Do you have a well-balanced, nutritional, natural, and wholesome diet? If you are like me, that type of lifestyle means a balance and moderation of red meat, white meat, fruits and vegetables. Moderation makes it easier to maintain a balanced and healthy lifestyle versus a lifestyle full of highly processed and packaged foods. Red meat especially, is a key feature in my diet with a red meat meal a couple times each week. The reason I eat high quality red meat is because of the multitude of nutritional benefits from red meat and eating red meat. 

Nutritional benefits of red meat

Red meat is rich in nutrients and is considered a complete protein. Complete proteins have nutritional components that are readily available to your body because it is from a natural source. Complete proteins also contain every essential vitamin and mineral your body needs for the day. 

Protein, Iron, and Zinc

Red meat is a high-quality animal protein that your body easily breaks down for maintaining, repairing and building muscle, cell and tissue function. Red meat provides 50% of the daily protein just from an 85g cooked steak! Iron is found in high quantities in meat and helps move oxygen throughout your body to all of your organs and tissues. Zinc is necessary to maintain a strong immune system and as a fast response to heal wounds and damaged muscles/tissues/cells.

Minerals and Vitamins

Meat also contains phosphorous and magnesium. Phosphorous and magnesium keep bones strong and other compounds in meat help to digest and metabolise sugars from your diet. Vitamins (all the essential vitamins) are found in meat. Meat is a significant source of Vitamin B12 and has 91% of the daily recommended intake. Vitamin B12 maintains and improves circulation and nerve function and maintains a healthy metabolism. Its important to remember that vitamin B12 is not found in any plant-based foods. Another benefit of red meat is omega-3. Omega-3’s found in meat are great at reducing cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and cardiovascular diseases.

Role of Nutrients from Red Meat in your body

Protein is essential for the growth, development, and maintenance of the body. Having a diet with good quality, wholesome protein means that the nutrients are readily bioavailable for your body to use. High-quality protein also supports weight loss, reduce fat masses, and prevents protein deficiency. Getting enough high-quality protein and iron helps prevent heart diseases, obesity, and especially osteoporosis and sarcopenia (losses in skeletal mass). 

Iron from Red Meat

Helps move oxygen throughout the body, which triggers a production in red blood cells (to carry oxygen). Without enough iron, you are at risk of developing lethargic tendencies; you are at an increased risk of infection, you could develop cardiovascular issues, and even restless leg syndrome and sarcopenia. Combined, you’ll be tired, lethargic, experience shortness of breath, and have negatively impacted memory and concentration. High-quality iron prevents from animal protein sources can help prevent this and keep you laser focused and powered through the day.

Zinc from Red Meat

Deficiencies in zinc can lead to delays in tissue, muscle, and cell repair and a delay in wound healing after injury. This is because zinc is heavily involved in building protein, connective tissues, and the proliferation of cells, all necessary in the regeneration of tissue (wound healing). Similar to iron, low zinc levels can cause poor memory, poor concentration, and issues with thinking, reasoning, and problem solving.

Vitamin B12 – exclusive to Red Meat

Low levels of vitamin B12 result in anaemia. Anemia results in weakness, fatigue, lethargy, and can. Even cause you to pass out frequently. Another symptom of vitamin B12 deficiency is headaches and depression, as well as very pale skin. As with iron and zinc deficiencies, low Vitamin B12 also results in memory issues and problems with concentration.

Sources of Red Meat

Beef, lamb, pork, veal, mutton, and all of roasts and steaks that go along with each animal are some of the best sources of red meat. What you need to focus on when purchases meat products is the end goal of a meal for you and your family. Obviously, you want a nutritious, wholesome, and natural meal packed with vitamins, minerals, and high-quality protein. You don’t just want to grab any old pack of meat. When going through the grocery store, its important to know what you want for your next meal.

Choosing Red Meat

What did you plan to eat? What’s the occasion? Do you want a fast but flavourful steak? Do you want a nice, warm, nostalgic Sunday roast? Are you going for something a bit more fancy like a stuffed pork loin or rack of lamb ribs? Maybe you want something for the sporting event this weekend (BBQ anyone)?

Each meal had a different type of meat. If you know what species you want, that makes things simpler. Then all you have to do is decide what cut of meat you want and how to find it in the store.  

What to look for when buying Red Meat

Cut of Red Meat

There are many options to choose from when deciding which cut of meat you want to take home to cook for your family. One thing you need to remember is, depending on your preference and meal plan, you can break the cuts of meat into a few sections.

