What weighs nearly 8kg, has a 79.5cm circumference, and isn’t a watermelon? It’s the world’s largest Scotch egg—crafted by London-based food content creators Oli Paterson and Phoenix
Ross, better known online as ElBurritoMonster and Shef_Phoenix.
On 17 June, the pair smashed the previous record of 6.2kg (set 17 years ago by Clarence Court) with a monster Scotch egg that tipped the scales at 7.81kg (17.2lb).
From food friends to record breakers
Phoenix, 27, from Notting Hill, met 28-year-old Oli at an event in April. They instantly clicked. When Guinness World Records reached out to Phoenix (after seeing his viral giant creme egg), he knew Oli was the perfect partner for the attempt.
Though they briefly considered building a record-breaking burrito (2.4km long!) or sausage roll (111m), space limitations led them to settle on a Scotch egg—using an ostrich egg as the centerpiece.
First attempt? A flop
Their first try on 10 June in Oli’s garden failed—the egg collapsed before it even hit the fryer. “We didn’t plan properly,” they admitted. “We just hoped for the best.”
But after refining their approach and upping their prep, attempt number two was a success: the ostrich egg was hard-boiled, wrapped in sausage meat, coated in breadcrumbs, and deep-fried.
“We were 90% sure we’d pull it off,” said Oli.
Egg-sact standards
Guinness required the egg to be made exactly like a regular Scotch egg, and the yolk had to remain fully intact when sliced. The final measurements?
Egg width: 11.5cm (4.5in)
Meat thickness: 6cm (2.4in)
“Ostrich eggs are super strong,” Oli noted. “You can stand on them and they won’t break.” It took a hammer to crack the shell and a sword—yes, a sword—to slice the final product.
Mission accomplished
“I felt anxious before cutting it,” said Phoenix. “The yolk had to be intact—but once we opened it, we knew we had it.”
Oli added, “Pulling it out of the fryer was the real moment of celebration.”
After winning the record, the duo made sure no food was wasted. They turned the enormous egg into 19 burritos, each packing about 1,600 calories, which also made for more content.
With ostrich egg season now over, they’re confident their record is safe—at least for another year. Photo by Unhindered by Talent, Wikimedia commons.