Nanobody-based immunomagnetic separation platform for rapid isolation and detection of Salmonella enteritidis in food samples

•An epitope-based biopanning strategy was firstly raised.•A nanobody-based immunomagnetic separation platform was proposed for S. enteritidis detection.•The LOD50 and LOD95 values of the IMS-ELISA in spiked samples were 6.9 × 103 CFU/25 g or mL and 3.0 × 104 CFU/25 g or mL, respectively.•IMS-ELISA could avoid matrix interference and shorten the enrichment culture time.