Just like our female Usain Bolt, Tobi Amusan, Napoli league winner, Victor Oshimen, Star footballer, Asisat Oshola and many other young talents, A Lagos based chef and content creator has again put the giant of Africa, Nigeria on the world map.
Hilda Effiong, a native of Akwa Ibom, Nigeria host of food by hilda has recently summoned the attention of the whole world as she bids to contest a very remarkable Guiness world record.
Hilda Baci competed to be the only individual in the world who has cooked for the highest number of hours. Baci did not only break the record, she also set a new record that will take years before anyone could beat.
The record which was earlier set by Indian chef Lata Tondon in 2019 was for 87 hours. Hilda Baci had already cooked over 110 meals in 64 hours during her “Hilda Baci’s Cook-a-thon”
The 27-year-old has been cooking nonstop since 4 pm on Thursday, May 11, at the end cooking for over 100 hours setting her own record.
This remarkable feat of hers has generated a lot of wishes, congratulatory messages, sponsorship opportunities and attention in the media which has made her viral and pulled her way through to becoming a full blown celebrity.
Her success story has however aroused a lasting controversy in the world of women that have challenged the quality of teeming Nigerian female youths, checking their attitude towards cooking.
Many content creators and celebrities have called the female gender who have recently switched to the GEN Z community claiming a lady’s cooking ability is not part of the criteria for marriage. As a sizable number of ladies have expressed joy and interest in cooking, some ladies have shown poor attitude towards cooking.
Many females have presumed that they don’t necessarily need to know how to cook to get married and cooking is not emphatically a female thing. Meanwhile, Baci’s actions have served as a motivational clip for the male youths to come out on the internet and queried any female who doesn’t possess cooking skills.
Must A Lady Know How To Cook?
The above question is very germane. Why does a lady have to know the nitty gritty of cooking before she prepares for a matrimonial home? Using African society as an example, a typical African woman is expected to have cooking skills. Africa identifies some societal roles for both man and woman in a family. While the Man who is seen as the head of the house is expected to take charge of a larger financial responsibilities in the house, the woman is required to take care of chores, child monitoring, cooking, house cleaning etc, but this role does not compel that whichever of these two must partake the role, it also call for support in each roles from both gender to help develop a happy life and supportive relationship.
It is a norm that the female gender should have a practical understanding of popular local delicacies in her culture. It is expected that part of what she takes from her mother is the cooking skills. Meanwhile, the male gender is not exempted too. Many African families ensure both the Male and Female are equipped with cooking skills.
It is no gainsaying that the male gender is already dominating the cooking space. Many young men now work as chefs, own restaurants and cook delicious meals even sometimes better than the females. Many ladies nowadays will opt in to eating out rather than cooking in the house. Some even come to the conclusion that any man who believes ladies should know how to cook are poor and only complained because they could not afford to pay restaurant bills. There is however no big deal in visiting eateries once in a while at least to relieve one’s wife the stress of cooking and joining the poor woman in the kitchen while at home is romantically necessary.
As I won’t leave a particular judgment, cooking ability is seen as a skill both male and especially female should possess. Cooking is seen as a value for the female like a popular yoruba saying will say “Ọlọ́bẹ̀ ló l’ọkọ”, it is required that to have a happy home. Cooking is part of what a lady should take as important.
Hi dear, return to your kitchen today, pick the kitchen utensils and learn, it is never too late. Get some value.
Kehinde Ayanboade is a writer who has pushed his pen on societal issues, entertainment, politics and African folktales. He’s written on many Folkloric mythologies and enjoys promoting Africa and Yoruba heritage.
