/ck/ - Food & Cooking

>It is safe to eat steak cooked rare because the bacteria/toxins are on the exterior of the cut and high heat kills/neutralizes them.

>Ground beef should be cooked to 160F because the bacteria/toxins on the outside of the meat are now distributed throughout the beef.

This is what I have always been told, and leads me to my question: Why do people say it's safe to eat burgers cooked medium rare as long as you ground the meat yourself or it comes from a reputable establishment? It's not like you sear the outside to kill the bacteria before you grind it. If there was anything bad on the outside, it's now ground up in your soon-to-be-medium-rare burger.

For the record, I love medium rare burgers, I just don't understand this contradiction.