I Was Once Homeless, Says Chef Hilda Baci

Nigerian chef Hilda Effiong Bassey known as Hilda Baci who broke the Guinness World Record for longest cooking time by an individual has revealed that she was once homeless.

The Akwa Ibom State-born chef disclosed this known in a recent interview on TVC on Monday.

“A lot of people see this buzz now, and most of them think I dropped from the sky. They don’t know I was homeless at some point. There’s an entire phase and journey that got me here, and I’m not even done.

“This is still part of a journey. I’m still on a path, and I’m still going. It’s not always going to be rosy. It’s not always going to be easy. But we need more examples like this so people can say, ‘Hilda did it, so I can do it as well.’”

Hilda Baci started her 4-day cooking marathon challenge on May 11 at the Amore Gardens in Lekki area of Lagos State.
By 08:32am on Monday, Hilda Baci had cooked for 88 hours and 32 minutes to equal the record set by an Indian chef, Lata Tondon in 2019 who cooked for 87 hours, 45 minutes, and 00 secs.

Consequently, Hilda Baci has now set a new record for the longest cooking time by an individual.

The 27-year-old was cheered by a rousing number of Nigerians, mostly youths who were present at the scene of the record-breaking event.

Lagos State governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu visited the chef at the Amore Gardens in the Lekki area of the state and cheered her up.

Also, the lead pastor of Harvesters International Christian Centre Lagos, Bolaji Idowu; and actor Charles Okocha, amongst others visited the chef.