Zest Quest Asia – Tilda Challenge 2021 Welcomes a New Format for the Spin-Off Event

Headline sponsored by Tilda Foodservice, Zest Quest Asia is back with a spin-off to the annual event which has inspired young chefs to discover the exciting world of Asian cuisine for the past seven years.

Launching today (7^th January) the Zest Quest Asia – Tilda Challenge 2021 is a new and exciting individual chef competition which sees the contest go virtual for the first time, in response to Covid-19, with a live streamed final.

With the winner receiving an exclusive Todiwala Masterclass, trophy, chef knives and jacket, as well as Tilda goodies, college lecturers and their students simply need to post their Asian inspired dish using Tilda rice on Facebook or Instagram before the 17^th February 2021.

Six finalists will be chosen to compete at the Covid-Safe Final taking place on the 31^st March from their college kitchen.

Annette Coggins, Head of Foodservice, Tilda UK said of the upcoming event:

“Zest Quest has always been a big event for students in the competition calendar and with the ongoing challenges of Covid, we were determined for the competition to go ahead. In such difficult times we are even more excited to continue partnering with Cyrus, Pervin and Murray Chapman for the Zest Quest Asia – Tilda Challenge.  It’s always been important to Tilda Foodservice to inspire the next generation of chefs, and support Zest Quest Asia with promoting what is an incredibly exciting cuisine for students to get to grips with – we can’t wait to see what these young chefs create!”

Entrants are asked to take inspiration from today’s hottest food trends from plant-based to one pot recipes and create recipes that are authentic, flavourful and celebrate the best of regional Asian cuisine. All the details on the competition and the criteria are available at www.zestquestasia.org.

Tilda Foodservice and the Todiwalas are passionate about creating a competition that chefs and colleges will look forward to and get excited about in 2021. Zest Quest Asia was launched to inspire student chefs across the UK to consider Asian cookery as a future career by recognising outstanding talent, knowledge and understanding of the cuisine. The success of the competition encourages colleges to include classical Asian cookery in the curriculum, as well as build on the skills needed for chefs to venture into the Asian food industry.

For more information and to enter the Zest Quest Asia – Tilda Challenge 2021, colleges should visit www.zestquestasia.org. The deadline for entries is Wednesday 17th February 2021. The shortlist will be revealed at the end of February 2021, with the final Covid-safe cook-off taking place on 31^st March 2021.