A lot of great things come to mind when one thinks of Mexico, including the ancient Mayan ruins of the Yucatan, the blazing hot Mexico City rock scene, and some of the world’s loveliest beaches. But one thing that may not have popped right into your head while viewing your mental Mexican highlight reel is our southern neighbors’ penchant for enormous sandwiches.
Over the weekend, the BBC documented a torta fair in Mexico City where, for the second year in a row, torta makers from around the city have cooperated in making Latin America’s longest sandwich. At 44 meters (48 yards), 600kg (1,320 lbs), and 30 ingredients, this year’s behemoth beat out last year’s by one meter. From the BBC:
“We broke our own record today,” said Jose Antonio Arellano, a torta fair organiser.
The fair is aimed at boosting the torta which has taken a back seat to other fast food in recent years, Reuters notes.
Fair organisers expect more than 160,000 visitors during the fair and hope to sell upwards of 200,000 tortas.
But this year’s torta gigantica is just one of Mexico City’s mega-food accomplishments. In addition to the recently ongoing olympic torta series, the city hosted the creation of the world’s largest-ever sandwich, a ham and cheese on sliced bread that weighed in at 3,178 kgs (6,991lbs).
However, the record for the world’s longest sandwich currently resides with Taiwan, where a June 26 video by Diagonal View shows students creating a 1,874-foot monster. The nuclear submarine was skinny, though, weighing in at only 4,400 lbs.
Mexico, we call on you to accomplish a hat-trick of gigantic sandwichery by plucking the “world’s longest” title from the hands (and mouths) of the Taiwanese. It will seal your place as the dominant sandwich power of the world, and will bring the title to North America, where we in the United States will eyeball it jealously over that big back fence, leading, hopefully to the most delicious competition yet joined by our two nations.
Mexico rustles up giant baguette [BBC]
World’s Biggest Sandwich [Supersized Meals]
World’s Longest Sandwich [Diagonal View]
[Photo: Finishing up the world’s largest sandwich via Supersized Meals]
