Tilda Foodservice raises the stakes with new Tilda Special Award at Zest Quest Asia!
As part of Zest Quest Asia 2022, Tilda Foodservice is raising the bar for students with the introduction of a new award - the Tilda Special Award.
Open for entries now, Zest Quest Asia is the student chef competition that aims to invigorate Asian cuisine. After 12 months away – and three successful virtual spin-offs including the Tilda Challenge – Zest Quest Asia is back in its original format with the grand finale taking place in February next year.
For the ninth year, the rice people are dialling up the contest with an all-new Tilda Special Award, to encourage competitors to explore the immense capabilities of Tilda rice.
Along with the prestigious title, an all-expenses paid 2-night trip to Italy is on the cards for the winning chefs*. The winners will enjoy a culinary journey where they will visit the Vercelli and Piedmont region – home to the world-famous Tilda rice and explore one of Italy’s oldest cities, while enjoying the most exquisite food and culture of Northern Italy!
The theme for the Tilda Special Award 2022 is a festival of flavour. Competitors are asked to take inspiration from any Asian celebration to create a menu consisting of a main and dessert with Tilda rice making up half of the dish. Student chefs are encouraged to create dishes that will be fit for celebration, dazzle the judges and are Tildalicious throughout! Chefs can build their menu based on an Asian festival that inspires them, from Diwali or Chinese New Year to Holi or Nowruz and many more!
Speaking of the upcoming competition, Annette Coggins, Head of Foodservice, Tilda UK said:
“Zest Quest Asia has been vital for student chefs for nearly a decade, and we feel privileged to be a part of it. After such an uncertain time in our lives, we’re thrilled to see that Zest Quest will be returning to its original format in February and the Tilda Special Award reflects this. Year after year, we’ve seen fantastic rice-inspired entries and the standard gets higher and higher – it’s incredibly exciting to see what the future holds for Asian cuisine in the hands of such passionate chefs.”
To enter, chefs are asked to provide a brief description of which festival was chosen with the thinking behind the menu, where they envision the dishes to be served and a description of the dish itself including which Tilda rice/s were used. Please visit https://www.zestquestasia.org/competition-rules to learn more, and to enter.
Tilda Foodservice is here to help student chefs and lecturers with questions for entries – whether those be about which Tilda rice to choose or tips to elevate plates, please email johanna@tilda.com with any enquiries.
The entry deadline is Monday 24th January 2022 with the shortlist being revealed on Monday 31st January 2022. The final cook-off and awards dinner will be held on Friday 18th February 2022 at the Hilton, London Heathrow Terminal 5.
*Dependent on Covid-19 guidelines
