The pyrolytic formation of benzo[a]pyrene during the cooking procedure was analysed in beef, pork, pacific saury, rice, and soybean by HPLC. In raw foods, benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P) was not detected or negligible, but it was increasingly formed when foods were boiled (0.010~0.037 ppb) and more dramatically during broiling (0.302~0.851 ppb) in a time dependent manner. Human daily intake of B[a]P in Koreans and cancer risk assessment were estimated based on food consumption per capita and carcinogenic potency of B[a]P. When cooked foods were consumed for entire life time, cancer risk was estimated to bo 1.77$ imes$10-6>1.65$ imes$10-7>1.32$ imes$10-8 by the order of broiled, boiled, and raw foods consumption. These data suggest that broiled foods produce more benzo[a]pyrene than water boiled foods. Thus cooking procedure is an important factor for the formation of carcinogens and needs to bo modified to reduce cancer risk for man.