Nigerian celebrity chef and Guinness World Record holder, Hilda Baci, has reflected on the collapse of the giant pot used during her attempt to cook the world’s largest pot of jollof rice, describing the incident as a “blessing in disguise.”
Speaking in an interview with HipTV on Tuesday, the 30-year-old Akwa Ibom-born chef recounted how the bespoke pot caved in during the record-breaking exercise, a moment she admitted left her scared and unsettled.
“When we had the mishap with the pot, in my first few seconds, my heart was in my hands. I was very scared and very worried,” she said.
Baci explained that her main priority was feeding people rather than just chasing the Guinness title. “For me, the record was not the most important thing. It was important that people got to taste and enjoy the food we had spent hours making,” she added.
She, however, noted that the mishap made the process easier in the long run. “I would say it was a good thing that the pot caved because it made food distribution a lot easier… it was a blessing in disguise,” she said.
The chef revealed that her team ensured transparency by submitting photographic and video evidence of the weighing process to Guinness World Records (GWR) before proceeding with distribution. “We had to look for different cameras to see if we had a clear recording of that, because for me, transparency is very, very important,” she explained.
Reflecting on her accomplishments as a two-time Guinness World Record holder, Baci attributed her success to divine grace. “It’s just a testament that God is good and I’m a child of grace. When I tell you grace is here and you doubt me, look at my track record. Trust the Lord,” she said.
