Guinness Record of Biggest Amount of Fried Rice Set in Celebration of Chinese Lunar New Year

On February 12， 2013 — third day of the first month under the Chinese Lunar calendar —the Costa Rica-China Friendship Association and the Costa Rican Chinese Community Association（CRCCA） organized a fried-rice cooking activity in celebration of the arrival of the Year of the Snake in Chinatown in the capital San Jose. The event drew tens of thousands of people.

A year ago， at the same place on the same day， a cauldron of Chinese fried rice able to feed over 6，000 people was cooked to celebrate the Year of the Dragon. It attracted nearly 20，000 people. Although this year’s activity was held on a working day and not the weekend， it still drew a larger audience.

Several hours before the formal start， large numbers of people gathered around two big tents and a refrigerator truck in the Chinatown main square to watch the opening activities involving a Guinness representative observing every detail， lawyers checking and notaries recording， reporters photographing， and 40 to 50 chefs and uniformed staff bustling around to prepare everything for the actual cooking.

Chefs and technicians respon- sible for the weighing procedures put the cauldron on four electronic sensors that immediately transmitted the weight to a display board. The Guinness representative and notaries recorded the reading： 498kg. The big cauldron measuring 2.5 meters in diameter and weighing nearly half a ton attracted much attention. However， the spectators were even more curious about the contents of dozens of tightly-covered stainless steel barrels being unloaded from the refrigerator truck.

Upon hearing the starting signal， the chefs and staff began to cut onions， chop sweet peppers， and stir egg paste， which were then put into barrels and weighed. The Guinness representative， lawyers and notaries verified the quality of the food， recorded the weight and certified the activity. The mystery was then uncovered. Inside these stainless steel barrels were the main： 735kg of rice， 120kg of ham， 260kg of roasted chicken meat， 230kg of barbecued pork， 20kg of Chinese sausage， 35kg of chopped sweet pepper， 53kg of onion， 80kg of egg paste， 40 liters of cooking oil and 10 liters of soy sauce.

Some 40 chefs were waiting the order to start cooking， more than a dozen holding 1.6m-long spatulas.

At 10 a.m.， with the arrival of Mr. Song Yanbin， Chinese Ambassador to Costa Rica， Mr. Jorge Villalobos， a representative of the Mayor of San Jose， and Ms. Isabel Yung， President of the Costa Rican Chinese Community Association， the order to start cooking was given. Flames engulfed the bottom of the cauldron. The chefs put in the cooking oil first and then poured in the egg paste. The honored guests wearing hair covers and gloves helped stir the ingredients with the big spatulas.

The chefs were divided into three groups to take turns to stir the ingredients in the cauldron and the 10 kitchen helpers tidied the entire cooking area neat and clean.

While the rice was being cooked， President Isabel Yung made a speech to the gathering crowd. She especially mentioned that the participants of this activity were all volunteers working with great zeal to achieve the target.

She noted that the materials and cooking utensils used， including the big cauldron， were all made in Costa Rica and the chefs were all Costa Rican Chinese. Therefore， this was a Guinness record purely created by Costa Ricans.

Finally， she said， the reason for making the dish on this particular day was that rice was the main staple for both Chinese and Costa Ricans， and according to traditional Chinese custom， the first meal shared at the beginning of the year would herald prosperity.

From 10a.m. to noon， the chefs busied themselves with cooking， while at the square traditional Chinese cultural programs including lion dance， Chinese kungfu， folk music and dances， and a fashion show of Chinese national costumes were presented. The wonderful performance drew repeated cheers from the large crowd and the square was permeated with a happy and joyful

festive atmosphere.

It was noon time and the sun was scorching. Chefs were still stirring the rice in the tent. When the last order came to add onions， the fried rice was almost done. Ambassador Song Yanbin， Mayor Johnny Araya Monge and CRCCA President Isabel Yung reentered the cooking area and the big cauldron once again became the focus of attention. Several major TV stations in Costa Rica broadcast the event live. Then the Guinness representative， lawyers and notaries stepped up to check the final result.

When the cooking was done， the area was immediately cleared and the electronic sensors connected again. In an instant， the reading appeared on the one-meter-high electronic display board： 1，843.50kg. People present held their breath waiting for the Guinness representative to read out the verified net weight of the world’s largest amount of fried rice： 1，345kg， a new Guinness record.

Accompanied by Ambassador Song Yanbin， Mayor Johnny Araya Monge and President Isabel Yung， the Guinness representative confirmed the achievement by the Costa Rican Chinese Community Association and presented the Guinness World Records Certificate to President Yung， who said the honor belonged to all Costa Ricans. She also read out a letter from the Costa Rican President in which he extended his New Year greetings to the Chinese community and congratulations on CRCCA’s success. Cheers and laughter broke out from the crowds.

It was in such a happy and joyous atmosphere that the activity came to its final act — the organizers and people present sharing the fried rice. With the experience of the previous year， some people came to the square around 8 o’clock in the morning， waiting in line for the opportunity to sample the tasty dish. As it was lunchtime， white-collars working in the nearby commercial and financial districts also joined the waiting line. The event lasted until 2：30 in the afternoon. In less than two hours more than 8，500 people enjoyed the treat.

The new year of the Snake had got off to a wonderful start.