According to the Food Standards Agency, crispy roast potatoes, home-cooked chips and dark toasts contain high-levels of acrylamide -- a cancer-causing chemical formed when bread and potatoes are cooked on intense heat.
Daily Mail reports research shows that the crispier the potato and toast, the higher level of carcinogen present. Acrylamide is a toxin formed from a reaction among amino acids, sugars and water in bread and potato when heated above 120C.
The European food safety regulator's chief scientific adviser, Professor Guy Poppy, warns households to cook potatoes up to "a light golden colour" and that the bread should be toasted up to the "lightest colour acceptable".
Researchers looked at samples from 50 households and measured the amount of acrylamide present in their home-cooked food in a laboratory. They found out that none of the participants were aware of the dangers of cooking potatoes and bread for a prolonged period of time.
"The risk assessment indicates that at the levels we are exposed to from food, acrylamide could be increasing the risk of cancer," said Poppy.
Furthermore, FSA also advises people to avoid 'fluffing': "For roast potatoes, the deliberate fluffing up (shaking parboiled potatoes in a pan) that was witnessed on a few occasions is a deliberate attempt to increase surface area," adding, "the increased surface area may lead to greater acrylamide generation."
According to the study, the level of acrylamide present in the palest and least cooked toast is only 9 microgrammes per kilogram while the darkest toast contained 167 microgrammes.
For roast potatoes, the crispiest batch has 490 microgrammes per kilo -- which is 80 times higher than the palest batch contained.
Moreover, home-cooked chips that were cooked for the longest time contained a staggering amount of 1,052 microgrammes while the palest had 50 times less.
The safe level of acrymalide present in these food items, however, is still unclear.
For now, Poppy pointed out one important reminder. "We do not advise people to stop eating particular foods," he said. "But when making chips at home, they are cooked to a light golden colour."
