Compared to other meats, turkey is relatively lean and nutritious. Like all meats, turkey does contain saturated fats and cholesterol, the amounts of which vary by the "darkness" of the meat, portion size and cooking method.
Nutritional Facts
A 3-oz. serving of turkey meat has, on average, 175 calories, including 5g fat, 79mg sodium and 1.8mg iron. Turkey is a good source of lean protein, and it is a complete protein. A complete protein is a food that provides all 18 essential amino acids. Other examples of a complete protein are egg white and soybeans. A 3-oz. serving of turkey meat contains 28g protein. One serving of turkey meat contains 76mg cholesterol, or 25 percent of 300mg, which is the recommended daily allowance for cholesterol.
Cholesterol Content
The cholesterol content of turkey depends on the the darkness of the meat and whether it is skinless. A 3-oz. serving of roasted turkey breast or white meat, with bone and skin, has 83mg cholesterol. A 3-oz. serving of roasted turkey dark meat, with bone and skin, has 93mg cholesterol. You can lower the cholesterol content by 10 percent by removing the skin on the roasted meat.
Portion Control
A standard portion size of meat is 3 oz., according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's My Pyramid. The American Dietetic Association compares 3 oz. of meat to the size of the palm of your hand or a deck of cards. The number of servings of meat you need per day depends how many calories you need according to your age, sex, height, weight and activity level. MyPyramid.gov estimates that a 2,000-calorie diet might include two to three servings of meat each day.
Cooking Methods
Choosing skinless meat is one way to reduce fat and cholesterol in turkey, and following a healthful recipe is another. Turkey skin is 50 percent fat by weight. Recipes that use heavy sauces or bastes add fat calories and often cholesterol. For example, traditional butter has 30mg cholesterol in 1 tbsp., whereas vegetable oils have zero cholesterol. Using a vegetable oil plus salt in place of butter is a healthful substitution, and will still help create a crispy outer layer. In addition, turkey pan drippings are often used to create a gravy for their dinner. However, the drippings can drive up the cholesterol in your meal, with 1 tbsp. of turkey fat having 13mg cholesterol.
Turkey Products
Besides roasted turkey, you can eat other turkey products, such as ground turkey and turkey ham. Ground turkey labeling usually indicates how much fat it contains by weight, which ranges from 85 percent to 99 percent fat-free. The percentage fat is similar to the number of grams fat per 3-oz. serving. For example, 3 oz. of pan-broiled ground turkey that is 85 percent fat-free, with 15 percent fat, contains 220 calories and 15g fat. Likewise, 3 oz. of 93 percent fat-free ground turkey contains 180 calories and 9g fat. A 3-oz. serving of 100 percent fat-free ground turkey crumbles contains 130 calories, including 2.3g fat and 60mg cholesterol. The amount of cholesterol and fat depend on the parts of the bird used in processing, with products using turkey breast having the least fat.
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