The ascorbic acid contents of 101 food items were analyzed by HPLC to provide database to estimate dietary intakes of ascorbic acid of Korean. Foods with high contents of ascorbic acid were green vegetables, citrus fruits, strawberry, kiwi, and fruit juices. This analysis data of ascorbic acid contents in some food items showed significant deviations compared with other Food Composition Table. Ascorbic acid content in soups were lower than those of raw foods by about 57%. The ascorbic acid contents in blanched or seasoned after blanching vegetables and boiled or steamed meals turned out to be decreased by about 52.3% and 47.5%, respectively, but the degrees were varied with the kind of foods as well as cooking methods. The ascorbic acid intakes from 18 most frequently consumed meals in Korea were determined to be about 1/2 of Food Composition Table according to this analysis data. The results showed the importance of accurate food database in assessing nutrient intake levels of population.