Hilda Effiong Bassey popularly known as Hilda Baci is confirmed Guinness Record Holder. She became a national sensation after cooking for four days nonstop last month.
Baci cooked for 100 hours. She was allowed a five-minute break each hour or the equivalent over several hours. Guiness World Record however logged her record at 93 hours 11 minutes, docking her seven hours for taking a longer break than allowed on one occasion.
Baci still beat the previous record by more than five hours. The previous record holder was an Indian chef Lata Tondon. It was set in Rewa, in central India in 2019.
Chef Baci, 27, made more than 100 different dishes from when she turned on her cooker at 15:00 GMT on Thursday 11 May to Monday 15.
There was not even a single Guiness World Record official present at the event in the upmarket area of Lekki in Lagos. Nonetheless, the CCTV camera footage recorded during the event were assessed. She cooked mostly Nigerian meals, such as jollof rice, as well as different types of rice and pasta, and also made akara - a popular street food made from deep-fried mashed beans. The food was handed out to invited guests.
According to Guiness World Record rules, she was allowed one assistant at a time and was only permitted to use the toilet or nap during her breaks. She shared her motivation after her cooking marathon.
She said that, "I just knew that I need to do something that is… out of the ordinary to put myself on the map, to put Nigeria on the map, to put young African women on the map."
Baci showed visible signs of the physical exertion and got cold compresses applied to her head, and foot massages during her breaks. A medical assistant was also present to checked her vital signs. Her endeavour caught the entire country and beyond, with politicians and celebrities stopping by to cheer her on.
"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," Guiness World Record said.
Baci was no stranger to the heat of competitive kitchen events. In 2021 she defeated other contestants at the maiden edition of the "Jollof Faceoff", including a Ghanaian rival in the final, to claim the crown for the best version of West Africa's fiercely contested spicy rice meal.
She said her passion for cooking was inspired by her mother's culinary techniques and that her recipes were homemade.
Guiness World Record has finally confirmed her as the new Guiness World Record Holder for longest cooking marathon on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.
Fans are praising and congratulating her for a good job done.
