You can eat most cuts of steak during pregnancy, as long as the internal temperature reaches 145°F (63°C) and the meat rests for at least three minutes before you cut into it. That means ribeye, sirloin, filet mignon, flank, strip, and T-bone are all on the table. The key restriction isn’t the cut itself but how it’s cooked and, in a few cases, which part of the animal it comes from.
Why Steak Is Worth Eating During Pregnancy
Beef is one of the best dietary sources of heme iron, the form your body absorbs most efficiently. A 3-ounce serving of lean sirloin provides about 1.5 milligrams of iron, and during pregnancy your blood volume increases by up to 50 percent. That extra blood requires more red blood cells, which require more iron to produce. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists lists lean red meat among the best sources of iron and recommends pregnant women get 27 milligrams of iron daily, combining food sources with a prenatal vitamin.
Steak also delivers high-quality protein and B vitamins that support fetal growth. Compared to plant-based iron sources, the iron in beef doesn’t need vitamin C to be absorbed well, making it a more straightforward way to keep your levels up.
Safe Cuts and How to Cook Them
Any standard muscle-meat steak is safe when cooked to the right temperature. Ribeye, New York strip, sirloin, filet mignon, flank steak, skirt steak, flat iron, and T-bone all follow the same rule: 145°F internal temperature with a three-minute rest. Use an instant-read meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part. The USDA sets this standard for all beef steaks, chops, and roasts.
At 145°F, a steak will look medium to medium-well. The center will be light pink, not red or cool. If you normally prefer rare or medium-rare steak, this will be more done than you’re used to, but it’s the threshold that kills the parasites and bacteria that pose the greatest risk during pregnancy.
What to Skip Entirely
A few preparations are off limits regardless of the cut:
- Beef tartare (raw ground beef, often served with a raw egg yolk)
- Carpaccio (paper-thin slices of raw beef)
- Blue or rare steak (internal temperature below 145°F)
- Liver steak (an exception based on vitamin content, not bacteria)
The first three are dangerous because they can harbor Toxoplasma gondii, a parasite found in undercooked meat, and Listeria, a bacterium that thrives even at refrigerator temperatures. The last one, liver, is a separate concern covered below.
Why Undercooked Beef Is Risky
Two infections make undercooked steak particularly dangerous for pregnant women. The first is toxoplasmosis, caused by the Toxoplasma parasite. It infects an estimated 300 to 4,000 fetuses in the U.S. each year. Many infected women have no noticeable symptoms, just swollen glands, mild muscle pain, or a slight fever that’s easy to dismiss. But in the baby, the consequences can be severe: hearing loss, intellectual disability, blindness, and brain or eye problems that sometimes don’t appear until years after birth. The FDA reports that up to 80% of children born with untreated toxoplasmosis develop significant impairments by age 20.
The second risk is listeriosis. Pregnant women are about 10 times more likely to develop a Listeria infection than other healthy adults, and roughly 1 in 6 Listeria cases in the U.S. occurs in a pregnant woman. Listeriosis during pregnancy can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth, premature delivery, or neonatal death. Both of these infections are killed by cooking meat to 145°F or above.
Why Liver Steak Is Different
Beef liver is loaded with vitamin A in its active form, called retinol. In small amounts, vitamin A is essential. In excess, it can cause serious birth defects including spina bifida, cleft palate, limb deformities, and heart and kidney malformations. A single serving of beef liver can contain several times the daily upper limit for pregnant women. The UK government explicitly advises pregnant women and those trying to conceive to avoid liver and liver products entirely. This applies to liver steak, pâté, and liverwurst. Other organ meats like heart or tongue don’t carry the same vitamin A risk, but liver is the one to avoid.
Handling Leftovers and Cold Steak
If you cooked a steak to 145°F last night and want to eat it today, you need to reheat it to 165°F (74°C) before eating. Cold leftover steak, like the kind you might slice onto a salad, sits in the temperature range where bacteria multiply, between 40°F and 140°F. Listeria is especially concerning here because it can grow at refrigerator temperatures, unlike most other foodborne bacteria.
Never eat steak that has been left out at room temperature for more than two hours (or more than one hour on a hot day above 90°F). When storing leftovers, refrigerate them promptly in a sealed container and eat within three to four days.
Ordering Steak at a Restaurant
Ask for your steak cooked medium-well or well-done. Most restaurants understand this request during pregnancy, and many kitchens will accommodate a temperature check if you ask. The visual cue you’re looking for is a center that’s light pink or fully brown with no red, and juices that run clear. If the steak arrives with a cool, red center, send it back. A few minutes of extra cooking is a minor inconvenience compared to the infections you’re avoiding.
Be cautious with steak served as part of a buffet or at a cookout where you can’t control the cooking temperature. If you’re unsure, bringing your own meat thermometer is a practical and completely reasonable option.