Guinness World Records has awarded Hilda Effiong Bassey, better known as Hilda Baci, the record for the longest cooking marathon (individual), with a time of 93 hours 11 minutes.
The 26-year-old Nigerian chef began on Thursday 11 May and continued through to Monday 15 May, cooking over 100 pots of food during her four-day kitchen stint.
Guinness World Record however said it could not give Hilda 100 hours she claimed, saying almost seven hours were deducted from her final total because she mistakenly took extra minutes for one of her rest breaks early on in the attempt.
“As with all ‘longest marathon’ records, the participant is permitted a five-minute rest break for every continuous hour of activity. These rest breaks can be accumulated if not taken. They were the only times Hilda could use the bathroom or sleep during the attempt,” the organization said Tuesday.
The previous record of 87 hours 45 minutes was set by India’s Lata Tondon in 2019.
Hilda prepared for the event by creating a 35-item menu “as a guide” for every meal that she would cook.
She obtained the necessary ingredients to make each recipe and her team got more while the cook-a-thon was underway as the need arose.
– Millions by storm
Hilda’s record attempt created a buzz online and offline as millions in Nigeria and beyond followed her progress via social media live stream.
Guinness World Records said the cook-a-thon was so popular that its website crashed for two days due to the immense volume of traffic it received from her legion of loyal fans.
Several high-profile Nigerian figures visited Hilda to support her during her record attempt, such as former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; the Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu; and award-winning singer Tiwa Savage.
Hilda was required to abide by several rules during her record-breaking cook-a-thon:
- There must be at least two items being prepared or cooked at any time
- A sous-chef is permitted to assist in prep work, washing up, and cleaning the kitchen area, but all the cooking must be done by the individual attempting the record
“One of the most important rules of our food-related record attempts is that all items must be consumed after cooking,” the group said. “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.
After graduating from Madonna University, Nigeria, with a degree in sociology, Hilda decided to embark on her culinary career. She was inspired by her mother, Lynda Ndukwe, who is also a chef.
Hilda went from success to success, hosting television show Dine on a Budget in 2020, before winning the Jollof Face-off competition in 2021. Representing her native Nigeria, Hilda beat Ghana’s Leslie Kumordzie to claim the victory.
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