Beef has never been prone to worms. Ground beef has been linked to trichinosis (round worms that can get into pork) because pork is sometimes added to it. Trichinosis is found in humans, pigs, rats, and wild game (like bears and walrus). It used to be a big problem with pigs because they were often fed all kinds of scraps including pork. Most commercial farms now feed their pigs grains and this has greatly reduced the risk but not entirely eliminated it. Thuroughly cooking your pork should eliminate that risk. Of course, it also makes for a tough pork chop. There is a similar parasite that is in some fish so if you are worried about it, you may wish to be careful about your sushi.
According to "Kitchen Confidential" (pretty good read), never get a well-done steak (or fish on Mondays).
People don't generally get tapeworms. It's a big problem with dogs, but unless you find some way to contaminate yourself(like accidentally swallowing a flea), it's a pretty hard thing to get. But there's another type of tapeworm that comes from sushi and undercooked fish. Basically, as long as we exist, we will be haunted by the threat of something invading our bodies and taking us hostage. And on that note, I like my steaks medium-medium rare depending on where I go.
Hamburger is "floor meat"...they sweep it up off the floor and grind it...that is why you should eat it well done. Steak is cut and boxed, should be ok to eat rare.
I still order my burgers medium, as somebody mentioned when ordering a burger they have never let me get it medium rare.
As far as steak goes it's gotta be rare (knock off its horns, wipe it's ass and bring it to me, kinda rare), slightly seasoned, with no sauces. I think most sauces ruin the true taste of the meat. Steak is my favorite thing to eat though too. For some reason I can't stand when people eat ketchup or some other sauce with their steak. Just a personal preference. I think the flavor of most steaks is too good to ruin with some kind of sauce. Obviously I like to eat meat just a little. I cook all meats besides steak well though. Once question I have is about pork. I have heard varied things about cooking pork. Some have told me that you should never under cook pork, then I have heard from others that it is ok to cook pork about medium rare. Anyone know anything about pork?
