Temperature (meat)
Encyclopedia
Temperature is a description of how thoroughly cooked a cut of meat is based on the color, juiciness and internal temperature when cooked. The gradations of cooking are most often used in reference to beef
(especially steak
and roasts) but are also applicable to lamb, pork
, poultry
, veal
, and seafood
(especially fish
).
Gradations, their description, and the associated temperature ranges vary regionally from cuisine to cuisine and in local practice and terminology. The table below is from an American
reference book and pertains to beef and lamb.
In lieu of gradations and ranges, the United States Department of Agriculture
recommends a temperature of at least 63 °C (145.4 °F) for beef, veal, lamb steaks and roasts in order to prevent foodborne illness
.
The interior of a cut of meat will still increase in temperature 3–5 °C (5–10 °F) after it is removed from an oven or other heat source. The meat should be allowed to "rest" before being served, which allows for the juices in the center to return to the edges. The whole meat, and the center will also continue to cook slightly as the hot exterior continues to warm the comparatively cooler interior.
The temperatures indicated above are the peak temperature in the cooking process, so the meat should be removed from the heat source a few degrees cooler.
(not blood), and other juices decreases. The color change is due to changes in the oxidation of the iron
atom of the heme
group in the myoglobin
protein: raw meat is red due to myoglobin protein in the muscles, not hemoglobin
from blood (which also contains a heme group, hence the color).
Prior to cooking, the iron atom is in a +2 oxidation state, and bound to a dioxygen molecule (O2), with a red color. As cooking proceeds, it loses an electron, moving to a +3 oxidation state, and coordinating with a water molecule (H2O), turning brown in the process.
Searing
raises the meat’s surface temperature to 150 °C, yielding browning
via different reactions: caramelization
of sugars, and the Maillard reaction
of amino acids. Raised to a high enough temperature, meat blackens from burning.
(cooking the exterior at a high temperature) in no way "seals in the juices" – water evaporates at the same or higher rates as unseared meat. Searing does play an important role, however, in browning, a crucial contributor to flavor.
Beef
Beef is the culinary name for meat from bovines, especially domestic cattle. Beef can be harvested from cows, bulls, heifers or steers. It is one of the principal meats used in the cuisine of the Middle East , Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Europe and the United States, and is also important in...
(especially steak
Steak
A steak is a cut of meat . Most are cut perpendicular to the muscle fibers, improving the perceived tenderness of the meat. In North America, steaks are typically served grilled, pan-fried, or broiled. The more tender cuts from the loin and rib are cooked quickly, using dry heat, and served whole...
and roasts) but are also applicable to lamb, pork
Pork
Pork is the culinary name for meat from the domestic pig , which is eaten in many countries. It is one of the most commonly consumed meats worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BC....
, poultry
Poultry
Poultry are domesticated birds kept by humans for the purpose of producing eggs, meat, and/or feathers. These most typically are members of the superorder Galloanserae , especially the order Galliformes and the family Anatidae , commonly known as "waterfowl"...
, veal
Veal
Veal is the meat of young cattle , as opposed to meat from older cattle. Though veal can be produced from a calf of either sex and any breed, most veal comes from male calves of dairy cattle breeds...
, and seafood
Seafood
Seafood is any form of marine life regarded as food by humans. Seafoods include fish, molluscs , crustaceans , echinoderms . Edible sea plants, such as some seaweeds and microalgae, are also seafood, and are widely eaten around the world, especially in Asia...
(especially fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
).
Gradations, their description, and the associated temperature ranges vary regionally from cuisine to cuisine and in local practice and terminology. The table below is from an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
reference book and pertains to beef and lamb.
In lieu of gradations and ranges, the United States Department of Agriculture
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive department responsible for developing and executing U.S. federal government policy on farming, agriculture, and food...
recommends a temperature of at least 63 °C (145.4 °F) for beef, veal, lamb steaks and roasts in order to prevent foodborne illness
Foodborne illness
Foodborne illness is any illness resulting from the consumption of contaminated food, pathogenic bacteria, viruses, or parasites that contaminate food, as well as chemical or natural toxins such as poisonous mushrooms.-Causes:Foodborne illness usually arises from improper handling, preparation, or...
