Pateros and CCA new holder of Guinness World Records largest serving of balut

Holding the framed recognition from History are Ms. Liza Morales, Operation Manager or CCA, and Mayor Jaime "Joey" C. Medina of Pateros. The History Channel documented the event and officially proclaimed CCA and the town of Pateros as History Makers for the would-be Guinness world record of the largest serving of balut. Watch the video here: 

The HISTORY television channel, in partnership with the Center for Culinary Arts (CCA) and the municipality of Pateros, makes an official attempt to set the Guinness World Records for the largest serving of balut in terms of weight for its World Record Week series. The target was to reach a total weight of 75 kilos of balut . The official attempt is part of the World Record Week, a series of six world record attempts for the Philippines initiated by the HISTORY television channel of the A+E Networks Asia Philippines being part of its Make History campaign.

The ADOBONG BALUT prepared by a team of cooks from the Center for Culinary Arts (CCA) with Chef Tristan Encarnacion during the actual demonstration of the would-be Guinness world record of the largest serving of balut

The venue was at the Plaza de Borja along B. Morcilla St. of Pateros. The small town of Pateros in Metro Manila is known to be the balut capital of the Philippines. A team of cooks and culinary students from CCA with Chef Tristan Encarnacion as the head cook, demonstrated the historical cooking of adobong balut before the crowd and live television coverage of several local television networks and foodies.

In a press release released earlier by HISTORY, it was told that Chef Tristan Encarnacion and his team would cook around 1,000 eggs supplied by the city of Pateros with 75 kilograms as the final target weigh in. The first plan was to have a boodle fight feast after the official weigh in of the cooked balut dish to be participated in by preselected Pateros residents. However, when the total weight achieved surpassed the target weight, Mayor Joey Pineda made a last minute announcement inviting everybody around to join the boodle fight.

The event started with the weighing of all the balut eggs needed in cooking. The official actual weighing recorded a total weight of 91.80 kilograms, surpassing the target weight of 75 kilograms. The balut eggs were of nueve dias (nine days old of incubation), all pre-cooked, and with their shells intact. There was no more counting done on how many eggs were actually weighed as the criteria were focused more on the gross weight of the eggs.

 

Cooking demonstration started with the CCA Team removing off the shells of balut eggs and they filled two kawa (huge wok-like cooking pan) with shelled balut eggs. The CCA team also sliced into cubes 10 kilos of patatas (potato) and pre-cooked them in cooking oil and set aside.

Chef TRISTAN ENCARNACION with the first kawali of hundreds shelled balut for his team to cook into a one setting of adobong balut

Then cooking the adobo sauce followed. In a huge cauldron, all other ingredients were combined and mixed that include 6.4 kilos of brown sugar, 3 kilos cloves of garlic, 3.1 kilos of unpeeled ginger, 1.6 kilos of whole pamienta dahon (bay laeaf), 1.7 kilos of whole pamienta buto (peppercorn), 15.8 kilos (3 gallons) of commercial white vinegar, 13.1 kilos (3 gallons) of soy sauce, and 4.7 kilos (1 gallon) of cooking oil. The mixture was stirred to blend then brought to boil till it fumed up with the distinct aroma of Filipino adobo sauce.

Chef Tristan Encarnacion and his team from CCA make the history of cooking the largest adobong balut in Pateros. Plaza de Borja of Pateros is where the CCA cooked the historical adobong balut dubbed as the would-be Guinness world record of the largest serving of balut

The pre-cooked patatas were added in the simmering adobo sauce few minutes before the fire was put off. The freshly prepared adobo sauce is then scooped out and poured on 2 kawas of shelled baluts.

 

The kawas are then placed on big cooking stoves and brought to boil then simmered for few minutes, allowing the sauce to sip in the eggs.

Mayor Joey Medina of Pateros poses with his family and some members of the organizers from CCA and Pateros

Chef Tristan Encarnacion and his CCA team cooking the would-be Guinness world record of the largest serving of adobong-balut.

The 2 kawas of cooked adobong balut were transferred and combined in a semi-transparent white plastic container drum then weighed and the dish recorded a total weight of 122 kilograms (272 pounds).

