What temperature should meat be cooked to?

USDA safe minimum internal temperatures are 165 degrees Fahrenheit for all poultry including ground poultry and stuffing, 160 for ground beef, pork, veal, and lamb, and 145 with a three-minute rest for whole cuts of beef, pork, veal, and lamb including steaks, chops, and roasts. Fish and shellfish are 145. Leftovers and casseroles reheat to 165. Measure at the thickest part away from bone and fat, and check multiple spots on large or irregular items, since a single reading can miss a cold center.

Color is unreliable in both directions and this causes real illness. Ground beef can turn brown before reaching a safe temperature, particularly if it was frozen or exposed to air, and it can remain pink well past it. Poultry near the bone frequently stays pink after being fully cooked because of pigment released from bone marrow, especially in younger birds, which leads people to overcook chicken pursuing an appearance that has nothing to do with safety. A thermometer costs very little and eliminates the guesswork entirely.

Two refinements worth knowing. Safety is a function of temperature and time together rather than temperature alone, which is why sous vide cooking can pasteurize chicken at temperatures well below 165 by holding it there long enough, and published time-temperature tables exist for this. The 165 figure is an instantaneous threshold chosen for simplicity in general guidance. And carryover cooking means internal temperature continues rising after removal from heat, typically by several degrees and more in large roasts, so pulling early and resting is both safer for texture and adequate for safety when the target accounts for it. Wash your hands and any surface contacting raw meat, and do not rinse raw poultry, which spreads bacteria through aerosolized droplets without reducing risk.