Crab salad: a mayonnaise dish with a Listeria record

We found no study of crab salad as a dish, so this page is built from its parts. The US dietary survey lists regular crab salad at 188 calories, 15.89 g of fat and 462 mg of sodium per 3.5 oz (100 g), from one recipe that names neither the mayonnaise nor the proportions. Made with imitation crab, it has less than half the protein, 4.07 g against 9.4 g, and more sodium, 530 mg. The main safety question is Listeria. In a US retail survey of 27,389 ready-to-eat samples, fresh crab meat or sushi had the highest share of Listeria-like organisms, 4.76% (95% CI 2.80 to 7.51), in a category that lumps crab with sushi and counts more than the one dangerous species. CDC lists premade deli salads among the foods that pregnant women, people 65 or older and people with a weakened immune system should avoid, and names homemade deli salads as the safer choice. Its examples are coleslaw, potato, tuna and chicken salad, and a bought crab salad is the same kind of food. CDC counts about 1 in 25,000 pregnant women in the US infected with Listeria each year, and 1 in 4 of them lose the pregnancy or the baby shortly after birth. The strongest trial evidence on this page is not about the salad. In a meta-analysis of 4 randomized trials in 3,295 infants, introducing several allergenic foods between 2 and 12 months of age roughly halved the risk of food allergy at 1 to 5 years (RR 0.49, 95% CI 0.33 to 0.74). Shellfish was one of the foods searched, its own effect was not reported separately, and withdrawal from the intervention was more than twice as common (RR 2.29). That result is about allergenic foods in general, not about a ready-to-eat deli salad, and FDA notes that Listeria can be fatal for young children.

As people eat it, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

How much is actually in it

• Per 100 g, US survey crab salad gives 188 calories, 9.4 g protein, 15.89 g fat and 462 mg sodium, while the imitation crab version gives 197 calories, 4.07 g protein, 16.28 g fat and 530 mg sodium. — FNDDS foods Crab salad (fdc 2706824) and Crab salad made with imitation crab (fdc 2706843, food code 27450130) Evidence E source
  Protein 9.4 vs 4.07 g, sodium 462 vs 530 mg, cholesterol 58 vs 19 mg, total sugars 0.57 vs 3.65 g per 3.5 oz (100 g)

What a real portion looks like

• One cup of crab salad weighs 7.3 oz (208 g) in the US dietary survey, which works out to about 391 calories, 33 g of fat and 961 mg of sodium, or 1,102 mg of sodium for the imitation crab version. — FNDDS portion weights for Crab salad (fdc 2706824) and Crab salad made with imitation crab (fdc 2706843) Evidence E source
  1 cup 208 g, unspecified quantity 104 g; per cup 391 calories, 33.1 g fat, 961 mg sodium (imitation: 409.8 calories, 33.9 g fat, 1102.4 mg sodium)

What your body absorbs

• In a randomized crossover test in 18 healthy adults, broccoli eaten with mayonnaise raised serum lutein, zeaxanthin and beta-carotene over 6 hours more than broccoli alone. — Eighteen healthy subjects, single test meals in random order, blood at 2, 4 and 6 h (n = 18) Evidence B source
  Higher incremental AUC of serum lutein/zeaxanthin and beta-carotene after the mayonnaise meal vs control; oil meal not significantly different from either
• In 9 adult men eating carrots in random order, carrots with mayonnaise gave a larger 8-hour rise in serum beta-carotene than plain carrots or carrot juice. — nine adult males, four test diets in random order, blood at 2, 3, 4, 6 and 8 h (n = 9) Evidence B source
  Higher incremental AUC of serum beta-carotene after carrot with mayonnaise vs carrot and vs carrot juice

What cooking and storage change

• In lab tests with blood from crustacean-allergic people, cooked mud crab extract bound more IgE than raw extract (p<0.05), with heat-stable tropomyosin as the dominant allergen left after cooking. — blood cells and sera from crustacean-allergic and non-atopic subjects, raw vs cooked crab and prawn extracts Evidence D source
  Higher IgE reactivity of cooked vs raw extract (mud crab p<0.05); T cell proliferation not substantially changed