122 kilos - The total weight of ADOBONG BALUT in Pateros prepared by a team of CCA cooks with Chef Tristan Encarnacion for the would-be Guinness world record of the largest serving of balut

The historical cooking and serving of the largest balut was recognized by the History television channel. A representative from the Guinness World Records witnessed the event. The documented preparation, cooking, and actual serving of the largest serving of adobong balut was submitted by the municipality of Pateros and CCA to the Guinness World Records for evaluation and possible recognization as new world record.

A huge crowd joined and witnessed the boodle fight of cooked rice with adobong balut. The long queues of Paterosinos (people of Pateros) and guests patiently waited their turn to dine under the scorching heat of summer noon sun. There were long mounds of kanin (cooked rice) laid on two rows of joined tables covered in white cloth and lined on top with banana leaves. 

Mayor Jaime "Joey" C. Medina of Pateros proudly joins with his folks in this boodle fight of partaking the historical and would-be Guinness world record of largest serving of balut.

A boodle fight of adobong balut for The Largest Serving Of Balut in Pateros

Dr. Mary Joyce Flores-Medina (wife of Pateros mayor, Joey Cruz-Medina) joins fellow Paterosinos and guests in this boodle fight of partaking the largest serving of adobong balut

The adobong balut was scooped out and spread as topping on the mounds of kanin. Everyone got a share of the  boodle fight. The aromatic and delectable adobong balut was desribed by the local historian of Pateros, Elmer Nocheseda, as the “pinakamarasap na adobong balut sa buong universe.”

"... Ito na po ang pinakamasarap na natikman kung adobong balut sa buong mundo... Ito na po ang pinaka 'the best' sa buong universe..." - Elmer Gragera-Ibañez Hernandez-Nocheseda

The 122 kilograms of cooked adobong balut was consumed in less than 10 minutes under the intense heat of summer sun and cloudless sky. 

Everyone was told to fold their umbrellas for the TV camera men and press to have a vantage view of the boodle fight on the two rows of long tables set along B. Morcilla St.

When asked why the CCA and Pateros chose balut and adobong balut as the subject of the History channel’s World Record Week, Chef Tristan Encarnacion opined that balut is a popular local delicacy anywhere in the country, most particularly in the town of Pateros. His team from CCA chose to cook adobong balut being that adobo is now an established popular Filipino dish and cooking style.

All smiles for the largest serving of balut. Organzers hold on to the famed balut of Pateros at the end of the presscon. In the photo are: Chef Tristan Encarnacion, Faculty member of CCA; Ms. Liza Morales, Operation Manager or CCA; Marinela G. Trinidad, CEO of CCA; Jacque M. Ruby, Asia Philippines Country Head of A+E Networks (History); Mayor Jaime "Joey" C. Medina of Pateros; and Dr. Joyce Medina, wife of Mayor Joey Medina

Ms. Ana Maria C. Palmares (in sunglasses), the Corporate Public Relations Manager and Faculty Coordinator for the Apprenticeship Class of CCA, holds a tray of folded T-SHIRT and half-dozen of balut distributed by CCA at the PressCon.

For Mayor Jaime C. Medina of Pateros, there is nothing more a Paterosinos could cook and call it Filipino than cooking balut from Pateros into a Filipino dish called adobo. It is in Pateros where centuries-old skills, expertise, and popular trade and industry of making balutstill exist and practiced by the locals.

 

The CCA and the rest of the organizers are trying to change the public and tourists’ impression of balut from something to dare for into something to desire for. To achieve this, the CCA held an exhibit of more than a hundred recipes of delectable balut dishes. Thus, on Sunday afternoon (April 12, 2015), showcased are around 120 dishes that use balut as one of the main ingredients. Print copies of more than a hundred balut recipes created by the CCA culinary students were on display in the Market Market of Bonifacio Global City (BGC). That would be something that food enthusiasts, historians, researchers, food instructors, culinary students, food writers, food bloggers, and foodies should never fail to see for themselves.

 

Edgie with historian Elmer Gragera-Ibañez Hernandez-Nocheseda of Pateros

On the evening of April 12, 2015 in the Market Market mall of BGC, the Guinness World Records proclaimed that the largest serving of balut now belongs to the town of Pateros and its collaborators.

Edgie with Mayor, Jaime "Joey" Cruz Medina of Pateros

Black shirt worn by the organizers of the Largest Serving Of Balut.