Smart Eating: Lean Meats Will Keep You Leaner

Choose lean meats and skinless chicken.

Look for meats that are noted as:

• Ground Round
• Tenderloin
• Select Grade
• Choice Grade

"Prime cuts are a fattier cut of meat," says Registered Dietitian Ann Marie Smokowski, who provides nutrition counseling at Mercy Hospital of Buffalo.

For chicken, light meats are leaner than dark.

Grill, Don't Fry

Trim fat from all meats before cooking. When it’s time to prepare your meal, broil, grill, roast or poach your meats instead of frying.

Ann Marie says, “I do a lot of grilling of poultry, pork and occasionally steak, where I use a rub and some extra virgin olive oil.”

Favorites in the Smokowski household include:

• Tacos with cooked lean ground meat, a light tomato sauce, greens, tomatoes, onions, olives beans and basmati rice 
• Chicken or turkey stir-fry 

More Smart Eating Tips

Smart Eating is a series of nutrition tips to help you transform your eating habits. A new tip will be added on weekdays throughout the month of October.

Previous posts:

• Eat 3 Meals Every Day
• Focus on Balance, Variety and Proportion 
• Make Half Your Plate Fruits and Vegetables 
• Choose Whole Wheat Grains Instead of Refined Grains 
• Switch to Fat-free or Low-fat (1%) Milk 

Learn more about healthy eating on October 26, 2012 at WomenCare First Annual Day of Health: Be Strong, Be Happy, Be Healthy. Registered Dietitian Ann Marie Smokowski will present “Anti-Inflammatory Eating: The Mediterranean Lifestyle.” Click here for details.