Should one eat the fat from a steak?
 

Or cut it off? Lamb, beef, or whatever? I've never been real clear on that as most don't seem to know since they don't like the taste anyway. But I've always liked eating everything, even sucking out the bone marrow when appropriate. Is any of that healthy?

When you think about it, there is fat running all through the meat, so it's probably not dangerous to eat it. When I was younger I used to eat the fat of of the meat all the time and I'm still alive today.

The fat that marbles a piece of meat is the main thing giving it flavor. The lumps of fat that hang off the meat (along the edge of a NY Strip, for instance) add so much fat and calories that most people trim it off.

Yeah, the stuff IN the meat we don't worry about. But, the big clumps on the edges come off. If it's just a little bit, it might stay, but the big stuff definitely comes off. Ribeyes can be good for that.

I always trim the meat of fat before cooking it, unless it's a special occasion or something.

so long as you exercise and eat a balanced diet, you can eat some of the fat from cuts of beef, pork, lamb, emu, bison, venison etc.

i trim some of it off, but i leave some on for flavor, course i am a bit chubby.

If the fat is "marbled" into the meat it, you will never get rid of it.

What you"re talking about is the excess, you can eat it with no ill effects. It is, however, fat that you will injest with little or no good flavor.

It is simply fat. Back in High School I averaged about 4k calories per day because of Football and Wrestling just to maintain my build. I would eat 32 ouce steaks with all the fat, more for the simple caloric value than flavor. As my metabolism slowed down I cut the habit, as the fat you eat will go directly to your gut.

Well if you're worried about the health issues with fat, they're only bad for you in conjunction with carbs.

It's like two kids. One's a bad seed (carbs), and the other a normal teen (fat). By themselves they're okay, but together they are not good.

Of course, carbs are good... but not with fat, and likewise with fat.

For weight gain (or loss), every gram of fat you eat has 9 calories.

Just factor it into your daily caloric intake if you're worried about weight gain. I eat 200 grams of sirloin steak daily, and I'm still healthy (of course, I'm on a no carb cyclic ketogenic diet).

Everything I hear is that there are good and not so good fats. Most animal fats fall into the second group.

Now, I eat meat, so I won't claim to not eat animal fat. I do, however, eat only the leaner cuts. Beef tenderloin, lean ham like pork tenderloin on chops, chicken and lot's of fish. I try to get my fats from olive, canola, walnut and those types of oils, plus nuts. I do eat a little cheese but drink skim milk..

Animal fats are saturated fats (bad), while fat from nuts and oils are generally mono or polyunsaturated fats (good).

It really does depend on the cut of meat. There are some good cuts of beef that are really low fat and quite delicious. A top sirloin, for example, is pretty low in fat, but still has about twice the fat content of a skinless chicken breast. Prime rib has way more fat than it does protein.

If you're eating a lot of beef (which, in my opinion is more than once a week), then you should try to go for the lean cuts. Although cutting the outside fat removes much of the fat content, the "marbled" cut of beef will still be really high in fat, including a lot of saturated fat. And despite how one looks and feels, heart disease and high cholesterol can creep up on you before you realize it.

There's nothing wrong with eating fatty beef in moderation; I too enjoy prime rib now and again.

I cook it with the fat, but remove it before eating.

i think the fat adds flavor to the meat, especially when you cook it.

me likes the fat, it tastes good.... it is chloresterol tho

I give all my fat to my best friend...she eats it for me, and she's suffered no ill effects because of it yet. But she is also very physically active.

Fat = flavor. The more fat (internally marbled or external) means a more flavorful cut. Make no mistake, something like a tenderloin (filet mignon) may not "look" too fatty, it's one of the highest fat cuts of beef available. That's why it tastes so good.

So, to eat or not to eat? It all depends on a few things. If you work out every day and otherwise don't eat crap. go for it. If not, don't. When I lost weight, I stayed away from ALL red meat, so take that for what its worth.

I cook it as is. (except I remove the fat from chicken) You can trim most away after cooking and still enjoy the flavor.

