let it rest for 10 minutes.

Beef, lamb, and duck breasts. I like my red meat steaks and roasts rare to medium rare. The meat is no longer purple, but bright red, and it is tenderest and juiciest at this temp. I can often tell when it is ready without a thermometer. When the juices begin to break through the upper crust as in the photo to the right, it's time to take it off. A lot of chefs can tell by poking the meat with a finger since it gets more firm the more it cooks. Beef brisket is cooket to about 190F because it is a tough cut and it needs to get up to that temp to dissolve the connective tissues. Click here to learn more about cooking brisket.

Veal. Follow the temperature guide for beef since veal is just young, specially fed, specially handled beef. But veal is a pale colored meat so there will be only a pale pink when it is rare.

Pork. Remove chops and roasts from heat at 135F (serve at 140F). USDA says you should cook pork to 160F but that's a recipe for cottonmouth. Trichinosis is killed at 138F, but not to worry, there are only about 5 cases of trichinosis a year in the US and most of them come from uninspected homegrown hogs. At 140F there will be a hint of pink, and the meat will be moist and juicy. Please note that we deliberately cook pork ribs and shoulders for pulled pork up to 180-190F or more in order to melt the collagens, connective tissues, and fats that are so rife in these tough cuts (click here to read my article on The Science of Amazing Ribs).

Burgers, ground meat, and sausage. Cook to 155F (serve at 160F). That's the USDA recommended temp and it should be adhered to closely. Alas, it is also well done. The risk of E. coli 0157H:7 is too great to mess around undercooking ground meat. Why is ground meat different than whole muscle meat? During butchering of the carcass the intestines are often cut open by mistake. The fecal matter within, full of dangerous pathogens, can get on the meat and on the butcher knives. This is not a problem for steaks because the pathogens do not migrate far into the muscle fiber. They remain on the surface and they are killed rapidly by cooking. But when meat is ground, the contamination on the surface is mixed into the center. If it is not served at 160F, it can find its way into your gut and cause discomfort, illness, or even death. So ground meat must be cooked to a higher temp than whole muscle meat. Don't screw around. The risk is too high, especially for young and elderly people at your table.

Chicken and turkey. Researchers tell us that practically all chicken and turkey have salmonella in the juices and we should think of raw fowl as poisonous. USDA says to serve poultry at 165F and most chefs agree and remove it at no lower than 160F. Measure the breast at its thickest part since it takes longest to cook and dries out most easily. At 165F it is still juicy. Much higher and you'll be eating cardboard. The transition happens rapidly. The juices should run clear and any pink could be dangerous. That said, safe chicken can have some bright red parts attached to the bone.

Fish. USDA recommends serving it at 145F, but at that temp most fish will be dry. Remove from heat at 130F (serve at 135F) when the meat is only slightly transluscent, flakes easily, and it will be tender and moist. It is easy to overcook fish, so be vigilant.

Eggs. Raw eggs should be cooked until the yolks are firm to be perfectly safe. Egg-based casseroles, sauces, and custards need to be cooked to 155F (serve at 160F). USDA says cook eggs to 160F and the frequence of salmonella nowadays means you should obey they guidelines.

Pre-cooked ham. Serve at 140F. This stuff is cured and pre-cooked, so you are really just warming it. No need to dry it out.

This page revised 10/31/08

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