10-12 March 2025 | IFEMA - Madrid

Asian Culinary Awards 2024

The Asian Culinary Awards are back, the leading competition for Asian recipes in Spain created by the UDON group. We are celebrating the 8th edition on February 21, 2024, at HIP. We are looking for active chefs and restaurant professionals to compete for the title of the Asian Culinary Awards.

To participate in the ‘Asian Culinary Awards,’ interested professionals must create an original Asian recipe that breaks barriers and aligns with the philosophy of the company, UDON. In the final, the three selected finalists will cook their recipes in a live final battle before a jury composed of prominent professionals in the industry, including the winner of the previous edition, Antonio Pagano. They will evaluate the dishes based on criteria such as taste, texture, aroma, technique, composition, presentation, or the innovation of the proposal. The winning professional will receive a prize of a €3,000 trip to Asia, while the second and third finalists will receive prizes of €1,000 and €500, respectively.

Finalists 2024

Marcos Castillo is the co-founder, along with his brother, of the Arya restaurant in Úbeda. In his restaurant Arya, Marcos Castillo creates recipes from around the world, with a particular focus on Asian cuisine. Throughout his extensive career, Castillo has worked in renowned gastronomic establishments such as Hacienda Benazuza with chef Ferran Adrià and Manzanilla Málaga with chef Dani García.

 

The recipe that has earned him a spot in the final is the Seafood Ramen. A ramen where the velvety texture achieved with egg yolks takes center stage.

Javier Manceras is a very young chef hailing from Málaga. He studied culinary management, and since completing his training, he has worked as a chef in 5-star hotels in Málaga, such as the Gran Hotel Miramar. Currently, he is a chef at the Only You Hotel in Málaga.

 

His recipe for the Asian Culinary Awards final is the Malaga Ramen, where the traditional dashi broth and katsuobushi are replaced by strips of “pintarrojas,” dried using the sun-drying technique employed by ancient fishermen from Málaga.

Carlos Hernández studied the Higher Degree in Kitchen Management at the CETT hospitality and tourism school in Barcelona. He completed professional internships in restaurants such as Peppe Zullo’s in southern Italy, Jesús Sánchez’s Cenador de Amós (three Michelin stars), and undertook a stage at one of the world’s best restaurants, El Celler de Can Roca (three Michelin stars) by Joan, Josep, and Jordi Roca. Currently, he is the second chef at ABAC (three Michelin stars) under the command of Chef Jordi Cruz.

 

His finalist recipe is a Thai Fusion Chicken Ramen, featuring a broth with Thai romesco noodles accompanied by a Japanese ninoyaki fritter filled with Thai chicken and mirin mayonnaise.