diff --git a/src/ssl.c b/src/ssl.c
index bb4340f..765d755 100644
--- a/src/ssl.c
+++ b/src/ssl.c
@@ -409,7 +409,7 @@ SSL_CONN dosrvcon(struct clientparam* param, SSL_CERT* cert){
  }
 
  SSL_set_mode((SSL *)((ssl_conn *)ServerConn)->ssl, SSL_MODE_ENABLE_PARTIAL_WRITE|SSL_MODE_AUTO_RETRY);
- SSL_set_read_ahead((SSL *)((ssl_conn *)ServerConn)->ssl, 0);
+ SSL_set_read_ahead((SSL *)((ssl_conn *)ServerConn)->ssl, SSL_READAHEAD);
 
  return ServerConn;
 }
@@ -442,7 +442,7 @@ int domitm(struct clientparam* param){
  }
 
  SSL_set_mode((SSL *)((ssl_conn *)ClientConn)->ssl, SSL_MODE_ENABLE_PARTIAL_WRITE|SSL_MODE_AUTO_RETRY);
- SSL_set_read_ahead((SSL *)((ssl_conn *)ClientConn)->ssl, 0);
+ SSL_set_read_ahead((SSL *)((ssl_conn *)ClientConn)->ssl, SSL_READAHEAD);
 
  addSSL(param->clisock, ClientConn, param->remsock, ServerConn, param);
 
@@ -772,7 +772,7 @@ static FILTER_ACTION ssl_filter_client(void *fo, struct clientparam * param, voi
 		return REJECT;
 	    }
 	    SSL_set_mode((SSL *)((ssl_conn *)ClientConn)->ssl, SSL_MODE_ENABLE_PARTIAL_WRITE|SSL_MODE_AUTO_RETRY);
-	    SSL_set_read_ahead((SSL *)((ssl_conn *)ClientConn)->ssl, 0);
+	    SSL_set_read_ahead((SSL *)((ssl_conn *)ClientConn)->ssl, SSL_READAHEAD);
 	    addSSL(param->clisock, ClientConn, INVALID_SOCKET, NULL, param);
 	}
 	return CONTINUE;
diff --git a/src/ssl.h b/src/ssl.h
index ff7468a..a824190 100644
--- a/src/ssl.h
+++ b/src/ssl.h
@@ -76,6 +76,16 @@ int ssl_read(SSL_CONN connection, void * buf, int bufsize);
 int ssl_write(SSL_CONN connection, void * buf, int bufsize);
 int ssl_pending(SSL_CONN connection);
 
+/* TLS records are read ahead, a buffer at a time rather than two reads for
+   each record, where what is read ahead and not yet decrypted shows as
+   pending (SSL_has_pending(), OpenSSL 1.1.0 and later): poll() would wait
+   on it otherwise. */
+#if !defined(WITH_WOLFSSL) && defined(OPENSSL_VERSION_NUMBER) && OPENSSL_VERSION_NUMBER >= 0x10100000L
+#define SSL_READAHEAD 1
+#else
+#define SSL_READAHEAD 0
+#endif
+
 //
 // Release of opaque structures
 //
diff --git a/src/ssllib.c b/src/ssllib.c
index f9f5e6c..8e83999 100644
--- a/src/ssllib.c
+++ b/src/ssllib.c
@@ -261,8 +261,25 @@ int ssl_write(SSL_CONN connection, void * buf, int bufsize)
 int ssl_pending(SSL_CONN connection)
 {
 	ssl_conn *conn = (ssl_conn *) connection;
+#if SSL_READAHEAD
+	char c;
+	int res;
 
+	if(SSL_pending(conn->ssl) > 0) return 1;
+	if(!SSL_has_pending(conn->ssl)) return 0;
+	/* Read ahead and not decrypted: a record, or only a part of one. A
+	   part is no data, and saying so would have poll() return at once,
+	   again and again, without its timeout, until the rest came: it is
+	   pending only once the record is whole (or the connection ended),
+	   the socket polled for the rest otherwise. The sockets are not
+	   blocking, so this does not wait. */
+	res = SSL_peek(conn->ssl, &c, 1);
+	if(res > 0) return 1;
+	res = SSL_get_error(conn->ssl, res);
+	return res != SSL_ERROR_WANT_READ && res != SSL_ERROR_WANT_WRITE;
+#else
 	return SSL_pending(conn->ssl);
+#endif
 }
 
 void ssl_conn_free(SSL_CONN connection)