Commonly eaten fish, meat and other protein-containing foods show some level of mutagenic activity following normal cooking such as broiling, frying, grilling, roasting etc. The main food mutagens found in cooked products are $quot;heterocyclic aromatic amines$quot; . Several of them have been shown to be carcinogenic in rodent and suggested to be relevant for human cancer etiology. This review summarizes the chemistry, formation, occurrence and toxicity of food-borne heterocyclic aromatic amines. Factors that influence the formation of them are also discussed with special emphasis on dietary factors. From a health safety point of view, it is desirable to estimate the intake of heterocyclic amines via foods, and reduce or prevent the formation of food mutagens.