Raw batter or dough made with raw eggs can harbor Salmonella. But it’s not just the eggs that can get you.
In two outbreaks in 2016 and 2019, contaminated raw flour sickened 84 people with Shiga toxin-producing E. coli, which can cause bloody diarrhea.
The bacteria most likely got into the flour in the field or during processing.
“Make sure that you wash your hands, work surfaces, and utensils with warm water and soap after handling raw flour,” says Maribel Alonso, a technical information specialist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The bottom line
Don’t taste raw dough or let kids play with homemade play dough made from it.
Photo: fotolia.com/©azurita.