Steaks around the loin muscle, like the ribeye, T-Bone, porterhouse, or the tenderloin (filet) and sirloin are all quick and easy steaks to cook up and serve. The filet has less flavour compared to a ribeye, because there is significantly less fat in the filet. However, because the filet comes from a muscle that doesn’t do much work, it is incredibly tender and highly sought after. I prefer a ribeye or sirloin steak, because these can be just as tender but, the additional fat boosts flavour and juiciness.

Roasts will take longer to cook but can be incredibly delicious. I absolutely love cooking lamb legs and lamb shanks because, after hours in the oven, these cuts of meat are so succulent and juicy!

Things like ribs, briskets, shoulders (larger cuts of meat) are perfect for smoking. However, its important to remember that there is a strict science in smoking meats to break down connective tissue and get that mouth watering bark.

For beef, lamb, and pork, this diagram will help you in knowing what cut of beef will be tender and quick to make versus what needs a little more time, commitment, and love in the kitchen! When in doubt, ask your butcher and they will steer you in the right direction!

Remember, things from the shoulder, hips, and rump are tougher roasts that need longer cooking times at lower temperatures and things in the middle, will be more tender (think ribeye, filet, porterhouse, sirloin) but you can grill it up quickly.

Thickness of steaks

For steaks, get thicker cuts of steak (around 4cm or 2 inches is perfect) because the outside of the steak will brown without drying out and overcooking the middle of the steak. If the steak is too thin, it will often end up overcooked, dry, and tough.

Colour of different Red Meats

Meat from different animals has different amounts of the protein in meat responsible for pigment, or colour. The pigment protein in meat is called myoglobin and is what makes the meat red. Beef has the most myoglobin (0.8%) followed by lamb (0.6%), duck (0.3%), pork (0.2-0.3%), and chicken has the lowest concentration of myoglobin (0.05%) For beef, if the steaks are in the butcher counter or in an over-wrapped package, look for something that is a nice, bright cherry red colour. For pork, try to get pork chops that are pinkish red and avoid the pork chops that look pale.

Fat in Red Meat

Like everything in life, fat isn’t a bad thing if kept in moderation. In fact, your body needs fat. Fat melts during the cooking process and will aid in making meat juicy and more tender. Fat enhances flavour as well by dissolving flavour molecules and carrying those flavour molecules straight to your tongue! Yellow looking fat doesn’t show that there is something wrong with the steak, yellow fat simply shows that the animals were grain fed. Marbling is a good sign that shows flavour and fat around the steaks could help prevent too much moisture lost during cooking and a juicier, more tender eating experience.

What about organic/grass-fred/breed?

Well, we have talked about the claims about chickens and their eggs. Meat products aren’t too different.

Because there are complex flavours that make up beef and lamb, breed doesn’t always impact quality too drastically. The amount of marbling in beef will have a greater impact rather than just breed. Marbling in red meats is influenced by environment, seasons, and feed. 

Pork, however, is often impacted by different breeds – a concept I focus on in my PhD — mainly because. Some breeds called heritage breeds are not as fast growing as the breeds on commercial farms. The slower growing breeds often have more fat as well, showing greater flavour and more tender products. This comes with a higher price tag because you pay for VALUE rather than size! I prefer these pork products, so I recommend, when you buy pork, buy from a local butcher, especially if that local butcher has Berkshire pigs!

The major difference in quality, flavour, and tenderness you see in beef is from the type of feed. Grass feed cows have to work harder for their food, which means they are smaller, often tougher, and have considerably less fat compared to their grain fed cow friends. Because there is less fat, meat from grass-fed animals is often chewier and can dry out much faster and, depending on where you get your beef, the taste of grass-fed cows can be considered “earthy/ grass like”

Grain fed cows don’t have to work as hard and can grow larger with more fat around the muscles and within the meat (marbling). Grain fed beef is often more flavourful, more tender, and juicier and the price tag is often less friendly to the consumer because consumers equate grass-fed cows to happier cows when that is more of a marketing scheme. Animals that are well fed and have limited stress will produce the most flavourful, high-quality meat.

What’s the Take Away?

Red meat is an essential part of my diet. I make sure to have at least two meals with a red meat protein source each week. Part of the reason? Well, because of my other food allergies, I can be pretty restricted on food sources. Knowing red meat is full of high quality, easily digestible nutrients is important for me. I also know that red meat in the diet will keep me powered through the day and through each of my workouts. Red meat is highly nutritious. Like everything in life, so long as you keep everything in moderation, sources of natural food will ensure you have a diverse and wholesome range of nutrients in your diet.