Have you ever wondered what is in the ground beef, ground turkey, sausage, or processed luncheon meats you consume?  We did, so we grind our own meats for our Bolognese, Italian sausage, turkey ragu, cannelloni filling and meatballs.  We even select certain cuts of meat for each of the above mentioned products.  For example, we choose pork loin for our meatballs, and turkey breast for our Italian Sausage Turkey Ragu.  Beef chuck shoulder is the cut of choice for our Bolognese.

Ground meat labels.  Have you noticed that there are no nutrition labels on fresh meat and poultry?  Currently the USDA allows claims like “80% lean” or “85% lean” on labels of ground meats.  According to the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), 80% lean ground beef is one of the fattiest meats available.  Because those claims imply that a food is low in fat, millions of Americans think they are following health experts’ advice to eat lean meat.  In fact, ground beef labeled 80% lean or 85% lean is not “low-fat” or “lean” at all because it contains about 14 to 16 grams of fat when cooked.  And, that is saturated fat.

Ground beef labeling is extremely confusing.  All we know for sure is that it is beef.   By law, ground beef may not contain any added water, fillers or binders.  To find out the cut of beef and the fat content, you will have to depend on the label or grind it yourself.  If the label says it’s ground sirloin or ground chuck, then those are the only parts included in the grind.  These grinds are typically more expensive and leaner than the all-inclusive ground beef or hamburger.  However, beware.  Ground sirloin or ground round can conceivably be no leaner than inexpensive ground beef, yet still be properly labeled as long as it doesn’t claim to be lean.  Don’t depend on the cut to define leanness.

    In order to be labeled lean, the ground beef must have a 25 percent reduction in fat over standard ground beef’s 30 percent limit.  Confusing?  After doing the math, this means that to be labeled lean, the ground beef can contain no more than 22.5 percent fat.  The fat percentage must be referenced somewhere on the packaging for all ground beef labeled as lean.

Recently, I checked out the ingredient list on a package of America’s #1 selling chicken hot dog.  First ingredient, mechanically separated chicken; second ingredient, pork; and third mechanically separated turkey.  According to the U.S. Food Safety and Inspection Service of the Department of Agriculture, mechanically separated meats are the real thing and are safe.  Simply put, mechanical separation is a way of getting every last piece of meat from the bone of a chicken, turkey, or other food animal.  Bones with edible meat attached are forced under high pressure through a device that separates the bone from the meat.  The end result, a paste-like product used in many foods.

The USDA has strict guidelines about products labeled “ground,” but if you really want to know what goes into the meals you prepare, at the very least, know your butcher and ask, or better yet, select a cut of meat and ask them to grind it in for you. 

— Cindy Shultz is the owner and chef at Cindy Lutini’s Pasta for Life. She holds a B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chappell Hill and an M.A. from John Carroll University.