A small town in the central highlands state of Hidalgo is set to sizzle this weekend when it attempts to break its own record for the largest barbecue in Mexico.
The barbacoa feast of 100 sheep (lambs) and more than 2,000 chickens will be slow-cooked underground in two enormous, custom-built ovens as part of the annual Dajiedhi Fair, a six-day festival starting Wednesday.
The popular fair will feature church services, fireworks, dancers, music, carnival rides, craft sales and food — like other patron saint festivals in Mexico. But this event, like many others across the country in early August, pays homage to El Divino Salvador (the Divine Savior, aka Jesus).
Much of this year’s focus is on Sunday, when the large ovens will be ignited by local barbocoyeros (pitmasters) to begin the barbecuing process. On Monday, a free tasting for an estimated 15,000 visitors will begin at 11 a.m.
“It’s just a tasting, so we ask for your understanding that there should be enough for everyone,” emphasized Alex Santiago Mejía, a member of the fair committee.
For those wanting more, barbacoa will also be available for purchase for about 650 pesos (US $34.50) per kilogram.
Last year’s event featured the cooking of 68 sheep and more than 200 chickens, though organizers opted against trying to obtain a Guinness World Record due to costs.
Like last year, this year’s barbecue will be prepared in a traditional manner that dates back to pre-Hispanic times.
¡En #Actopan se rompió el récord Guinness de la fila de tacos de barbacoa más larga del mundo!
Este es un logro que pone en alto la gastronomía de #Hidalgo, reflejando el orgullo por nuestra identidad.#PrimeroElPueblo pic.twitter.com/cIs7mLuTR4
— Julio Menchaca (@juliomenchaca_) July 13, 2025
Sheep and chickens donated by Dajiedhi residents and farmers in neighboring towns will be prepped and seasoned by the barbocoyeros and volunteers.
The meats will then be cooked in stone pits that are lined and topped with maguey leaves to protect ingredients from the dirt and to seal in flavors from vegetables and mesquite branches placed in the pits.
Dajiedhi, population 2,400, is located in the municipality of Actopan, Hidalgo, about 30 kilometers north of the state capital, Pachuca. Its unique name is almost certainly Indigenous, likely of Otomí-Hñahñu origin, but its precise meaning is unknown to scholars.
In Actopan and other areas of the Mezquital Valley, barbecued meats have been prepared in earthen ovens since 1518, according to Mexico’s Ministry of Culture. The newspaper Milenio referred to Dajiedhi as “the birthplace of barbacoyeros.”
At the Barbacoa Fair in Actopan in early July, the community reportedly set a Guinness World Record for the longest line of barbacoa tacos — more than 12,000 placed side-by-side in a single row. Vendors made about 300 tacos each, and when the tacos were lined up, no overlapping was allowed, according to the on-site Guinness adjudicator.
With reports from Milenio, N+ and Central Hidalgo Irreverente
