The short answer: Steak medium: 55 to 57 °C. Pork fillet pink: 58 to 61 °C. Poultry: always at least 72 °C. Salmon translucent: 52 to 55 °C. Pulled pork: 88 to 95 °C. Take meat off the grill 2 to 3 °C before the target value, as residual heat finishes cooking it while it rests. Measure at the thickest part, without touching bone.
Timings such as “4 minutes per side” are estimates, as they ignore meat thickness, starting temperature and how your grill is behaving on the day. The core temperature (CT), by contrast, is an objective measurement: it tells you exactly when the meat has reached the doneness you want. These charts cover all common types of meat, ready to print, save and keep beside you.
Core temperature for beef: steak, roast beef, burgers & brisket
With whole cuts of beef you have full freedom of doneness from rare to well-done. Only minced meat must always be cooked through completely, because germs are not just on the surface here.
| Cut | Rare | Medium rare | Medium | Well-done |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steak (ribeye, rump steak, fillet) | 50 to 52 °C | 53 to 54 °C | 55 to 57 °C | 60 to 63 °C |
| Roast beef (whole joint) | 50 to 52 °C | 53 to 54 °C | 55 to 57 °C | from 60 °C |
| Flank steak / skirt | - | 53 to 54 °C | 55 to 57 °C | not recommended |
| Burger patties (minced meat) | - | - | - | 70 to 72 °C (always cooked through) |
| Brisket (beef brisket, low & slow) | - | - | - | 88 to 95 °C |
Flank and skirt steak turn tough beyond medium, because their long fibres contract strongly. The steak guide shows step by step how to hit these target values reliably on the grill.
What core temperature does pork need?
Whole cuts such as fillet or chop are pink and juicy at 58 to 61 °C and cooked through at 62 to 68 °C. Minced meat and low-&-slow classics such as pulled pork play in their own temperature leagues. The old rule “always cook pork until grey” dates from times when trichinella was a real risk. With today’s officially inspected meat, it no longer applies to whole muscle cuts.
| Cut | Pink / tender | Cooked through |
|---|---|---|
| Pork fillet | 58 to 61 °C | 62 to 65 °C |
| Chop / loin | 60 to 63 °C | 65 to 68 °C |
| Neck steak (marbled) | - | 70 to 73 °C |
| Crackling roast | - | 70 to 75 °C |
| Pork belly | - | 70 to 75 °C |
| Spare ribs | - | 85 to 90 °C (tender, fall-off-the-bone) |
| Bratwurst (sausage meat/mince) | - | 70 to 72 °C |
| Pulled pork (neck/shoulder) | - | 88 to 95 °C |
Marbled cuts such as neck or belly taste better cooked through, because fat and connective tissue need time. For pulled pork, you will find the schedule and an explanation of the plateau in the pulled pork guide.
Why must poultry always reach at least 72 °C?
Because salmonella and campylobacter are only reliably killed from 70 to 72 °C, there is no room for choosing a doneness with chicken, turkey and the like. This is not a matter of taste but of food safety: 72 °C at the thickest part is the absolute minimum.
| Poultry | Safe target temperature |
|---|---|
| Chicken breast | 72 to 75 °C |
| Chicken leg | 75 to 80 °C |
| Whole chicken | 75 to 80 °C (measure at breast AND thigh) |
| Turkey breast | 72 to 75 °C |
| Turkey leg | 75 to 80 °C |
| Duck breast | 72 °C (classically pink at 62 to 65 °C, see note) |
| Goose | 75 to 80 °C |
Legs can happily reach 75 to 80 °C: the extra connective tissue then becomes more tender rather than drier. In restaurants, duck breast is often served pink at 62 to 65 °C, but it is only safe under food law from 72 °C. For pregnant women, children, older people and those with weakened immune systems, always cook thoroughly.
What core temperature applies to fish?
Fish is done much earlier than meat: most species are perfect at 58 to 62 °C, and salmon is already translucent at 52 to 55 °C. Above 62 °C almost any fish turns dry.
| Fish / seafood | Translucent / tender | Cooked through |
|---|---|---|
| Salmon | 52 to 55 °C | 58 to 60 °C |
| Tuna steak | 50 to 55 °C (pink centre) | from 60 °C (turns dry quickly) |
| Trout (whole) | - | 58 to 62 °C |
| Cod / pike-perch | - | 58 to 62 °C |
| Prawns | - | 60 to 62 °C |
For whole fish, measure at the thickest part directly behind the head, without touching the backbone. Fish carries on cooking strongly from residual heat, so it is better to take it off the grate 2 °C early.
Core temperature for game: venison, red deer & wild boar
Prime cuts of roe deer and red deer are grilled pink at 55 to 58 °C, like good beef. Wild boar is the exception and must always be cooked through completely.
| Game | Pink | Cooked through |
|---|---|---|
| Saddle of roe deer / leg of roe deer | 55 to 58 °C | 60 to 65 °C |
| Saddle of red deer | 55 to 58 °C | 60 to 65 °C |
| Wild boar (all cuts) | - | 70 to 75 °C (always cooked through) |
Although wild boar meat is subject to official trichinella inspection, cooking it through completely remains the clear recommendation, as the risk of Aujeszky’s disease and hepatitis E can only be reliably ruled out by heat.
What is the resting heat rule?
Meat keeps cooking after grilling: while it rests, the core temperature rises by 2 to 3 °C, and by up to 5 °C for large roasts. The reason is that the hot outer layers pass their heat further inward, even when the meat has long been lying beside the grill.
Two simple rules follow from this:
- Take it off earlier: target minus 2 to 3 °C. For a medium steak (55 to 57 °C), that means taking it off the grate at 53 to 54 °C.
- Let it rest: steaks 3 to 5 minutes, roasts 10 to 15 minutes, pulled pork 30 to 60 minutes. The meat juices redistribute during this time. If you cut straight away, the juice runs onto the board instead of onto your tongue.
How do you measure the core temperature correctly?
The key is the insertion technique: always measure at the thickest part, without touching bone or fat veins. Here is how to go about it:
- Aim for the thickest part, as this is where the meat is least cooked.
- Place the probe tip in the centre: the sensor sits in the first few millimetres of the needle, not in the shaft.
- Avoid bones, fat veins and stuffing. Bone conducts heat and reads too high, while fat insulates and reads too low.
- Insert flat steaks from the side, so the tip really ends up in the middle.
- Measure at 2 to 3 points and use the lowest value as your reference.
- Cable or wireless probes go in before the meat goes on the grill and stay in the meat until the end, which is ideal for roasts and low & slow.
The category overview of grill thermometers shows which thermometer is suitable, whether instant-read, wireless or fully cable-free. And if you want to practise target temperatures safely first, you can run through doneness levels in the grill simulator before real meat goes on the grate.