The Nathan’s Hot Dog Contest might not be until July but when it comes to professional eating, there is no off-season. Major League Eating hosts competitive eating events year around and this weekend, eating professionals descended upon New Orleans for the annual Blue Runner Foods World Red Beans and Rice Eating Championship. At you might expect, pro eating heavyweight Joey Chestnut walked away with the title yet again, with a surprising amount of the combo consumed.
Shortly after his victory, Chestnut took to Instagram to reveal he set the world record for most rice and beans consumed during the contest. According to the top-ranked eater, he consumed nearly 25 pounds of red beans and rice in eight minutes. To be exact, Chestnut scarfed down 24 pounds and 11 ounces of the classic dish or as he puts it, over 36,000 calories.
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If you’ve paid attention to the Nathan’s contest, Chestnut has dominated the circuit for years. In addition to his new beans and rice record, he holds world records in other food groups such as hot dogs (74 in 10 minutes), hard boiled eggs (141 in 8 minutes), Taco Bell tacos (53 in 10 minutes), grilled cheese sandwiches (47 in 10 minutes), and jalapeno poppers (118 in 10 minutes) to name a few.
The eater’s first big break came in 2007, when he unseated long-time Nathan’s champ Takeru Kobayashi in the Coney Island contest on July 4th. He’s since won the annual tradition every year but one, losing to Matt Stonie in 2016. Stonie is currently the third-ranked eater in the world while Chestnut sits on top of the charts. Geoffrey Esper (Oxfor, MA), Darron Breeden (Orange, VA), and Gideon Oji (Morrow, GA) round out the top five.
Upcoming Major League Eating events include the National Sweet Corn Eating Championship is West Palm Beach on April 26th and The West Virginia Three Rivers Festival Pepperoni Roll Eating World Championship on May 23rd.
Cover photo by ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images