What it does to your health

• In a double-blind crossover trial, 20 g a day of soybean oil mayonnaise for 4 weeks lowered total cholesterol by 9.7 mg/dL (0.25 mmol/L) and LDL cholesterol by 6.6 mg/dL (0.17 mmol/L) compared with palm olein mayonnaise. — healthy Malaysian adults, 16 men and 18 women, 4 weeks on each mayonnaise with a 2-week wash-out (n = 34) Evidence B source
  TC -0.25 mmol/L (P = 0.001), LDL-C -6.6 mg/dL (-0.17 mmol/L) (P = 0.016), HDL-C -4.6 mg/dL (-0.12 mmol/L) (P < 0.001), LDL:HDL ratio unchanged

Safety, limits and interactions

• In a 100-week US retail survey of 27,389 ready-to-eat samples, fresh crab meat or sushi had the highest share of Listeria-like organisms, 4.76%. — refrigerated ready-to-eat foods from retail stores in California, Maryland, Connecticut and Georgia, 2010 to 2013 (n = 27389) Evidence C source
  Listeria-like organisms 4.76% (95% CI 2.80 to 7.51) in fresh crab meat or sushi; seafood salads significantly lower than a decade earlier (P < 0.001)
• Pooled across 14,496 samples, Listeria monocytogenes turned up in 14.5% of ready-to-eat fish products against 5.8% of raw fish. — fish, fish products and fish processing environment samples in published surveys (n = 14496) Evidence C source
  L. monocytogenes 14.5% (95% CI 11.1 to 18.0) in RTE products vs 5.8% (4.7 to 6.9) in raw fish; downward trend over the years
• An Ontario listeriosis outbreak in two healthy adults was traced to imitation crab meat holding 2.1 x 10^9 Listeria per gram, and challenge tests showed the product supported the growth of the bacterium. — two previously healthy adults in Ontario and foods from their refrigerator (n = 2) Evidence D source
  Imitation crab meat 2.1 x 10^9 cfu/g, strain indistinguishable from clinical isolates by RAPD and PFGE

What people believe that the data does not support

• In a 12-week randomized crossover trial in 23 healthy men, 225 g of prawns raised dietary cholesterol to 750 mg a day against 200 mg on crab sticks, with no significant change in LDL or total cholesterol. — 23 healthy male subjects, 12 weeks per arm, fish ('crab') sticks as control (n = 23) Evidence B source
  No significant effect on plasma total or LDL cholesterol, triacylglycerol, HDL or apolipoproteins vs crab-stick control

Who this works differently for

• In September 2026 FDA posted a recall of ready-to-eat deli salads, including a 5 lb crab salad, over possible Listeria monocytogenes, which it notes can be fatal for young children, frail or elderly people and people with weakened immunity. — young children, frail or elderly people, people with weakened immune systems Evidence E source
  Recall of all deli-style salads of one New York producer after positive environmental samples; no illnesses reported
• A meta-analysis of randomized trials, with shellfish among the foods searched, found that introducing multiple allergenic foods between 2 and 12 months of age halved food allergy risk (RR 0.49) but more than doubled withdrawal from the intervention. — infants in randomized trials of allergenic food introduction, allergy assessed at 1 to 5 years (n = 3295) Evidence A source
  Food allergy RR 0.49 (95% CI 0.33 to 0.74), 4 trials, 3295 participants; withdrawal RR 2.29 (1.45 to 3.63)
• CDC says about 1 in 25,000 pregnant women in the US get a Listeria infection each year, and 1 in 4 of them lose the pregnancy or the baby shortly after birth. — pregnant women in the United States, CDC page on people at increased risk for Listeria infection Evidence E source
  About 1 in 25,000 pregnant women infected each year; 1 in 4 of them lose the pregnancy or the baby shortly after birth
• CDC tells pregnant women, people 65 or older and people with weakened immunity to avoid premade deli salads and to choose homemade ones instead, to lower the risk of Listeria. — women who are pregnant, newborns, people 65 or older, people with a weakened immune system Evidence E source
  Premade deli salads listed under Avoid; homemade deli salads listed as the safer choice
• The FDA notice on the September 2026 deli salad recall, which included a crab salad, warns that Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women. — pregnant women; recall of ready-to-eat deli-style salads including a 5 lb crab salad Evidence E source
  Listeria infection can cause miscarriage and stillbirth in pregnancy; no effect size

