How you know when meat is cooked like pork, beef, chicken, lamb and fish?!

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It depends on how well you like your meat done but with chicken you must cook it until the juices run clear - no blood, with fish you cook it as little as possible but the flesh should be a full colour and not opaque, with both beef and lamb it depends on the cut and the way you like your meat done. Personally, I like lamb and beef pink in the middle but in both cases the centre of the joint should not be rare.

There are special thermometers that you can stick to your meat. The recommended temperatures are shown below.

For fish it just takes some experience. You can always use the blade of a knife to pry up a piece of fish (preferably at the thickest part) to see if it's too wet, just done, or beginning to flake — and therefore whether it needs a little more cooking or not. If the outside of the fish is constantly getting done while the inside is still not cooked, you may have to use a lower temperature for slightly more time, to allow the heat to reach the center of the fish before the outside is overdone.

Fresh ground beef, veal, lamb, pork 160°F 71°C
Beef, veal, lamb roasts, steaks, chops: medium rare 145°F 63°C
Beef, veal, lamb roasts, steaks, chops: medium 160°F 71°C
Beef, veal, lamb roasts, steaks, chops: well done 170°F 77°C
Fresh pork roasts, steaks, chops: medium 160°F 71°C
Fresh pork roasts, steaks, chops: well done 170°F 77°C
Ham: cooked before eating 160°F 71°C
Ham: fully cooked, to reheat 140°F 60°C
Ground chicken/turkey 165° F 74°C
Whole chicken/turkey 180° F 82°C
Poultry breasts, roasts 170° F 77°C

Pork and chicken are the only meats on your list that are generally considered to need thorough cooking from fresh- they should be cooked until no pink juices run out when pierced.If smoked or cured, they can be used with minimal cooking eg. smoked bacon fried for use in pasta dishes or for brekkie!

Beef and lamb can be served raw ( carpaccio), or cooked to taste, but are generally considered to be more juicy and tasty if cooked rare to medium rare, if the cut is expensive or young ( bloody or pink inside) . But of course it depends on the cut of meat- older animals and cheaper cuts should be cooked for longer to make them tender - and on what you, your family, and guests prefer.Slow cooked shoulder of lamb with garlic and rosemary is amazing- could take 4 hours plus in a low oven, whereas overcooked lamb cutlets would be tough.

Fish can be served raw ( sushi), smoked, pickled, grilled, baked,poached, steamed etc- it depends on the cut of fish and what you prefer.Fresh fish is easy to overcook- it usually takes no more than 10 mins to cook a fillet of salmon or fresh white fish, fry skin down for 8 mins, and turn over for 2 mins.

I reckon it's best to go with the kind of dish you like the sound of the most, research recipes and try them out until you find what's best for you.

Whatever you do, use your best local butcher and fishmonger rather than the supermarket, as you will get a better product and your food will taste better however you choose to cook it.

The best way to do it is to insert a thermometer to see what the internal temperature is.

Pork, Chicken and other Poultry should be cooked to an internal temperature of 165*F to ensure safety.

Beef, Lamb, and Fish should reach a minimum internal temperature of 125*F for Rare, and up to 155-165*F for well done.

Doc Hudson

Cut it open and if it's pink inside you should leave it to cook more