How To Reduce The Fat In A Burger By 50%

What do we mean by lean beef?

There has been some confusion over how to determine what lean beef actually is. Should you go by the actual cut of meat or the % lean designation, or do you need to buy organic or natural beef. Follow the tips below to help you choose the leanest beef and other ideas to help you cut back on the amount of fat.

• According to criteria set by the USDA for meat labels, lean beef contains no more than 10% fat - 90% lean.
• You can also find "extra lean" which contains no more than 5% fat - 95% lean.
• The most reliable information is the "% fat" and "% lean" numbers.
• The amount of fat on the meat label is the amount in the raw meat - Cooking the beef in a pan or on a grill will decrease the fat anywhere from 1-5 grams of fat depending on the % fat content. In the 95% lean beef, it goes from 6 grams of fat for raw down to 5 g of fat for cooked. In the 90% lean, it goes from 11 grams down to 9 grams.
• Don't forget about the blot method. By placing hamburger on a few layers of paper towel after it's been cooked, can reduce fat up to 50% when using fattier meats.
• Although organic and natural beef may have some benefits, when it comes to fat content those types still abide by the same regulations as the more common beef products, so no less fat in organic beef.