Hilda Baci awarded grand title for world’s longest cooking marathon 2023

Hilda Baci awarded grand title for world’s longest cooking marathon 2023

Guinness World Records can now declare that Hilda Effiong Bassey, also known as Hilda Baci, has officially broken the record for the longest cooking marathon (person), with a time of 93 hours 11 minutes, after a careful evaluation of all the evidence.

The 26-year-old Nigerian chef began her four-day kitchen stint on Thursday, May 11 and ended on Monday, May 15, making almost 100 pots of meals.

Hilda attempted to surpass the 100-hour mark, but nearly seven hours were removed from her final total because she took additional minutes for one of her rest breaks early in the endeavour.

The athlete is allowed a five-minute rest break for every continuous hour of action, like with all ‘longest marathon’ records. If these rest periods are not taken, they might add up. During the endeavour, those were the only times Hilda could use the loo or sleep.

Lata Tondon (India) set the old record of 87 hours 45 minutes in 2019.

Hilda set out to break this record in order to “put Nigerian cuisine on the map” and “inspire young African women to pursue their dreams.”

“I also decided to break this record in order to truly push my limits and test my abilities,” she continued.

Hilda prepared for the event by making a 35-item menu “as a guide” for each meal she planned to make.

She made sure she had all of the components for each meal, and her crew went out and got more food while the cook-a-thon was going on “based on what needed to be topped up.”

Hilda’s record attempt captivated the social media globe, with millions of people in Nigeria and abroad tracking her progress via an Instagram live feed.

Hilda’s cook-a-thon was so successful that our website failed for two days owing to the massive amount of traffic from her army of devoted admirers.

Several high-profile Nigerian leaders, including Nigeria’s 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.

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 significant principles of our food-related record-keeping endeavours is that all things must be consumed after they have been cooked. To that purpose, Hilda encouraged any and all Nigerians to come and taste her freshly prepared meals. The Festus Fajemilo Foundation received all remaining food.

“My team’s and my goal for this event was to make it free to all and feed the less privileged,” Hilda explained.

Each pot of food Hilda made was large enough to serve 30-35 people, and “appropriate stock control was conducted” to minimise food waste.

Hilda opted to pursue a culinary profession after graduating from Madonna University in Nigeria with a degree in sociology. Her mother, Lynda Ndukwe, who is also a cook, influenced her.

Hilda rose up the ranks, presenting the television show Dine on a Budget in 2020 and winning the Jollof Face-off competition in 2021. Hilda won as a representative of Nigeria, defeating Ghana’s Leslie Kumordzie.

She is now officially a Guinness World Records holder in 2023. Hilda, please accept my congratulations.

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