Ever heard of a Brazilian cut called picanha? Now I don't usually eat fat that's just hanging on the meat because that's not healthy, but trust me, with this cut of meat, you just want to eat it. Best meat I have ever eaten was in Brazil...aaah good times. I'm such a carnivore lol

But anyway *ahem* no if you can help yourself trim the fat off the meat to be a little healthier. ----wanders off to dream about steak...-------

I'll usually cut the discrete bits of fat into little pieces, pair 'em up with a piece of muscle and eat them both together. Usually nothing left on the plate afterwards.

Not fat. Skinny compared to the average American.

Had this great-uncle, Walter. We spent summers at his and Aunt Pauline's cottage on the Connecticut bay.
Ever hear the phrase 'chewing the fat'? Sunday dinners (about 2pm) would usually be a big ham shank. After we ate, Uncle Walter would slice off a big ol' slab of that fat-with-skin and chew away. Lived to 87.
I'm a firm believer that it's not only what you put into your body, but what gets put into your head that determines your longrange health. My sister is a fatphobic-she tries to eliminate ALL fats from her diet. She's the most unhealthy, unhappy, stressed out bitch.....

The innuit peoples eat a diet that is over 95% meat, with lots of animal fats. They live long lives, but do the exercise and live the lifestyle that enables them to do so.

Your average westerner doesn't do half what they should in the first place, without adding something else in like steak fat.

That is what I do too, with beef and pork. I love steak, but a good pork roast is even better. Of course I don't do this every day.
I hate skinless chicken. Yuck. Why bother? I'd rather just have veggies and grains if skinless chicken is my only choice for meat. Now that I live in Boston, I eat a lot of seafood, but I grew up on a farm in Kansas. Had beef, pork, roast duck, etc. I oughta be dead by now, but I'm 29 years old, 5'3" and about 105 pounds.
Lindy

animal fat is the bad fat, but sometimes to think of it if you avoid every single thing that is said to be bad for you how would you live?? just eat moderately and exercise :)

eat the fat if you want, I do. I also have a very good metabolism. Just turned 30 and still seem to maintain my fitness. Of course being a member of the gym helps.
Anyway, I also love the flavor of the fat on the edge of the steak, especially after it has been singed a little by the flames. Mmmm mmmm, good.

Actually thats not true. Carbs are not the enemy, only if you eat to much of them, and then only the ones that break down far to easily, like starchy carbs. Even then, when you eat them can have as much as a role actually.

Truth is there are goof fats and bad fats as well, and eating carbs or not, certain fats are no good period, and too much of anything is no good for you, so sorry, your wrong about that one.

Eating fat is fine, but the fats in meats are amoung the worst for you. Best fats are in nuts and crtain fruits, and yes, some fruits do have a fair amount of fat in them.

Ketogenic diet is a big mistake. Protein is an inferior source of energy, and for anything extreme as far as exercise you will end up burning your own muscle as fuel when you run out of carbs to burn. yeah, you'll burn more fat as well, but you certainly will not have as much energy. The key is to eat the right carbs, at the right times, and not overindulge.

I live in China right now, and none of the food is processed. I lost 10 pounds in my first 6 weeks here, without even trying, and I was already a low 9 percent body fat and very active. processed foods with added sugars throw your body chemistry out of whack, and make you more senstive to carbohydrate rich foods period. It's a shame really, acounts for a lot of fat people in the USA who can't seem to control their urges, thats the augar and other additives at work.

Bottom line, eat les proccessed foods, check the labels for sugar content, you'll be amazed what things have added sugar, practically everything, and eat a more balanced diet. Ketogenic diets are really an extreme form of weight loss, and not good for you really. You may look better, and seemingly keep the weight off more easily, but it's just not healthy. This is not a matter of opinion either, 25 years of trauining and athletics, and amazing performances atheltically, came from a lot of knowledge that I gathered and used with success over the years.

I know it sounds gross but the fat on a steak is usually really good even though its really bad for your heart. But kudos to the Kensai, eating less procoessed foods would be better in the long run. Steak is good but better in moderation, too much is never the best for a persons body.