At Britain’s Premier Curry Championship, Top Chefs Compete For National Culinary Glory
Seventeen chefs from the UK and Europe will compete in Dunstable for the National Curry Chef of the Year title at the prestigious UK Curry Championships 2026 culinary competition.
UK Curry Championships 2026 Heats Up
The heat is rising ahead of the UK Curry Championships 2026, as 17 talented chefs from across the UK and Europe prepare to compete for the coveted title of National Curry Chef of the Year.
Taking place on Thursday 28 May 2026 in the market town of Dunstable, the prestigious culinary competition will bring together an impressive line-up of chefs boasting Michelin-starred experience, multiple AA Rosettes, television appearances and award-winning reputations. Alongside seasoned professionals, several ambitious amateur chefs will also step into the kitchen to test their skills on a national stage.
The event is organised by Shah F. Athar, Chief Operating Officer of UK Curry Connect, a leading trade body within the South Asian hospitality sector. The competition is held in partnership with the Craft Guild of Chefs as part of the renowned British Culinary Championships.
Competitors confirmed for this year’s event include:
- Praveen Singh Rawat – Essence at The Pantiles by Atul Kochhar, Royal Tunbridge Wells
- Arup Dasgupta – Euphoria by Chef Arup
- Shiv Kapoor – Mister Nice, Mayfair
- Rohan Wadke – Cameron House Hotel, Loch Lomond
- Dheeraj Singh Kaira – Benares, Berkeley Square
- Shabu Natarajan – Kinara by Shabu Natarajan, Glasgow
- Manikantan Sree Rajhan – The Belfry Hotel, Sutton Coldfield
- Dev Biswal – The Cook’s Tale, Canterbury
- Jit Sunar – Mount Gurkha Village, Derby
- Md. Sohel Khan – Babaji, Sunderland
- Nigar Parvin – Stoke Place Hotel
- Vikas Negi – London
- Gianmarco Lupi – Italy
- Steve Heap – Birmingham
- Visakh Pradeep Kumar – London
- Saskar Shawnim – Birmingham
- Layla Hamid – Birmingham
Each chef will be challenged to prepare two dishes within one hour: a vegetarian or seafood starter and a lamb-based main course. Competitors are encouraged to showcase any style of curry cuisine, from traditional regional recipes to modern interpretations inspired by global flavours.
The dishes will be assessed by a distinguished panel of international judges, including Salon Director Nick Wort, Steve Scuffell, Raj Mandal, Stuart McLeod, Stuart Nisbet, Tony Leck, Rajesh Suri, Chad Rahman, Fatih Oncu and Najib Ali.
This year’s UK Curry Championships are sponsored by The IBD Partnership Group, Square Mile Insurance Services, Imran Brothers Foods, Sponsor License Specialists, Kingfisher Beer, [MOCK], Heer Rice and Knoesis Technologies.
