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Can I eat caesar salad while pregnant?

Check Doola Scan's answer in the United States

Caesar salad depends on the dressing: classic caesar dressing is made with raw egg, and Australia, New Zealand and Ireland advise against raw egg in food. Doola Scan shows Avoid there for a caesar salad with a homemade or kitchen-made dressing, and Check in the US, UK and Canada, where it depends on the egg. The US and Canada accept dressing made with pasteurised egg, and the UK accepts raw egg if it's British Lion or Laid in Britain. With a dressing made with pasteurised egg, Doola Scan shows Check in all six countries, and the lettuce needs washing either way.

Checked against Doola Scan's pregnancy rules · Updated

  • Caesar salad from a restaurant, or with homemade dressing

    CheckUnited StatesUnited KingdomCanadaAvoidAustraliaNew ZealandIreland

  • Caesar salad with bottled dressing made with pasteurised egg

    CheckIn all six countries
Doola Scan checking a plate
What each country says

Caesar salad while pregnant: what each country says.

Each country's own pregnancy guidance on caesar salad, with a link to it. Doola Scan uses your country's first.

  • United States

    Check
    • FDAAvoid raw or undercooked eggs and foods containing them; foods made with pasteurized eggs are fine.Source
    • FDAAvoid unwashed fresh vegetables, including lettuce and salads.Source
    • FDAFish is recommended but amounts limit mercury exposure.Source
    • FDAEat 2 to 3 servings (4 oz each) a week from Best Choices (salmon, sardines, herring, Atlantic mackerel); king mackerel is avoid.Source

  • United Kingdom

    Check
    • NHSRaw eggs that are not Lion-stamped may carry salmonella.Source
    • NHSSoil on produce can carry bacteria and toxoplasma.Source
    • NHSTrying for a baby or pregnant: max 2 oily fish portions (140g) a week; tuna max 4 cans or 2 steaks a week.Source
    • NHSOily fish can contain pollutants that build up in the body.Source

  • Canada

    Check
    • CPSAvoid raw egg and egg dishes with runny yolk.Source
    • Health CanadaAvoid raw-egg foods (homemade mayonnaise, batter, ice cream) unless made with pasteurized liquid eggs.Source
    • Health CanadaRinse delicate produce under cool running water; scrub firm produce.Source
    • Health CanadaLow-mercury fish encouraged with no weekly amount; limit only fresh/frozen tuna, shark, swordfish, marlin, orange roughy, escolar.Source
    • Health CanadaLow-mercury oily fish (salmon, herring, mackerel, trout) encouraged; no weekly cap.Source

  • Australia

    • Caesar salad from a restaurant, or with homemade dressingAvoid
    • Caesar salad with bottled dressing made with pasteurised eggCheck
    • NSW Food AuthorityDo not eat raw egg in food (home-made mayonnaise, aioli, mousse, batter).Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)No homemade mayonnaise, aioli, mousse or raw cake batter; commercial mayo/custard OK.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Wash fruit, vegetables and herbs to remove soil (toxoplasma).Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Other fish or seafood no more than 2 to 3 times a week (150 g serve).Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Fish not high in mercury no more than 2 to 3 times a week; no separate oily-fish limit.Source

  • New Zealand

    • Caesar salad from a restaurant, or with homemade dressingAvoid
    • Caesar salad with bottled dressing made with pasteurised eggCheck
    • MPI (NZ Food Safety)Avoid raw eggs (smoothies, mayonnaise, mousse).Source
    • Health NZWash and dry all fresh fruit and vegetables well just before eating.Source
    • Health NZMost commonly eaten NZ fish can be eaten freely; low-mercury species need no restriction.Source
    • Health NZNo pollutant-based oily fish cap; farmed salmon and mackerel 3-4 servings a week, sardines and anchovy unrestricted.Source

  • Ireland

    • Caesar salad from a restaurant, or with homemade dressingAvoid
    • Caesar salad with bottled dressing made with pasteurised eggCheck
    • HSEAvoid foods made with raw or under-cooked eggs, e.g. homemade mayonnaise; cook eggs thoroughly.Source
    • HSEWash all fruit, vegetables and pre-packed salads before eating.Source
What to check

Before you eat caesar salad.

  1. Ask how the dressing is made

    In a restaurant, ask whether the caesar dressing is made in the kitchen with raw egg, or comes from a bottle. The FDA asks you to have raw-egg foods only when they're made with pasteurised eggs, and to ask when eating out. FDA

  2. At home, use a bottled dressing or pasteurised egg

    The FDA says commercial dressings contain pasteurised eggs, and Health Canada suggests pasteurised liquid eggs for any raw-egg food that won't be cooked. In the UK, the NHS accepts raw-egg foods made with British Lion or Laid in Britain hen eggs. FDA

  3. Wash the romaine before you dress it

    Rinse the lettuce leaves under running water, even when they come from a bag. The NHS asks you to wash salad vegetables like lettuce thoroughly, because soil can carry bacteria and toxoplasma. NHS

  4. Keep a ready-made caesar salad chilled

    A pre-packed caesar salad from a shop should stay in the fridge and be eaten before its use-by date. The NHS says pre-packaged salads can carry listeria. NHS

Questions

About caesar salad
in pregnancy.

It's the dressing, not the salad. Classic caesar dressing is made with raw egg yolk, and raw eggs can carry salmonella. Australia, New Zealand and Ireland advise against raw egg in food, so Doola Scan shows Avoid there for a kitchen-made dressing.

Ask whether the dressing is made in the kitchen with raw egg. In the US, the FDA asks you to have raw-egg foods only when they're made with pasteurised eggs. In the UK, the FSA says eggs eaten out may not be British Lion or Laid in Britain, so make sure they're thoroughly cooked.

The FDA says commercial dressings contain pasteurised eggs, and Australia's Pregnancy Birth and Baby accepts commercially made egg products such as mayonnaise. With a dressing made with pasteurised egg, Doola Scan shows Check in all six countries: read the label, and wash the lettuce.

The guidance on raw egg and on washing salad is the same all through pregnancy. None of these countries changes it by trimester.

Yes, by the NHS. It lists hard cheeses such as parmesan, pasteurised or unpasteurised, among the cheeses you can eat in pregnancy, and Doola Scan shows No known issues for parmesan in all six countries.

The FDA lists anchovies among its Best Choices for fish, which are lower in mercury. Doola Scan counts them as oily fish, and the NHS asks for no more than 2 portions of oily fish a week.

The same dressing question applies. Doola Scan shows No known issues for grilled chicken itself, so a chicken caesar salad comes down to how the dressing is made and washing the lettuce.

The NHS asks for at least 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day in pregnancy, and the lettuce counts towards them. It also says dairy foods such as cheese are important, for the calcium they contain.

The guidance is about what to choose next time: a dressing made with pasteurised egg or, in the UK, British Lion eggs. If you feel unwell or are unsure, talk to your midwife or doctor.

Yes. Take a photo of the plate, the menu or the dressing label, and Doola Scan checks each ingredient against your country's pregnancy guidance, with what to ask. Food scans are free, 3 a day.
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Point Doola at a plate, a menu or a label. It checks every ingredient against your country's pregnancy guidance and shows its sources. Food scans are free, 3 a day.

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Doola shows what official guidance says; it never diagnoses. No known issues means none of these countries' pregnancy guidance names it, not a promise that a food is safe.