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Can I eat chicken salad while pregnant?

Avoid Doola Scan's answer in the United States

Chicken salad bought ready-made from a deli, shop or salad bar shows Avoid in Doola Scan in the US, Canada, Australia and Ireland and Check in the UK and New Zealand. Made at home with chicken you cooked yourself, it shows Check in the US, UK, Canada, New Zealand and Ireland. In Australia it shows Avoid either way, because the guidance there advises against cold cooked chicken unless it's heated to 75°C. FoodSafety.gov names premade chicken salad from delis as a food not to eat in pregnancy.

Checked against Doola Scan's pregnancy rules · Updated

  • Ready-made chicken salad from a deli, shop or restaurant

    AvoidUnited StatesAustraliaCheckUnited KingdomCanadaNew ZealandIreland

  • Chicken salad made at home with chicken you cooked

    CheckUnited StatesUnited KingdomCanadaNew ZealandIrelandAvoidAustralia
Doola Scan checking a plate
What each country says

Chicken salad while pregnant: what each country says.

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

  • Doola has no source from Ireland on this yet; its answer comes from the other countries' guidance.

  • United States

    • Ready-made chicken salad from a deli, shop or restaurantAvoid
    • Chicken salad made at home with chicken you cookedCheck
    • FoodSafety.gov (HHS)Don't buy or eat premade ham, chicken or seafood salad from delis.Source
    • FDADeli salads made on site may carry listeria.Source
    • FDAListeria grows at fridge temperatures; heating kills it.Source
    • FoodSafety.gov (HHS)Reheat hot dogs, deli meats and fermented or dry sausage to steaming hot or 165°F.Source
    • USDA FSISPregnant mothers should avoid deli meats and hot dogs not heated to 165°F.Source
    • FDAAvoid cold cuts and deli meats unless reheated until steaming hot (not just chilled and in date).Source
    Homemade mayonnaise made with raw egg
    • FDAAvoid raw or undercooked eggs and foods containing them; foods made with pasteurized eggs are fine.Source
    • FDARaw eggs can carry salmonella.Source
    • FoodSafety.gov (HHS)Foods with raw or lightly cooked eggs only with pasteurised eggs.Source
    Keeping chicken salad in the fridge
    • FDAReheating kills bacteria that grow during storage.Source
    • FDARefrigerate within 2 hours, keep cooked meat or poultry leftovers 3 to 4 days, reheat leftovers to 165°F.Source

  • United Kingdom

    Check
    • NHSPre-packaged sandwiches and salads: keep chilled and eat before the use-by date.Source
    • NHSCold cured meats (salami, pepperoni, chorizo, prosciutto) should be cooked until steaming hot.Source
    • NHSChilled ready-to-eat meats can carry listeria.Source
    Homemade mayonnaise made with raw egg
    • NHSRaw eggs that are not Lion-stamped may carry salmonella.Source
    • NHSRaw-egg foods like mayonnaise and mousse fine if made with British Lion or Laid in Britain hen eggs.Source
    Keeping chicken salad in the fridge
    • FSAFridge within 2 hours, eat within 48 hours, reheat only once until steaming hot throughout.Source
    • FSABacteria grow if food is warmed rather than heated through.Source

  • Canada

    Check
    • CPSAvoid uncooked hot dogs and non-dried deli meats.Source
    • Health CanadaHot dogs not straight from pack - heat to 74 °C; avoid non-dried deli meats (bologna, roast beef, turkey) unless steaming hot.Source
    • CPSAvoid non-dried deli meats (UK: fine if chilled and in date).Source
    • Health CanadaAvoid refrigerated non-dried deli meats unless heated until steaming hot.Source
    Homemade mayonnaise made with raw egg
    • 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
    • CPSAvoid raw egg and egg dishes with runny yolk, such as eggnog.Source
    • Health CanadaAvoid foods with raw egg: some dressings, sauces, cookie dough, cake batter, homemade eggnog (unless heated to 71 °C).Source
    Keeping chicken salad in the fridge
    • Health CanadaRefrigerate within 2 hours, eat within 2 to 3 days, reheat to 74°C.Source
    • Health CanadaEat refrigerated leftovers within 2 to 3 days; reheat to 74°C.Source

