Nutrition – Meat. It’s What’s For Dinner!

This series of articles has been taking a look at nutrition, and
any look at nutrition just wouldn’t be complete without
examining meat. Long considered the ultimate staple of the
American diet (meat and potatoes anyone?), meat is the usually
the centerpiece of our meal.

High in iron, zinc and protein, meat is important (or should be
important) to all of us. The question is, what kind of meat is
healthiest and which is most affordable?

Some meats are simply too high in saturated fat for regular
consumption. Examples include most beef steaks, fatty pork
chops, and of course the traditional breakfast meats (sausage
and bacon). There are, however, quite a few meats that deliver
all the good nutrition we seek without loading us down with
artery-clogging fat.

CHICKEN:

Hands down, the best choice for healthy and affordable meat is
that old favorite the chicken. Choosing white meat portions
(breast) will significantly reduce our fat intake. Chicken
breast is one of the primary foods of bodybuilders, some of the
healthiest people on the planet. The most economical way to
purchase chicken breast is usually to buy the bags of
flash-frozen fillets; these can be found for $1.49 to $1.99 per
pound.

A boneless skinless chicken breast (3 oz. serving) delivers only
3 grams of fat (5% of RDA) and 0.86 grams of saturated fat (4%
of RDA). That’s about 1/2 the fat in even the leanest cuts of
beef! Be aware, however, that the ‘dark’ meat on a chicken is
not nearly as healthy as the breast – a boneless skinless
chicken thigh has 9.2 grams of total fat and 2.6 grams of
saturated fat. That’s triple what we find in the chicken breast.

A good way to incorporate more chicken into our diet is to
substitute skinless ground chicken for ground beef. When used in
a recipe (tacos, spaghetti, etc.) it’s hard to tell the
difference, and the health benefits are huge. Be sure to look
for skinless ground chicken though, because if the package
doesn’t say skinless then it’s guaranteed to be high in fat.

Finally, don’t forget about that popular chicken alternative:
the turkey. It’s not just for Thanksgiving anymore!

BEEF:

Beef. It’s what’s for dinner. Many of us just couldn’t imagine
going without our daily beef serving, but have we considered the
cost to our health? It’s all too tempting to save some money and
buy the ‘high fat’ ground beef instead of the leanest. It’s also
true that the fattiest cuts are the least expensive (chuck is a
great example).

But beef doesn’t have to aid our expanding waistline! Take the
time to compare nutrition facts on the different cuts, which you
can get from your butcher or from beef.org. One of the
healthiest cuts of beef is the flank steak which, when prepared
correctly, is absolutely delicious! Top round is also quite low
in fat, although it tends to get tough when served as a steak.

Love burgers? A great way to enjoy healthy and tasty ground beef
is to purchase a top round roast and ask the butcher to grind it
into ground beef (make sure he or she trims off the excess fat
first). If you have trouble making this grind ‘stick’, try
adding a raw egg to the mixture before forming into hamburger
patties.

When shopping for beef, look for the words ’round’ or ‘loin’ in
the name of the cut. Eye of round roast, for example, boasts
only 4 grams of total fat and 1.4 grams of saturated fat. Don’t
be afraid to ask the butcher to trim off some of the excess fat
- most grocery stores will do this for free.

PORK:

No other meat has been transformed into such ‘fatty’ variations,
from sausage to bacon to salami. For those of us who are pork
lovers, however, there is hope! It is possible to buy lean(er)
cuts of pork!

The tenderloin is the leanest cut of pork: a 3-ounce serving
contains 139 calories and 4.1 grams of fat, which is roughly
comparable to a skinless chicken breast. Other lean cuts (based
on a 3-ounce serving) include boneless loin roast with 165
calories and 6.1 grams of fat; boneless sirloin chops with 164
calories and 5.7 grams of fat; boneless loin chops with 173
calories and 6.6 grams of fat, and boneless ham (extra lean)
with 123 calories and 4.7 grams of fat. A 2-ounce serving of
Canadian-style bacon contains 86 calories and 3.9 grams of fat.

FISH:

In the lean meats contest, fish is hands-down the undisputed
winner. Unlike the fats in most ‘meat with feet’, the fats we
find in fish are primarily the healthy omega fats.

Although there are literally hundreds of different ways to buy
and prepare fish, many of us find fresh fish to be expensive.
Halibut, swordfish, shark and others start at $8.99 per pound.
It is possible, however, to buy fish without ‘breaking the bank’.

Look for salmon on sale, and consider buying the whole fish to
save money. It’s not unusual to find quality salmon for $2.99 or
less per pound – which is less expensive than the leanest cuts
of beef.

Of course, canned fish is typically very inexpensive and
delivers a powerful nutritional punch. Consider, for example,
canned tuna fish. One can of tuna provides 32.5 grams of protein
and only 2.5 grams of fat. Even better, that same can of tuna
has zero grams of saturated fat. Talk about a wonder-food! Look
for canned tuna on sale, when it’s possible to stock up the
pantry at 4 cans for $1.

THE BOTTOM LINE:

The bottom line is that we can all enjoy meat without adding to
our own ‘bottom’ line. Take the time to learn which cuts are the
leanest, look for them on sale, and stock up when the price is
right.

We’ll see you at the butcher counter!

1. Prev:The Secret Culprit In Why You Cant Lose Weight
2. Next:Xenical or Orlistat Fat Blockers