What is still unknown

• Across 61 population studies, self-reported shellfish allergy ranged from 0% to 10.3%, but where food challenges were used it was 0% to 0.9%. — population-based cross-sectional and cohort studies worldwide (n = 61 studies) Evidence C source
  Shellfish allergy 0% to 10.3% overall, 0% to 0.9% by food challenge; few studies used double-blind placebo-controlled challenge

The bottom line

A 208 g cup of regular crab salad works out to about 391 calories, 33 g of fat and 961 mg of sodium, and the imitation crab version to 1,102 mg of sodium. The survey scaled those per-cup figures from the 100 g values. Pooled across 14,496 samples in published surveys, Listeria monocytogenes turned up in 14.5% of ready-to-eat fish products against 5.8% of raw fish, prevalence data that do not single out surimi. In an Ontario outbreak reported in 2000, two previously healthy adults fell ill from imitation crab meat holding 2.1 x 10^9 Listeria per gram. Lab tests then showed the product let the bacterium grow. In September 2026 FDA posted the recall of one New York producer's deli salads, a 5 lb crab salad among them, over possible Listeria, with no illnesses reported. Who should be careful. FDA notes that Listeria can cause fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people and anyone with a weakened immune system, and those are the readers a tub of deli crab salad puts most at risk. Pregnancy belongs on that list too. The same FDA recall notice warns that Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women, and CDC puts premade deli salads on its list of foods for pregnant women to avoid. Shellfish allergy is the other caution, and how common it is remains unclear. Across 61 population studies, self-reported shellfish allergy ran from 0% to 10.3%, while in studies that fed people the food under supervision it was 0% to 0.9%. Few of them used a double-blind placebo-controlled challenge, the method that settles the question. Lab data suggest cooking does not help allergic people. With blood from crustacean-allergic people, cooked mud crab extract bound more IgE than raw extract (p<0.05), and heat-stable tropomyosin was the main allergen left. Nobody ate anything in that study. Imitation crab is a fish product, which the prawn trial below calls fish ('crab') sticks, so the imitation version is a fish food for people with fish allergy. We have no card on whether imitation crab also contains shellfish, or on egg and other allergens in the mayonnaise, so the ingredient label is the only guide to those. The mayonnaise matters in two ways. In a randomized crossover test in 18 healthy adults, broccoli eaten with mayonnaise raised blood lutein, zeaxanthin and beta-carotene over 6 hours more than broccoli alone, and the abstract gives no size for the gain. A similar test in 9 men found the same for beta-carotene from carrots. In a double-blind crossover trial in 34 healthy Malaysian adults, 20 g a day of soybean oil mayonnaise for 4 weeks lowered LDL cholesterol by 6.6 mg/dL (0.17 mmol/L) compared with palm olein mayonnaise. It also lowered HDL by 4.6 mg/dL (0.12 mmol/L), and the trial compared two mayonnaises with each other. The worry that shellfish cholesterol raises blood cholesterol was tested in 23 healthy men. Eating 7.9 oz (225 g) of prawns a day for 12 weeks pushed dietary cholesterol to 750 mg against 200 mg on crab sticks, and plasma total and LDL cholesterol did not change significantly. That trial used prawns, with crab sticks as the comparison. What remains unknown is the salad itself. We found nothing on how it is absorbed, what it does to health or how much recipes vary, and the survey holds a single recipe for each version.

