Bradford College

Staggering Supersized Samosa Sets New Guinness World Record

In the heart of Bradford – the Curry Capital of England, Colin Burt, Chef Trainer at Bradford College, has set  a new Guinness World Record for the largest supersized vegetable samosa in the world, working in partnership with award winning restaurants Prashad and Kiplings.

No previous Guinness World Record is held for the biggest samosa in the world - Colin Burt, Prashad, Kiplings and a team of Bradford College students have set a new precedent!

The man-sized starter has put Bradford firmly on the international map, as Colin and his team cooked and carried the record breaking samosa on a specially created ‘samosa settee’ through the streets of Bradford, on the 22nd June to coincide with Positive Bradford Day.

This announcement comes after Mr Burt broke the Guinness World Record for the biggest bhaji in the world in 2011 working in partnership with critically acclaimed restaurant Prashad. 

A staggering 3 sacks of potatoes (60 kg),1 sack of onions, (25 kg), 30 bags of peas (15 kg) 12 bunches of coriander, 300 chillies and 250 bottles of rapeseed oil (250 litres) (donated by Pride Oils of Westmill UK) were used to make the epic samosa, with a selection of secret spices added to the special mix.  Prashad and Kiplings joined forces to specially perfect the pastry recipe for the colossal snack.

Colin Burt tipped the scales with a gargantuan samosa that weighed a whopping 115 kilograms and measured a staggering 1.5 metres in length, 90cm wide and bulged up to 35cm in the middle.

It took eight men to lift the giant sized snack into a special cooking vessel.  Colin enlisted the help of the Engineering Department at Bradford College, when he realised there was no conventional cooking equipment big enough to house the belt busting samosa.

The Engineering Department came to the rescue by creating a cooking vessel big enough to fry the world beating starter, which Colin and the team have fondly named ‘Big Bertha’.  A special rack, ‘sky hooks’ and specially made triangular ramps were also designed to lower and raise the monster samosa in and out of the boiling oil.  A special samosa settee was also created by the Construction Department to parade the gargantuan samosa around Centenary Square.

With over 250 bottles of rapeseed oil used to cook the super-sized snack, Bradford College Health and Safety officials were called in to avoid a towering inferno sweeping through the seven story Westbrook building, where the record took place. 

Colin explained: “Lowering the beast of Bradford into the boiling oil had to be done gently to avoid the oil bubbling up.”  Colin added: Even ‘Big Bertha’s’ capacity was tested to the limit during this process.  It’s was at this point that we encountered the greatest danger. If the hot oil had spilled out onto the boiling rings, which had five bottles of butane gas attached to them… well you can imagine it could have been rather unpleasant to say the least.”

This is the latest in a string of ‘curry loving initiatives’ to emerge from the Hospitality and Travel Department, which included hosting the national finals of the UK’s Junior Curry Chef Competition earlier this year.  The College also hit the headlines when it came to the rescue of the curry crisis, with a range of innovative courses that focus on specialist qualifications in Asian and International cuisine.

Commenting on the world record, Bobby Patel, Operations Director at Prashad and distinguished Associated Patron of the IFA said: “Prashad is absolutely delighted to be working with Bradford College’s International Food Academy once again on another fantastic initiative.   As the Curry Capital of the UK, Bradford is already leading the way and to add this record to the giant bhaji record achieved last year is tremendous.    We are privileged to be a part of the record and to play a part in spreading the word about our City and our wonderful cuisine.”

Gordon Ramsay described the food at Prashad as ‘Extraordinary’ and ‘The best vegetarian cuisine he had ever had’. 
Mohammed Rafiq Director at Kiplings added: “It’s wonderful to see how much food has united the major restaurants and the people of Bradford, bringing lots of happiness and joy to the city. We hope that our record breaking samosa added to positive Bradford Day and provide a further accolade that the City and people of Bradford can be proud of.” 

Earlier this year Kiplings in collaboration with leading restaurants, Prashad, Aagrah, and Shimla Spice led Bradford to victory when they scooped the prestigious ‘Curry Capital of England 2011/12’ title for the city. Kiplings have also been specially selected to represent the whole of Yorkshire and Humber at the finals of the prestigious Tiffin Cup, hosted in the Houses of Parliament.  The Tiffin Cup is an annual British competition to find the best South Asian restaurant in the UK.

Commenting on setting a new world record, Chef Trainer Colin said: “It is absolutely fantastic to have broken the world record today in partnership with Prashad and Kiplings! The beast of Bradford ‘sky hooked’ in Centenary Square created lots of excitement for everyone involved in the world record. The monster samosa was paraded around the square in its settee before being ceremoniously weighed and measured in front of independent witness David Ward MP. We hope it has been a day to remember and put Bradford firmly on the map.”

Michael Taglione and Linda Hollins also acted as independent witnessing during the memorable occasion.

In order to break the Guinness World Record, the monster sized Samosa had to be edible.  The Lord Mayor of Bradford, Councillor Dale Smith sampled the epic sized snack, along with crowds that had gathered in Centenary Square to confirm it was cooked to perfection.

Hayley Lomas, Head of the Hospitality and Travel Department at Bradford College concluded: “All our students have been very excited and enthusiastic about this Guinness World Record.”

In a city that is renowned for its rich cultural heritage and multicultural population – a dish that has become a national favourite has united a nation on Positive Bradford Day.

• Gallery - Staggering Supersized Samosa