Guinness World Record has finally certified Nigerian chef, Hilda Effiong Bassey, aka Hilda Baci, who broke the record for the longest cooking marathon by individual.
How Africa recalls that Hilda Baci last month, cooked for 100 hours non-stop, breaking India’s Lata Tondon’s 87 hours 45 minutes record of uninterrupted cooking in the process.
On Tuesday, the record body finally certified her as the new record holder for the longest cooking marathon (individual).
Guinness World Record tweeted, “After reviewing all the footage, we’re delighted to announce that Hilda Baci is the new record holder for the longest cooking marathon (individual)
“Watch the video to find out the official time we’ve awarded Hilda and read the full explanation below.”
After reviewing all the footage, we're delighted to announce that Hilda Baci is the new record holder for the longest cooking marathon (individual) 💫
Watch the video to find out the official time we've awarded Hilda and read the full explanation below 👇 pic.twitter.com/bf352ndxWO
— Guinness World Records (@GWR) June 13, 2023
Hilda, meanwhile, had said that she attempted this record to “put Nigerian cuisine on the map” and “to inspire young African women to chase their dreams.”
“I also decided to break this record to truly push my limits and test my abilities,” she added.
Hilda prepared for the event by creating a 35-item menu “as a guide” for every meal that she would cook.
She ensured that she had the necessary ingredients to make each recipe, with her team procuring further food items while the cook-a-thon was underway “based on what was needed to be topped up.”
Hilda’s record attempt took the world of social media by storm, with millions in Nigeria and beyond following her progress via an Instagram live stream.
“Hilda’s cook-a-thon was in fact so popular that our website crashed for two days due to the immense volume of traffic we received from her legion of loyal fans,” GWR stated.
Several high-profile Nigerian leaders, including Nigeria’s immediate past Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo; Lagos State Governor, Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu; and award-winning singer Tiwa Savage, visited Hilda to encourage her record attempt.
Several rules were imposed on Hilda during her record-breaking cook-a-thon, one of which being that at least two items must be made or cooked at any one time.
The second requirement is that a sous-chef may help with prep work, washing dishes, and cleaning the kitchen, but all cooking must be done by the person attempting the record.
“One of the most important rules of our food-related record attempts is that all items must be consumed after cooking,” GWR noted.
To this end, Hilda invited any and all members of the Nigerian public to come and eat her freshly made meals. All leftover food was donated to the Festus Fajemilo Foundation.
“My team’s and my goal for this event was to make it free to all and to feed the less privileged,” Hilda said.
According to Hilda, each pot of food she cooked was big enough to serve 30-35 people, and “appropriate stock control was conducted” to avoid any wastage of food.
