 Although most of us don't think of flour as being a raw food, it can harbor bacteria like E. coli and salmonella. According to Linda Burrell, Ph.D., Consumer Studies Branch Chief, the Food and Drug Administration, and she said flour isn't safe if it's not cooked. Don't eat, taste, or play with raw dough or baking mix. She said cross-contamination is also a risk because flour spreads so easily.