IS PINK TURKEY MEAT SAFE?

Linda Hulst

FACS Program Assistant

The color pink in cooked turkey raises a “red flag” to many diners and cooks.  Conditioned to be wary of cooked fresh pork that looks pink, they question the safety of cooked poultry and other meats that have a rosy blush. 

The color of cooked meat and poultry is not always a sure sign of its degree of doneness.  Only by using a 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.

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 similar to smoked hams and other cured meats. 

The best way to be sure a turkey - or any meat – is cooked safely and done is to use a food 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.

Resource:

USDA food safety

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