Turkey Meat: Nutrition by Cut, Ground Turkey vs Ground Beef and Safety

Turkey meat is lean poultry that most Americans meet as a holiday roast, sliced breast or a pack of ground turkey. Is turkey healthy? Plain roasted turkey is a protein-rich food that fits the eating patterns described in the Dietary Guidelines: USDA data show that 3 ounces of roasted breast without skin has about 125 calories, 26 grams of protein and under 2 grams of fat. What changes the picture is the cut, the skin, the fat level of ground turkey and the salt added to processed turkey. This guide covers turkey nutrition by cut from USDA SR Legacy data, ground turkey vs ground beef side by side, and the food safety steps that matter most with raw poultry.

Peptide Labs does not sell turkey or turkey products. This article is general nutrition information, not medical advice.

Turkey meat nutrition by cut

The table shows USDA FoodData Central SR Legacy values for 3 ounces (85 grams) of roasted turkey, with FDC IDs so you can look up each entry. Percent Daily Values (%DV) use the FDA Daily Values printed on Nutrition Facts labels.

Three patterns stand out. Breast meat is the leanest and the richest in niacin. Dark meat carries a bit more fat but about twice the zinc and four times the vitamin B12 of breast. The skin is where most of the fat sits: USDA lists roasted turkey skin at 459 calories and 39 grams of fat per 100 grams, so eating the skin more than triples the fat of a lean breast portion.

Vitamins and minerals in turkey

FDA and NIH guidance counts 20% DV or more per serving as a high source. By that yardstick, USDA data show roasted turkey is a high source of several nutrients:

• Selenium: close to half the Daily Value per 3 ounces in every cut. Our selenium guide covers what the mineral does and why more is not better.
• Niacin and vitamin B6: breast meat supplies 62% and 40% DV. See our niacin guide for the difference between food niacin and supplements.
• Vitamin B12: dark meat and ground turkey are the stronger sources; our B12 foods list compares other animal foods.
• Zinc and iron: dark meat supplies 27% DV of zinc; iron is modest at 7% DV. Turkey’s iron is the heme form found in animal foods, explained in our iron foods guide, and our zinc foods guide ranks other sources.

Turkey is famous for tryptophan, an amino acid found in most protein foods. USDA SR Legacy lists 0.31 grams per 100 grams of roasted turkey meat and 0.36 grams for roasted skinless chicken breast, so turkey is not unusually high. For a full comparison of lean poultry, see our chicken breast guide.

Ground turkey vs ground beef

Ground turkey is often bought as the lighter swap for ground beef, but for ground turkey nutrition the label’s lean-to-fat ratio matters more than the animal. Here are USDA values for 3 ounces of cooked, pan-browned crumbles.

• Calories and protein: at the same lean percentage, cooked ground turkey and ground beef land within a few calories and a gram or two of protein of each other.
• Saturated fat: turkey is lower at each lean level, 13% vs 17% DV at 93% lean, because more of its fat is unsaturated. Total fat is not always lower: the 93% turkey entry has slightly more fat than 93% beef.
• Iron, zinc and B12: beef wins clearly, with about twice the iron and zinc and a full Daily Value of B12 per 3 ounces.
• Fat-free ground turkey: made from breast meat, it drops to 128 calories and 2.3 grams of fat per 3 ounces cooked in USDA data (FDC 172848), but it dries out faster in cooking.

Both recent editions of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans keep saturated fat under 10% of daily calories, and the 2025-2030 edition lists poultry and red meat side by side among animal protein foods. The World Health Organization defines red meat as mammalian muscle meat, so turkey sits outside the red meat category that its cancer agency, IARC, classified as probably carcinogenic. If you do choose beef, our grass-fed beef guide and bison guide compare the leaner options.

Is turkey healthy? What the data can and cannot say

There are no clinical trials of turkey as a single food, so the honest answer rests on its nutrient profile and on how it is prepared. Plain roasted or ground turkey is lean protein with useful B vitamins and minerals. The trade-offs are mostly about processing:

• Sodium in sliced turkey: USDA lists prepackaged sliced turkey breast at 898 milligrams of sodium per 100 grams, about 144 milligrams in one 16-gram slice, compared with 101 milligrams per 100 grams of plain roasted turkey. Our low sodium foods guide explains how to read sodium on a label.
• Added solution: many whole turkeys and breasts are injected with a salt solution. USDA lists roasted turkey meat with added solution at 223 milligrams of sodium per 100 grams, more than double the plain entry, so check the package for words like basted or containing a solution.
• Smoked and salted products: WHO defines processed meat by the process (salting, smoking, fermentation and similar preservation steps), not by the animal, so smoked turkey sausages and turkey hams are processed products even though turkey is not red meat.
• Cholesterol: dark meat has 36% DV of cholesterol per 3 ounces; our dietary cholesterol guide puts that in context. People managing gout can read our purines guide and ask their clinician how meat fits.

Cooking and handling turkey safely

Raw poultry can carry Salmonella. CDC estimates Salmonella cause about 1.35 million infections in the United States every year, mostly from contaminated food. In 2018 and 2019, CDC investigated an outbreak of Salmonella Reading linked to many kinds of raw turkey products, including ground turkey and whole birds: 358 people in 42 states were sickened, 133 were hospitalized and one died. CDC did not advise people to stop eating properly cooked turkey; it advised cooking it thoroughly.

• Cook to 165 degrees F: CDC lists 165 degrees F for all poultry, which includes ground turkey, and 160 degrees F for ground beef and other ground meats. Use a food thermometer.
• Thaw safely: CDC says to thaw frozen food in the refrigerator, in cold water or in the microwave, never on the counter.
• Keep raw turkey separate: use one cutting board for raw meat and poultry and another for produce and bread, and wash hands after handling raw turkey. CDC notes that rinsing raw chicken spreads germs to nearby surfaces rather than making it safer.
• Leftovers: reheat to 165 degrees F. CDC lists children under 5, adults 65 and older and people with weakened immune systems among those at higher risk of Salmonella illness.

For other lean protein ideas, see our protein foods list. If you are eating smaller meals on a GLP-1 medicine, our GLP-1 diet guide covers how lean poultry fits. Curious about richer poultry? Our duck guide compares the numbers.

Frequently Asked Questions

Questions about a label? Contact us or read our Buyer’s Guide. Food comes first; follow the label and ask a healthcare provider before starting a supplement, especially if you take medicines, are pregnant or have a food allergy. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Last reviewed October 2026.

Related guides: Duck Meat: Nutrition With and Without Skin, Iron, Duck Liver and Safety, Chicken Breast Protein and Nutrition: USDA Facts and Safe Cooking, High Protein Foods: USDA Values for Meat, Dairy and Plant Sources.