The mother of celebrity chef Hilda Baci has stated that she was very doubtful when her daughter told her that she planned on cooking the biggest pot of Jollof Rice.
Speaking virtually during Pastor Jerry Eze’s NSPPD online morning service on Tuesday, Bassey, who owns Calabar Pot restaurant in Gudu, Abuja, recalled how her daughter told her she wanted to cook a six-metre-wide pot of rice, using 250 bags of basmati.
She said her daughter’s new Guinness World Record for the largest serving of Nigerian-style jollof rice was achieved through prayer, fasting and God’s mercy, declaring, “What God cannot do does not exist.”
“My daughter said, ‘Mommy, I want to cook the biggest pot of jollof rice.’ When she mentioned 250 bags, I was shaking.
“When she sent me the video of the pot, I said, what kind of rice is this one? That pot was like my office. I was afraid,” she said.
According to her, they immediately embarked on fasting and prayer, seeking God’s hand over the attempt.
“She told me, Mommy, we have to fast all through this week. And we started. I joined NSPPD every morning, prayed all through the night, and put the picture of the event before God.
“I said, Father, what you did before in Amore Garden, do it again in Eko Hotel. A season of good news must not turn to shame,” she testified.
Baci’s mother admitted she feared the giant pot might collapse under the weight of rice, meat and oil.
“Even the cover of that pot, people could not carry it. They had to bring in cranes to lift it. I prayed, Father, this pot I hand over to you.
“It was made by man, but you are God. May it not leak. Because if it leaked, the flame and the gas would catch fire. That would have turned joy to disaster. But God did it,” she said.
She revealed the pot eventually took 200 bags of rice, 20 goats, 30 gallons of oil and large quantities of tomato paste and seasoning.
“That pot swallowed everything. By Saturday it had been carried to the venue. I walked in, touched it, and told God, what I am afraid of will not happen. And it ended in praise,” she said.
Bassey’s mother also narrated how, close to the end of the cooking, her daughter rallied everyone in faith.
“About 40 minutes to go, she came to me and said, ‘Mommy, we need to pray in the Holy Ghost.’ She told the team, ‘This is the first time you people will eat rice that the Holy Ghost will cook.”
“And I smiled. That is the kind of faith she has,” she said.
She added that Guinness officials later weighed the pot with a crane and confirmed the record, without any setback.
Breaking into gratitude, she said, “Guinness has called us. My daughter has broken the record two times. Two times record holder. Who is Hilda? Who is Hilda’s father? Who is Hilda’s mother?
“What is our family name? For us to pull such a crowd, it can only be God.”
The proud mother said the sight of the massive turnout at the venue left her overwhelmed.
“When I saw the crowd, I just said, what God cannot do does not exist. Father, no one will collapse here, no death, no accident, no evil report. And that was how it ended,everything in praise,” she said.