Sources

1. crsl-daily-r1-01 · USDA FNDDS, dataset
   Crab salad (fdc_id 2706824) per 100 g: Energy 188 kcal; Protein 9.4 g; Total lipid (fat) 15.89 g; Sodium 462 mg; Cholesterol 58 mg; Total Sugars 0.57 g. Crab salad made with imitation crab (fdc_id 2706843) per 100 g: Energy 197 kcal; Protein 4.07 g; Total lipid (fat) 16.28 g; Sodium 530 mg; Cholesterol 19 mg; Total Sugars 3.65 g
   USDA FNDDS, FoodData Central survey release 2024-10-31, FDC 2706824 and 2706843 · checked 2026-09-30
2. crsl-daily-r1-02 · USDA FNDDS, dataset
   Crab salad made with imitation crab (FNDDS 27450130, fdc_id 2706843): 1 cup 208 g; Quantity not specified 104 g. Crab salad (fdc_id 2706824) 1 cup 208 g: Energy 391.0 kcal; Total lipid (fat) 33.1 g; Sodium 961.0 mg. Imitation crab version 1 cup 208 g: Energy 409.8 kcal; Total lipid (fat) 33.9 g; Sodium 1102.4 mg
   USDA FNDDS, FoodData Central survey release 2024-10-31, FDC 2706824 and 2706843 · checked 2026-09-30
3. crsl-daily-r1-03 · randomized crossover trial
   Eighteen healthy subjects participated in the test, which consisted of broccoli as a control (CON) meal, broccoli with oil (OIL), and broccoli with mayonnaise (MS), consumed in random order. ... The incremental areas under the curves (IAUCs) of serum lutein/zeaxanthin and beta-carotene concentrations were higher after the MS meal than after the CON meal.
   J Nutr Sci Vitaminol (Tokyo), 2009 · checked 2026-09-30
4. crsl-daily-r1-04 · randomized crossover trial
   In a human study, diets were provided in the form of (1) carrot as a control (CON), (2) carrot juice (JU), (3) carrot with oil (OIL) and (4) carrot with mayonnaise (MS). Following collection of fasting blood samples, nine adult males consumed one of the four diets in random order. ... The incremental areas under the curves of serum β-carotene concentration were higher following MS than following both CON and JU.
   J Nutr Sci Vitaminol (Tokyo), 2011 · checked 2026-09-30
5. crsl-daily-r1-12 · in vitro
   Mass spectrometry revealed a mix of several allergens in the raw mud crab extract but predominant heat-stable tropomyosin in the cooked extract. ... For each crustacean species, the cooked extract had greater IgE reactivity than the raw (mud crab p<0.05, other species p<0.01).
   PLoS One, 2017 · checked 2026-09-30
6. crsl-daily-r1-05 · randomized crossover trial
   Subjects underwent a randomized double-blind crossover trial, consuming diets supplemented with 20 g/day of either soybean oil-based mayonnaise (SB-mayo) or palm olein-based mayonnaise (PO-mayo) for 4 weeks each with a 2-week wash-out period. ... Treatments resulted in significant reductions in TC (diff = -0.25 mmol/L; P = 0.001), LDL-C (diff = -0.17 mmol/L; P = 0.016) and HDL-C (diff = -0.12 mmol/L; P < 0.001) in SB-mayo compared to PO-mayo without affecting LDL-C:HDL-C ratio (P > 0.05).
   Lipids Health Dis, 2016 · checked 2026-09-30
7. crsl-daily-r1-07 · cross-sectional survey
   Of the 27,389 total samples, 116 samples tested positive by the BAX PCR system for L. monocytogenes , and the pathogen was isolated and confirmed for 102 samples. ... Among the 571 samples that tested positive for Listeria-like organisms, the proportion of positive samples ranged from 0.79% (0.45, 1.28) for soft-ripened and semisoft cheese to 4.76% (2.80, 7.51) for fresh crab meat or sushi.
   J Food Prot, 2017 · checked 2026-09-30
8. crsl-daily-r1-08 · meta-analysis of prevalence studies
   Data from a total of 14,496 samples were analysed. Pooled prevalence of L. monocytogenes and Listeria sp. in raw fish was 5.8 % (95 % CI: 4.7-6.9) and 12.2 % (95 % CI: 8.9-15.5) respectively. Significantly higher results were observed for ready-to-eat products, occurrence of L. monocytogenes and Listeria sp. was 14.5 % (95 % CI: 11.1-18.0) and 21.7 % (95 % CI: 11.8-31.6) respectively.
   Sci Total Environ, 2024 · checked 2026-09-30
9. crsl-daily-r1-09 · case series
