There is no single lean animal and single fatty animal. Cut, skin, separable fat, and cooking method can change the result more than the species name. A useful comparison uses cooked meat without skin or visible separable fat and without added oil.
Practical ranking per 100 g cooked
| Cut | Fat | Protein | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Skinless turkey breast | ~1–3 g | ~29–30 g | ~135–150 |
| Skinless chicken breast | ~3–4 g | ~30–31 g | ~160–170 |
| Trimmed pork tenderloin | ~3–5 g | ~26–28 g | ~150–170 |
| Very lean beef eye of round/round | ~5–8 g | ~28–30 g | ~180–210 |
| Lean pork loin | ~6–9 g | ~27–30 g | ~180–210 |
The ranges reflect real variation among entries. A steak with visible edge fat is not equivalent to the same named cut trimmed to lean only.
Per-100-gram numbers are best for comparing concentration, not predicting exactly what lands on the plate. Two cuts that differ by only a few grams of fat can produce a larger or smaller meal difference depending on portion size.
Turkey and chicken stand out when skin is removed
Skinless turkey breast can land around 1–3 g fat/100 g and chicken breast around 3–4 g while both provide roughly 29–31 g protein. A turkey entry at 2 g and chicken at 3.6 g differ by only 1.6 g fat per 100 g.
That gap is small in a normal meal. Price, availability, flavor, and how the meat is cooked may matter more than chasing the final gram of fat between two already-lean breast cuts.
Pork can be as lean as some poultry
Well-trimmed cooked pork tenderloin can fall around 3–5 g fat/100 g, overlapping skinless chicken breast in many data entries. Pork belly or fatty shoulder, by contrast, can exceed 20–50 g fat/100 g depending on the product.
“Pork” by itself therefore predicts fat poorly. The same is true for chicken and beef: comparing species without naming the cut mixes foods that can sit at opposite ends of the fat range.
Beef varies enormously by cut
A trimmed beef round cut can land around 5–8 g fat/100 g cooked with 28–30 g protein. A well-marbled ribeye can exceed 20 g fat. That can mean more than 12 g extra fat and roughly 110 additional calories per 100 g.
External fat can often be trimmed away, while marbling is distributed through the muscle and cannot simply be cut off. That distinction helps explain why two beef portions of similar size can differ substantially.
Ground meat needs its percentage
Ground meat labeled 90% lean is not equivalent to 95% or 80% lean. A 10-percentage-point difference represents 10 g fat per 100 g raw product before cooking losses. The lean percentage is more informative than simply “beef” or “turkey.”
Ground turkey is a good example: a package made mostly from breast can be very lean, while another blend may include more dark meat and skin. Reading the stated lean/fat percentage avoids assuming all ground poultry is automatically lower-fat than beef.
Pan oil can exceed the natural difference between cuts
Ten grams of oil adds 10 g fat and about 90 calories. That is more added fat than the entire difference between turkey breast and a trimmed beef round serving in the table.
A lean cut remains a useful starting point, but breading, creamy sauces, cooking fat, and sides determine the final plate. Cut comparisons are most meaningful when the rest of the preparation is similar.
The useful takeaway
Common very lean choices include skinless turkey breast, skinless chicken breast, pork tenderloin, and well-trimmed beef round. Exact order varies by entry, but the rule is stable: compare the cut, skin, separable fat and added cooking fat—not just the animal.
Sources
- USDA FoodData Central — Cooked turkey, chicken, pork and beef cut composition per 100 g with skin and separable-fat states distinguished.