Wednesday, June 1, 2011

 Longest skewer of kebab: El Paso family set world record

EL PASO, TX, USA -- Using a 30-foot, custom-made grill, a 31-foot one-piece stainless steel skewer and more than 40 pounds of lamb, Leon Ekery's family - and more than 100 family members and friends - teamed up to skewer 28 feet, 7 inches of lamb - setting the new world record for the longest skewer of kebab meat .

  Photo: Members of the team wait as the meat cooks as they attempt to set a world record for the world's longest skewer of kebab meat. Photo courtesy of Henry Edwards ( enlarge photo )

  The Guinness world record for the longest skewer of kebab meat measured 5.68 m (18 ft 7 in) and was prepared by Esat Murat Aksu and Osman Selim Aksu (both USA) at the Turkish Festival in Washington, DC, USA.

 Guinness World Records also recognized the world record for the largest skewer of kebab meat,which weighed 4,022 kg (8,866 lb 15 oz) and was achieved by Zith Catering Equipment LTD and the Municipality of Pafos (both Cyprus) in Pafos, Cyprus.

  "Two years ago, I had the idea but we couldn't get the paperwork from Guinness World Records on time," Leon Ekery said. "Back in the fall, I told my son this is the year we're going to do it."

  An assembly line of family and friends took their positions near the skewer and carefully placed 2-inch cubes of lamb on the 5/16th-of-an-inch steel skewer. Seasoned only with sea salt, the cooking process took 57 minutes.

  "You couldn't believe how well this worked," Leon Ekery said. "We skewed it like an assembly line. We stood there and passed it on to one another. Then everybody picked it up at the same time and set it up on the grill."

  "I screwed up," Leon Ekery said. "I wanted it to be 29 feet but the meat shrunk during the cooking process, I miscalculated shrinkage, but it's still 10 feet over the record."

  "Records are meant to be broken and that's how our civilization advances. We have shown people that ordinary people can break these records, so now it is up to others to follow suit," Esat Murat Aksu said through an e-mail interview for El Paso Times.

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Largest sausage kolache: Kolache Haven

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Longest Shish Kebab: Murat Aksu

Largest Bowl of Macaroni And Cheese: Chef John Folse

Longest California Roll: University of Massachusetts

Longest barbeque marathon: Jan Scannell

Largest pot of baked beans: Alabama Butterbean Festival

Largest goat cheese: Castel di Lama

Largest serving of fried chicken: by KFC

Largest Pot of Beans: Macedonian Villagers

Largest serving of fried chicken: Indiana’s Canoefest

Longest french fry: John Benbenek

Largest Chicken Fried Steak: Cowtown Diner

Largest Meatball: Glen Oaks Community College

Most Expensive Seafood Hamper: The Fish Society

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Largest 'Jerusalem mixed grill': Israeli chefs

Largest meatball: Nonni's Italian Eatery

Largest Simultaneous Roast Meal: the East of England Agricultural Society

Longest sausage: Vinkovci

Largest gyros (doner kebab): Sami Eid

Wednesday, June 1, 2011