‘MeatEater’ Host Claims Wild Game Is the Healthiest Food Americans Can Eat

‘MeatEater’ Host Says the Healthiest Food Starts Outdoors

As Americans argue over macros, fad diets and the best source of protein, Steven Rinella has a more old-school answer: grab your gear and head outside.

“For me, healthy eating starts with going out and getting your food,” the Montana-based hunter, author and host of the popular show “MeatEater” told Fox News Digital in a recent on-camera interview.

“The act of going and getting it is time spent outdoors,” he said. “You’re physically active the whole time. Just chasing the ingredients is some of the best exercise you can get.”

Food, Fitness and the Great Outdoors

That philosophy is at the heart of a new boxed set that combines two of Rinella’s most popular books: “The MeatEater Fish and Game Cookbook” and “The MeatEater Outdoor Cookbook.”

Rinella believes that what we eat, how we move and where we spend our time are all intertwined — whether dinner is made in a full kitchen, over a backyard grill or on a camp stove miles from the nearest road.

Wild game, he argued, might not sit in a “health food” aisle, but it’s arguably the most natural kind of clean eating available.

“I’d say it’s the healthiest food,” he said, noting that wild game “has powered human beings for tens of thousands of years.” He was quick to point out that he didn’t invent the concept — humans have relied on wild animals since long before supermarkets existed.

Safety First: Cooking Wild Game the Right Way

Rinella also stressed that hunters and home cooks need to respect food-safety basics. Undercooked game can carry risks, so proper temperatures matter.

Guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention calls for:

• At least 145° Fahrenheit internal temperature for meats like bison, veal, goat, lamb and most seafood

• 160° Fahrenheit for bear meat

• 165° Fahrenheit for poultry

Those numbers, he suggested, should be as familiar to hunters as their favorite spots in the woods.

Traceable, Lean and Intentional

Unlike many cuts wrapped in plastic at the grocery store, wild game is naturally lean and fully traceable, Rinella said. In his home, that’s by design.

“When we eat, we eat things where you can look at it and know where it came from — that it grew out of the ground or came off an animal,” he explained.

For him, hunting and fishing aren’t just hobbies. They’re built-in workouts and a ticket to fresh air — both of which he sees as essential to overall health.

“Getting our ingredients involves rigorous exercise and time outside,” Rinella said. “In my mind, those things can’t be separated.”

Rethinking How You Cook Meat

Rinella believes cooking wild game demands a bit more attention and care than cooking familiar supermarket steaks or chicken breasts — and that’s a good thing.

“If you’re cooking wild game and you don’t like it, it usually means one of two things,” he said. “You’re cooking it too long, or you’re not cooking it long enough.”

His approach emphasizes from-scratch cooking and flexibility, especially when working with very lean cuts.

“You can’t just grab your usual chicken-and-beef playbook and expect it to work,” he said.

A Lifestyle Built Around the Campfire

For Rinella, it’s not just about what’s on the plate — it’s also about where and with whom you’re eating. A lot of his favorite meals happen outside.

“It’s a lifestyle of engaging with nature, being outdoors, being with the people you love — your friends, your family — and making food from the ground up,” he said.

That mix of effort, connection and fresh air is what keeps him convinced that this way of eating is more than just a trend.

“The whole package feels really good,” Rinella said. “If you give it a try, you realize this is what healthy living actually looks like.”