Nigerian celebrity chef and restaurateur, Hilda Effiong Bassey, popularly known as Hilda Baci, has revisited the shocking incident that occurred during her record-breaking attempt at cooking the world’s largest pot of jollof rice.
In an interview clip shared on social media platform X by HipTV, the award-winning cook admitted that her heart sank when the specially designed pot gave way unexpectedly.
“When we had the mishap with the pot, my first few seconds, my heart was in my hands. I was very scared, very worried,” she confessed.
Despite the tense situation, Baci revealed that feeding the crowd remained her top priority.
“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 explained.
She surprisingly described the collapse as a hidden blessing.
“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.”
The dramatic moment occurred on September 12, 2025, at the World Jollof Festival held in Lagos State, Nigeria, where she and her team prepared an estimated 8,780 kilograms (approximately 19,356 pounds) of jollof rice. The pot, which measured six meters in both width and height, had a capacity of 23,000 litres.
As a crane hoisted the massive pot for weighing, one side gave way and the supporting legs collapsed. Fortunately, the rice remained intact, enabling the event to continue. okay.ng reports that despite the setback, video and photographic evidence were presented to Guinness World Records, which later confirmed her as the official record-holder for the largest pot of jollof rice.
Baci stressed the importance of transparency throughout the process.
“So I reached out to our adjudicator, and I let him know that the pot caved… And he’s like, let’s just proceed…we had to look for different cameras to see if we had a recording, a clear recording of that, because for me, transparency is very, very important,” she said.
Looking back on her achievement, Baci—who already held the Guinness World Record for the longest cooking marathon by an individual after cooking for 93 hours and 11 minutes in May 2023—reflected on her journey with gratitude.
“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 concluded.
