IS PINK TURKEY MEAT
SAFE TO EAT?
 The color of cooked meat and poultry is not always a sign of its degree of doneness.
Only by using a meat thermometer can one accurately determine that a meat has
reached a safe temperature. Turkey, fresh pork, ground beef or veal can remain
pink even after cooking to temperatures of 160°F. and higher. The meat of smoked
turkey is always pink. To understand some of the causes of “pinking” or “pinkening” in
fresh turkey, it is important to know first what gives meat its natural color.
WHY IS POULTRY LIGHTER IN COLOR THAN BEEF?
The protein myoglobin is the major pigment found in all vertebrates
and can exist in various forms that determine the resulting meat
color. The major reason that poultry meat is much lighter in
color than beef is that it is dramatically lower in myoglobin.
Also, as an animal becomes older, its myoglobin content usually
increases. Turkeys today are young — 14 to 18 weeks old
at the time of slaughter.
WHY ARE WHITE AND DARK MEAT OF POULTRY DIFFERENT COLORS?
The pink, red or white coloration of meat is due primarily to oxygen-storing
myoglobin that is located in the muscle cell and retains the
oxygen brought by the blood until the cells need it. To some
extent, oxygen use can be related to the bird’s general
level of activity: muscles that are exercised frequently and
strenuously — such as the legs — need more oxygen
and they have a greater storage capacity than muscles needing
little oxygen. Turkeys do a lot of standing around, but little,
if any, flying, so their wing and breast muscles are white; their
legs — dark.
WHAT CAUSES WELL-DONE MEAT TO BE PINK?
- Chemical changes during cooking. Scientists have found that pinkness occurs when gases in the atmosphere
of a heated gas or electric oven react chemically with hemoglobin
in the meat tissues to give poultry a pink tinge. They are the
same substances that give red color to smoked hams and other
cured meats.
- High cytochrome c levels. A component of hemo-protein in the turkey meat, cytochrome
c, requires a much higher temperature (above 212°F.) to lose
its pink color than myoglobin. Because turkey is tender and
done at 180 to 185°F., heating it to above 212°F. to change
the pink color of cytochrome c would make it so dry and tough
it would be almost inedible.
- Natural presence of nitrites. Nitrites are commonly used to
produce a desired pink color in traditional cured meats, such
as ham or bologna. So, it follows that the natural presence of
nitrates and nitrites either in the feed or water supply used
in the production of poultry are a factor in nitrite levels in
the birds.
- Young age of meat. Often meat of younger birds shows the most pink because their
thinner skins permit oven gases to reach the flesh. The amount
of fat in the skin also affects the amount of pink color.
Young birds or animals also lack the shield of fat covering.
- Grilling. Meat and poultry grilled or smoked outdoors can also look pink,
even when well done. There may be a pink-colored rim about ½” wide around the
outside of the cooked meat. The meat of commercially smoked turkeys is usually
pink because they are prepared with natural smoke and liquid smoke flavor.
HOW TO TEST FOR DONENESS
The best way to be sure a turkey — or any meat — is
cooked safely and done is to use a meat thermometer. If the temperature
of the turkey, as measured in the thigh, has reached 180°F. and
is done to family preference, all the meat — including any
that remains pink — is safe to eat.
Visual signs of doneness include checking the color of the juices
that run when the turkey is pierced with a fork. Juices should
be clear, not pink. The meat should be fork tender and the leg
should move easily in the joint.
Source: USDA, Food Safety and Inspection Service.
|
