The six colleges include Loughborough College, New City College, North Hertfordshire College, Sheffield College, University College Birmingham and University of West London.

The college teams will compete in a live cook-off at Mr Todiwala’s kitchen on 7 February 2020. The winners will be announced at a Gala Dinner and Awards Night at the Hilton London Heathrow Airport Terminal Five. 

Cyrus and Pervin Todiwala founded Zest Quest Asia in 2013 and the competition aims to ‘inspire’ students across the UK to consider Asian cookery as a future career. The winning college will receive a cultural and educational trip to an Asian destination. 

In 2017 headline sponsor Panasonic took the University College Birmingham winning team on a ‘once in a lifetime’ trip to Japan. 

Justin Burnell, head of new business development at Panasonic, said: “Every year it is an honour to support this great competition as the standard that the students cook to is astonishing, as is the passion and dedication they show in their entries. 

“We’re wishing the very best of luck to all finalists, and are looking forward to seeing their efforts this year using Panasonic’s commercial rice cooker, in the Rice Cooker Round.”