The Giant of Africa's Jollof Rice Challenge: Hilda Baci's New Record Bid

Nigerian celebrity chef and food influencer Hilda Baci made headlines once again as she attempted to set a new Guinness World Record with the world’s largest pot of jollof rice.

But the ambitious effort took an unexpected turn when the massive custom-made pot broke while being lifted for weighing.

Crowds in Lagos gathered to witness the spectacle, with excitement high after Baci’s previous success in 2023 when she briefly held the world record for the longest cooking marathon.

This time, her focus was on West Africa’s most beloved dish, jollof rice.

The recipe was nothing short of extraordinary: 4,000kg of rice, 500 cartons of tomato paste, 600kg of onions, and 168kg of goat meat, all simmered together in a pot designed to hold up to 23,000 litres. Cooking took about nine hours, with Baci leading a team of 10 chefs who stirred the dish using oversized wooden spoons.

Unfortunately, when the pot was hoisted onto a crane to be weighed, one of its legs gave way. While the structure buckled, the food inside remained intact. Despite multiple attempts, the official weight of the dish could not be recorded on site.

READ ALSO: Guinness World Record awards Hilda Baci in longest cooking marathon

A member of Baci’s team confirmed they are compiling footage and documentation to send to Guinness World Records (GWR) for review. Ahead of the attempt, GWR had wished the 28-year-old chef luck via social media.

The event, which quickly trended online, still ended on a celebratory note as the jollof rice was served to thousands of attendees who had come to support the record-breaking bid.

Baci later shared that the challenge was a year in the making, with a team of 300 people building the enormous steel vessel over two months.

“We [Nigerians] are the giant of Africa, and jollof is a food that everybody knows Africans for,” she told BBC Pidgin. “It would make sense if we had the biggest pot of jollof rice — it would be nice for the country.”

This attempt adds another chapter to Baci’s culinary journey. She first won recognition in 2021 after winning a jollof rice competition, and in 2023 she became a national sensation by cooking continuously for 93 hours and 11 minutes.

Though her record was later broken, with the current holder being Evette Quoibia from Australia at 140 hours and 11 minutes , Baci remains a symbol of ambition, creativity, and national pride.