Jollof champion of Nigeria and record chief

The famous Nigerian chief and the world record for the double Guinness Hilda Baci does not create a secret on what stimulates his success.

“(It’s) my love for money and good things in life,” said shamelessly, laughing at a call from Lagos.

There is nothing shy about Baci – who changed the spelling of his family name from the Original Bassey. She clearly thrives under the spotlight and embraces the most famous glamor in her country.

But there are really two Hilda Bacis. She admits that there is Hilda Baci the person, what her family and partner sees, then there is Hilda Baci the brand, whose image is carefully organized.

“I am first of all a businesswoman, which means that whatever I do, it is important that my business is first,” she said.

Under the name of My Food by Hilda, which has more than a million followers on Instagram – with 3.2 million on her personal account – she runs a well -known restaurant in Lagos, as well as the cooking lesson offer and a private chef service.

“It feels good to be an inspiration,” she said, “but it comes with a little pressure because a lot of people are looking at me now for advice and answers … I do not allow that to overwhelm myself and lose the emphasis on what I try to achieve.”

The kitchen influencer, born in Calabar in the south, but at five, moved to the capital, Abuja, with her mother, her older brother and her younger sister, tasted to stand out at an early age.

Baci’s mother run a restaurant in front of the Ministry of Defense in Abuja and she remembers that after a day in primary school, she would go there to help.

“I always had so much advice because I used to memorize the whole menu and I was very lively. So I shouted:” Oh, what do you want to have? We have fufu, garri, semo “”, she says, imitating the voice of a child as she lists the basic foods of her country.

The culinary expert first made the headlines in 2023 with his four-day non-stop cook-a-thon, which, at 93 hours and 11 minutes, broke a world record. Although his record has since been exceeded, the feat has drawn the attention of politicians and celebrities and inspired a craze for endurance exploits through Nigeria.

Then, earlier this month, she set a new Guinness record after cooking more than 8.7 tonnes of the famous West African dish, Jollof Rice, in a specially designed pot.

The prominence of Baci is not accidental or a flash in the pan.

It is built on an awareness of how to develop your image and is the result of meticulous planning. For example, she started thinking about the record of Jollof more than a year before the event.

And with regard to the initial file, the Cook-A-Thon, “I thought of the opportunity cost: how does this have an impact on my business? What is it for my brand?”

But despite this apparent resolved campaign, she did not immediately land to be a chief as a career.

She first wanted to become a lawyer, then she wanted to study international relations, then she finally graduated in sociology.

Baci also had ambitions to be a television actress and presenter – “All the pleasure, all the glamorous things”.

But it was perhaps like a child to see how the life of his mother was transformed by making a success by selling foods that planted a seed that would flower later.

At university, she started cooking food for organizations and clubs and discovered that she was good in this area.

With her brother, she then launched a food delivery company, but she also obtained a job on television and was attracted by the presentation of the kitchen segment in a breakfast program.

Finally, it led to her own program – dinner with a budget – where she interviewed celebrities when she was preparing a cheap three meal. At the same time, she worked as a private chief.

His victory in a competition called Jollof confronted with a Ghana regional rival chief also helped to enhance his profile and reported $ 5,000 (£ 3,700).

All of this was based to establish the My Food by Hilda brand.

While recognizing the influence of her mother and thanking her for not having forced her in a work in white collar, as a devout Christian, she also feels that God had a role.

“I believe that when you do something God wants you to do, he lets you know, and he makes the answer.”

One of the expectations she finds that she must constantly fight concerns marriage and the realization of a gender role.

“Oh my God, every day – in my comments section (social media) … people ask” when do you get married? When are you getting married? “”

“I have the impression that it is one thing in this part of the world, where it is as if you are not married, maybe your success is not complete. But I am grateful for the progress we have made, people like me and so many other incredible women, without the married title.

“Of course, I want to get married, I am a lover girl, but it is not something I hurry. My desire to get married is because I am with someone with whom I am happy and with love, it is not because society wants me to marry now.”

But it’s Hilda Baci the person. When she thinks of Hilda Baci, the brand, she has a clear ambition.

“I want to build a heritage that will follow me … You know when they say:” This company has lasted 100 years “- this is the vision I have for my business.”

As part of this, she wants to open outlets around the world, including in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and South Africa, and helps to make Nigerian cooking both known in the world and Chinese equivalent.

Jollof is already on the map, but with a typical portion of self -confidence, it is also eager to share another rice dish.

“I have a signing coconut rice recipe that I want to go global, I want each household to have on their menu.”