.
| Term (French) | Description | | Temperature range | USDA recommended | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Extra-rare or Blue (bleu) | very red and cold | 46–49 °C | 115–120 °F | |
| Rare (saignant) | cold red center; soft | 52–55 °C | 125–130 °F | |
| Medium rare (à point) | warm red center; firmer | 55–60 °C | 130–140 °F | 145 °F |
| Medium (cuit) | pink and firm | 60–65 °C | 140–150 °F | 160 °F |
| Medium well (bien cuit) | small amount of pink in the center | 65–69 °C | 150–155 °F | |
| Well done | gray-brown throughout; firm | 71-100 °C | 160-212 °F | 170 °F |
| Overcooked | blacken throughout; crispy | >100 °C | >212 °F | >220 °F |
The interior of a cut of meat will still increase in temperature 3–5 °C (5–10 °F) after it is removed from an oven or other heat source. The meat should be allowed to "rest" before being served, which allows for the juices in the center to return to the edges. The whole meat, and the center will also continue to cook slightly as the hot exterior continues to warm the comparatively cooler interior.
The temperatures indicated above are the peak temperature in the cooking process, so the meat should be removed from the heat source a few degrees cooler.
Color
As meat is cooked, it turns from red to pink to gray to brown to black (if burnt), and the amount of red liquid, myoglobinMyoglobin
Myoglobin is an iron- and oxygen-binding protein found in the muscle tissue of vertebrates in general and in almost all mammals. It is related to hemoglobin, which is the iron- and oxygen-binding protein in blood, specifically in the red blood cells. The only time myoglobin is found in the...
(not blood), and other juices decreases. The color change is due to changes in the oxidation of the iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
atom of the heme
Heme
A heme or haem is a prosthetic group that consists of an iron atom contained in the center of a large heterocyclic organic ring called a porphyrin. Not all porphyrins contain iron, but a substantial fraction of porphyrin-containing metalloproteins have heme as their prosthetic group; these are...
group in the myoglobin
Myoglobin
Myoglobin is an iron- and oxygen-binding protein found in the muscle tissue of vertebrates in general and in almost all mammals. It is related to hemoglobin, which is the iron- and oxygen-binding protein in blood, specifically in the red blood cells. The only time myoglobin is found in the...
protein: raw meat is red due to myoglobin protein in the muscles, not hemoglobin
Hemoglobin
Hemoglobin is the iron-containing oxygen-transport metalloprotein in the red blood cells of all vertebrates, with the exception of the fish family Channichthyidae, as well as the tissues of some invertebrates...
from blood (which also contains a heme group, hence the color).
Prior to cooking, the iron atom is in a +2 oxidation state, and bound to a dioxygen molecule (O2), with a red color. As cooking proceeds, it loses an electron, moving to a +3 oxidation state, and coordinating with a water molecule (H2O), turning brown in the process.
Searing
Searing
Searing is a technique used in grilling, baking, braising, roasting, sautéing, etc., in which the surface of the food is cooked at high temperature so a caramelized crust forms. Similar techniques, browning and blackening, are typically used to sear all sides of a particular piece of meat, fish,...
raises the meat’s surface temperature to 150 °C, yielding browning
Browning (partial cooking)
Browning is the process of partially cooking the surface of meat to help remove excessive fat and to give the meat a brown color crust and flavor through various browning reactions. Ground meat will frequently be browned prior to adding other ingredients and completing the cooking process...
via different reactions: caramelization
Caramelization
Caramelization is the browning of sugar, a process used extensively in cooking for the resulting nutty flavor and brown color. As the process occurs, volatile chemicals are released, producing the characteristic caramel flavor....
of sugars, and the Maillard reaction
Maillard reaction
The Maillard reaction is a form of nonenzymatic browning similar to caramelization. It results from a chemical reaction between an amino acid and a reducing sugar, usually requiring heat....
of amino acids. Raised to a high enough temperature, meat blackens from burning.
Drying
Well done cuts, in addition to being brown, are drier and contain little or no juices. Note that searingSearing
Searing is a technique used in grilling, baking, braising, roasting, sautéing, etc., in which the surface of the food is cooked at high temperature so a caramelized crust forms. Similar techniques, browning and blackening, are typically used to sear all sides of a particular piece of meat, fish,...
(cooking the exterior at a high temperature) in no way "seals in the juices" – water evaporates at the same or higher rates as unseared meat. Searing does play an important role, however, in browning, a crucial contributor to flavor.