  • Australia

    Avoid
    • Better Health Channel (Victoria)Avoid pre-prepared salads that will not be reheated.Source
    • NSW Food AuthorityDo not eat pre-prepared or pre-packaged salads.Source
    • NSW HealthDo not eat pre-packed cold salads, including from buffets and salad bars.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Avoid pre-prepared or pre-packaged salads, including from buffets and salad bars.Source
    • NSW HealthDo not eat cold deli meats.Source
    • Better Health Channel (Victoria)Deli meats only if further cooked or heated.Source
    • FSANZAvoid unpackaged deli-counter and packaged sliced cold meats unless freshly cooked or reheated steaming hot.Source
    • NSW Food AuthorityProcessed meats only if cooked to at least 75°C and eaten soon after.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Processed meats only if cooked to at least 75°C and eaten straight away.Source
    • FSANZAvoid cold RTE meats incl. packaged sliced meats and cold pre-cooked chicken; hot takeaway chicken OK if eaten immediately.Source
    • NSW HealthDo not eat pre-cooked cold chicken.Source
    • Better Health Channel (Victoria)Cold pre-cooked meats and chicken only if further cooked or heated.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)No cold ready-to-eat meats or cold cooked chicken unless heated to 75°C and eaten straight away.Source
    Homemade mayonnaise made with raw egg
    • 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
    • FSANZSafer alternatives to raw egg dishes: pasteurised eggs, commercial custard and dressings.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Commercially made products with egg (e.g. shop mayonnaise) are fine; not homemade mayonnaise, aioli, mousse or raw cake batter.Source
    Keeping chicken salad in the fridge
    • NSW Food AuthorityLeftovers in the fridge, eaten within a day and reheated to at least 60°C.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Leftovers: fridge, reheat thoroughly, not more than one day old.Source
    • Better Health Channel (Victoria)Avoid leftover meats refrigerated more than a day unless reheated.Source
    • FSANZVulnerable people: eat refrigerated leftovers within 1 day; reheat to 75 °C steaming hot.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Store leftovers in the fridge and use them within a day of cooking.Source

  • New Zealand

    Check
    • Health NZPre-packaged and deli/salad-bar salads and coleslaws: don't eat; home-made salads OK if washed.Source
    • Health NZAvoid cold meats from deli counters and sandwich bars, and packaged sliced ready-to-eat meats.Source
    • MPI (NZ Food Safety)Avoid cold cooked or smoked chicken and chilled RTE deli/buffet foods unless heated piping hot.Source
    Homemade mayonnaise made with raw egg
    • MPI (NZ Food Safety)Avoid raw eggs (smoothies, mayonnaise, mousse).Source
    • Health NZRaw eggs in eggnog, smoothies, home-made mayonnaise, mousse, tiramisu etc: don't eat; no pasteurised-egg exception.Source
    Keeping chicken salad in the fridge
    • Health NZLeftovers: fridge, eat within two days, reheat until piping hot (over 70°C); never eat cold.Source
    • Health NZStore leftover cooked or canned food in fridge and use within 2 days (Health NZ listeriosis page: 24 hours).Source

  • Ireland

    Check
    Homemade mayonnaise made with raw egg
    • HSEAvoid foods made with raw or under-cooked eggs, e.g. homemade mayonnaise; cook eggs thoroughly.Source
    • HSEAvoid foods made with raw or under-cooked eggs, such as homemade mayonnaise.Source
What to check

Before you eat chicken salad.

  1. In the US, skip premade deli chicken salad

    FoodSafety.gov says not to buy or eat premade ham, chicken or seafood salad from delis in pregnancy. The FDA says deli salads made on site may carry listeria, and accepts them freshly prepared at home. FoodSafety.gov

  2. In the UK, keep it chilled and eat it by the use-by date

    The NHS lists pre-packaged sandwiches and salads containing meat among the foods to be careful with, and asks you to keep them chilled and eat them before the use-by date. NHS

  3. In Australia, avoid cold cooked chicken

    Pregnancy, Birth and Baby asks you not to eat cold cooked chicken unless it's heated to 75°C and eaten straight away, and to avoid pre-prepared salads from buffets and salad bars. Doola Scan shows Avoid for chicken salad in Australia, homemade or bought. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby

  4. At home, use jar mayonnaise

    Pregnancy, Birth and Baby says not to eat homemade mayonnaise, and that commercially made products with egg, such as shop mayonnaise, are fine. Homemade mayonnaise shows Avoid in Australia, New Zealand and Ireland. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby

Questions

About chicken salad
in pregnancy.

It depends on where it's made and where you live. Ready-made chicken salad shows Avoid in the US, Canada, Australia and Ireland and Check in the UK and New Zealand. Homemade, it shows Check everywhere but Australia.

Chicken salad made at home shows Check in the US, UK, Canada, New Zealand and Ireland. Health NZ says home-made salads are OK if the vegetables are washed, while it advises against deli and salad-bar salads. In Australia, cold cooked chicken shows Avoid.

Chicken salad is served cold, so the verdict is about where it's made: shop-made shows Avoid in the US, Canada, Australia and Ireland. In Australia, NSW Health says not to eat pre-cooked cold chicken at all.

Chicken salad made in a restaurant or shop is ready-made chicken salad in the guidance, whichever place makes it. FoodSafety.gov names premade chicken salad from delis, and Pregnancy, Birth and Baby pre-prepared salads, as foods to avoid.

Leftovers show Check in all six countries. The FDA asks for cooked chicken leftovers refrigerated within 2 hours and kept 3 to 4 days, the UK Food Standards Agency for 48 hours, and Pregnancy, Birth and Baby for no more than a day.

Ready-made egg salad shows the same verdicts as deli chicken salad: Avoid in the US, Canada, Australia and Ireland and Check in the UK and New Zealand. FoodSafety.gov and Pregnancy, Birth and Baby name premade and pre-prepared salads in general.

The guidance lowers a small risk; it isn't a sign that something is wrong. If you're worried, or you have a fever, aches or an upset stomach, talk to your midwife or doctor.

Yes. Take a photo of the pack, the menu or the plate, and Doola Scan checks every ingredient against your country's pregnancy guidance, with what to ask, such as whether it was made that day. 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.