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Can I eat deviled eggs while pregnant?

No known issues Doola Scan's answer in the United States

Deviled eggs made with hard-boiled eggs and jar mayonnaise show No known issues in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland. The FDA says commercial mayonnaise contains pasteurised eggs, and Australia's Pregnancy Birth and Baby accepts shop-bought mayonnaise. What changes it is homemade mayonnaise made with raw egg: Doola Scan shows Avoid for that in Australia, New Zealand and Ireland, and Check in the US, UK and Canada. As a chilled dish, deviled eggs also follow the leftovers guidance, which starts with the fridge within 2 hours.

Checked against Doola Scan's pregnancy rules · Updated

  • Deviled eggs made with jar mayonnaise, mustard and paprika

    No known issuesIn all six countries

  • Deviled eggs with pickle or relish in the filling

    No known issuesIn all six countries
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What each country says

Deviled eggs while pregnant: what each country says.

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

  • No known issues

    None of the six countries' pregnancy guidance names deviled eggs.

  • United States

    No known issues
    Deviled eggs made with homemade (raw egg) mayonnaise
    • 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
    Leftover deviled eggs
    • 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

    No known issues
    Deviled eggs made with homemade (raw egg) mayonnaise
    • 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
    Leftover deviled eggs
    • 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

    No known issues
    Deviled eggs made with homemade (raw egg) mayonnaise
    • 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
    Leftover deviled eggs
    • 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

    No known issues
    Deviled eggs made with homemade (raw egg) mayonnaise
    • 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
    Leftover deviled eggs
    • 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

    No known issues
    Deviled eggs made with homemade (raw egg) mayonnaise
    • 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
    Leftover deviled eggs
    • 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

    No known issues
    Deviled eggs made with homemade (raw egg) mayonnaise
    • 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 deviled eggs.

  1. Boil the eggs until the yolk is firm

    The FDA asks for eggs to be cooked until yolk and white are firm. Australia's Pregnancy Birth and Baby asks for whites and yolks cooked until hard. FDA

  2. Make the filling with jar mayonnaise

    The FDA says commercial mayonnaise contains pasteurised eggs. Ireland's HSE asks you to avoid foods made with raw or undercooked eggs, such as homemade mayonnaise, and Health NZ and NSW say the same. FDA

  3. Chill them within 2 hours and eat them soon

    The FDA asks for cooked food to be refrigerated within 2 hours and leftovers eaten within 3 to 4 days. The FSA asks for leftovers to be eaten within 48 hours, and Australia's Pregnancy Birth and Baby within a day. FDA

Questions

About deviled eggs
in pregnancy.

Made with hard-boiled eggs and jar mayonnaise, deviled eggs show No known issues in all six countries. Made with homemade raw-egg mayonnaise, they show Avoid in Australia, New Zealand and Ireland and Check in the US, UK and Canada.

Ask whether the mayonnaise is from a jar or homemade, and how long the plate has been out. The FDA asks for cooked food to go into the fridge within 2 hours.

The NSW Food Authority asks you not to eat raw egg in food such as home-made mayonnaise, and Ireland's HSE says the same. In the US and Canada, homemade mayonnaise is accepted made with pasteurised eggs, and in the UK with British Lion eggs.

The leftovers guidance differs: within 3 to 4 days in the US, 48 hours in the UK, and within a day in Australia. Keep them in the fridge in between.

The NHS lists eggs among the protein foods to eat every day in pregnancy, and Health NZ says eggs give you protein and iron and are a useful source of iodine. Cooked the way your country's guidance asks, they count.

The egg guidance is the same all through pregnancy. None of the six countries changes it by trimester.

Yes. Take a photo of the label, the menu or the plate, and Doola Scan checks each ingredient against your country's pregnancy guidance. 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.