The crème de la crème of Merton’s curry industry will test their cooking skills against each other next Wednesday in the final of the Curry Chef Competition.

The four restaurants to reach this stage are Blue Junction in Morden, Cocum South Indian Restaurant and House of Spice in Raynes Park, and Raka Indian Cuisine, which is located in Wimbledon Chase.

The first heats took place in September, when a total of eight restaurants were put through a hygiene audit.

At the final, to be held at Merton College, the four contestants will have one hour to produce a main curry dish, a complementary side dish and bread or rice dish. Culinary skills, originality, hygiene, presentation and taste are the areas on which the finalists will be judged.

The people on the judging panel are Councillor David Williams, Leader of Merton Council, Soukias Tchilingirian, who is a chef and lecturer at Merton College, Shanthan Vignes of Niru Europe Ltd and Pip Barnes, Merton Council’s Principal Environmental Health Officer.

The winner will receive a trophy and prize and the remainder will be handed a framed certificate that can take pride of place in their respective restaurants.