Cyrus Todiwala’s Zest Quest Asia reveals 2024 finalists

Zest Quest Asia, the Asian cuisine cooking competition founded by Cyrus and Pervin Todiwala, has unveiled its six finalists for the 2024 edition.

The teams going through to the final cook-off, which will be held at the University of West London on 27 February, are Cheshire College South & West, Loughborough College, North Hertfordshire College, Sheffield College, University College Birmingham and New College Durham.

The finalists will aim to impress a team of expert judges including Cyrus and Pervin, as well as Steve Munkley, vice-president of the Craft Guild of Chefs; Clive Roberts, vice-chairman, the Master Chefs of Great Britain; the Cateys Education and Training Award-winning founder Murray Chapman; and Sarah Hartnett, executive pastry chef at Smart Group.

Each team of three students will be challenged to create a four-course menu from a chosen Asian cuisine. They will be required to consider authenticity, taste, presentation, cost, skillset and innovative use of sponsors’ products, as well as minimising waste.

The winners and their tutor will receive an educational trip to Asia as their prize. The destination will be revealed at the competition’s Gala Dinner, which will be held on 27 February at Hilton London Wembley.

Canapes served during the awards night’s drinks reception will be prepared by current Zest Quest Asia champions, University of West London, who spent over a week in Bangkok as their main prize.

Previous destinations for winner's trips have included Japan, India, the Philippines, Vietnam and Sri Lanka.