   A small outbreak of listeriosis involving two previously healthy adults occurred in Ontario. ... The three most heavily contaminated samples were the imitation crab meat, the olives and the salad which contained 2.1 x 109, 1.1 x 107 and 1.3 x 106 cfu g-1, respectively. ... Challenge studies performed with a pool of L. monocytogenes strains showed that imitation crab meat, but not olives, supported growth of the organism.
   Lett Appl Microbiol, 2000 · checked 2026-09-30
10. crsl-daily-r1-06 · randomized crossover trial
    23 healthy male subjects were randomised to receive either 225 g of cold water prawns or an equivalent weight of fish ('crab') sticks as a control for 12 weeks in a cross-over design. ... The prawn intervention increased the intake of dietary cholesterol to 750 mg/d against 200 mg/d on the control. ... The consumption of prawns produced no significant effects on the concentration of plasma total or LDL cholesterol, triacylglycerol, HDL cholesterol or apolipoproteins A-I and B relative to the control, or within each intervention group over time.
    Cell Mol Biol (Noisy-le-grand), 2010 · checked 2026-09-30
11. crsl-daily-r1-10 · FDA recall notice
    Made Fresh Salads Inc. of Bay Shore, NY is recalling all Ready to Eat Deli Style Salads and cream cheese, because they have the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.
    FDA, Made Fresh Salads Inc. recall announcement, 2026-09-06 · checked 2026-09-30
12. crsl-daily-r1-13 · meta-analysis of RCTs
    Randomized clinical trials evaluating age at allergenic food introduction (milk, egg, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts, and soya) during infancy and immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated food allergy from 1 to 5 years of age were included. ... There was moderate-certainty evidence from 4 trials (3295 participants) that introduction of multiple allergenic foods from 2 to 12 months of age (median age, 3-4 months) was associated with reduced risk of food allergy (risk ratio [RR], 0.49; 95% CI, 0.33-0.74; I2 = 49%).
    JAMA Pediatr, 2023 · checked 2026-09-30
13. sf-crsl-hf2-1 · agency advice
    Every year in the United States, about 1 in 25,000 pregnant women are infected with Listeria. Sadly, 1 in 4 pregnant women who get this illness lose their pregnancy or their baby shortly after birth.
    CDC, People at Increased Risk for Listeria Infection: Pregnant Women and Newborns, last reviewed 2025-09-24 · checked 2026-10-08
14. sf-crsl-hf2-2 · agency advice
    You may be at higher risk if you are in one of the following groups: ... Women who are pregnant ... If you are in any of these groups, choose safer foods to protect your health or your pregnancy. ... Premade deli salads, such as coleslaw and potato, tuna, or chicken salad ... Homemade deli salads
    CDC, Listeria Prevention Steps and Strategies, Safer Food Choices table, last reviewed 2025-01-16 · checked 2026-10-08
15. sf-crsl-hf2-3 · FDA recall notice
    Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.
    FDA, Made Fresh Salads Inc. recall announcement, 2026-09-06 · checked 2026-10-08
16. crsl-daily-r1-11 · systematic review
    A total of 7,333 articles were identified of which 61 studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in this review. The prevalence of fish allergy ranged from 0% to 7% and the prevalence of shellfish allergy from 0% to 10.3%, depending on the method of diagnosis. Where food challenges were used, the prevalence for fish allergy was found to be 0% to 0.3% and for shellfish allergy was 0% to 0.9%. CONCLUSION: Few studies have established the prevalence of fish or shellfish allergy using the gold standard double-blind, placebo-controlled challenge criteria, with most instead relying on self-reported questionnaire-based methods.
    Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol, 2016 · checked 2026-09-30