OT: Wot wok?

[T i m]

Hi All,

Re d-i-y food preparation and kitchen tools etc .. .. ;-)

We were thinking of getting a Wok (stir fries etc) but like all things these days there seems to be much choice and with that much opinion re what's good and what's not etc.

So, we have a gas stove with one big burner (and 3 smaller ones ) but the ironmongery doesn't seem to suit a round bottomed wok (forming a + over the top of each burner) so we would probably need a flat bottomed jobby or a supporting ring?

Discounting electric and stainless steel is it just between a carbon steel (properly 'conditioned') and a non stick one and if so then what type of handle and do we need a lid etc please?

Also without making a personal trip to Asia where might one buy something suitable please (could we talking Tesco / Argos etc, don't want to go mad especially as this could be a short lived experiment).

All the best ..

T i m

[Dave Liquorice]

Good, if there is one thing a wok needs it is *serious* heat input. Mind you even a 3kW gas ring is a bit puney... If you take a peek in the kitchen of a decent chinese restraunt you see something that blows a flame 2' long and 4" round if it hasn't got a wok on the top... In china they tend to use (or did when I was there 15 years ago) compressed coal cylinders with holes up the middle with forced ventilation, producing something akin to what blacksmith would use to heat iron. The outside of the wok does glow red on one of these things...

When I had gas I found that removing the flame spreader and lighting the gas as it emerged from the center hole was good, you didn't get a cold spot in the middle of the wok. Still needed to be flat out though.

Round bottomed, plain steel, good length wooden handle, little point in a lid. See if you have a chinese supermarket nearby or a decent independant cookware shop. Also tools a shovel type thing again with a good long handle, the end of the shovel should fit the curve of the wok. Good extract ventilation over the cooking area as a wok puts up a fine mist of oil.

You also need a good quality oil that can take high temperatures, sunflower will just about handle it, peanut is recommended, olive is useless.

[gort]

You just solved a small mystery for me!

Dave

[T i m]

So I read elsewhere Dave but I had thought that part of the reason for cooking in / with a wok was because of a lack of energy in rural areas so food had to be cooked quickly and over a rough open fire? Maybe that *is* hotter than an average gas ring?

I have seen the odd flash of flame from the kitchen at our local Chinese take-a-way .. ;-)

Like a mini blast furnace then .. serious heat .. !

Would that be safe to do though .. no chance of a blow-back or summat?

I read the transition between the round bowl and the flat bottom can be difficult to clean as well ..

I don't think we have either locally but then I've not really looked before ..

Ok ta ..

Oh .. (that's not going to be easy to fit as we have a lean-to alongside the kitchen) and have a high level grill (so not sure one would work very well anyway)?

Ok, if / when we get a wok we will try to get the right stuff.

All the best and thanks for the info ..

T i m

[Dave Fawthrop]

|Hi All, | |Re d-i-y food preparation and kitchen tools etc .. .. ;-) | |We were thinking of getting a Wok (stir fries etc) but like all things |these days there seems to be much choice and with that much opinion re |what's good and what's not etc. | |So, we have a gas stove with one big burner (and 3 smaller ones ) |but the ironmongery doesn't seem to suit a round bottomed wok (forming |a + over the top of each burner) so we would probably need a flat |bottomed jobby or a supporting ring? | |Discounting electric and stainless steel is it just between a carbon |steel (properly 'conditioned') and a non stick one and if so |then what type of handle and do we need a lid etc please? | |Also without making a personal trip to Asia where might one buy |something suitable please (could we talking Tesco / Argos etc, don't |want to go mad especially as this could be a short lived experiment).

Find a local town with a Chinatown ?Manchester?. Walk into a Chinese supermarket and you will lots of traditional round bottomed mild steel Woks, and wok rings, just a ring of steel with holes.

Beware, mild steel woks need to be conditioned as you note, and cleaned with kitchen towel only.

[T i m]

So the more 'basic' it looks the better it's going to be (from a 'traditional' POV anyway)?

So I could fabricate that if I can't buy something suitable (locally / easily). I was thinking of putting 4 notches in the lower edge so it sits securely over the 'cross' made by the irons?

I don't think it would fit in the dishwasher anyway ;-)

All the best ..

T i m

[Dave Fawthrop]

|On Mon, 05 Feb 2007 08:15:40 +0000, Dave Fawthrop | wrote: | | |>Find a local town with a Chinatown ?Manchester?. Walk into a Chinese |>supermarket and you will lots of traditional round bottomed mild steel |>Woks, | |So the more 'basic' it looks the better it's going to be (from a |'traditional' POV anyway)?

"Looks" are not relevant to me, function is everything. The Chinese have been making woks for millennia, I copy the experts.

|> and wok rings, just a ring of steel with holes. | |So I could fabricate that if I can't buy something suitable (locally / |easily). I was thinking of putting 4 notches in the lower edge so it |sits securely over the 'cross' made by the irons?

The distance above the gas ring is crucial.

How to Season a Wok

[T i m]

And me (within reason). ;-)

Sorry, that was sorta what I was eluding to. With many of the cheaper imports you see from India / China they often look very crude (look at the castings on machine tools etc) but in this case that's actually a good thing (the ultimate design rather than just being 'basic').

So I read elsewhere. Ok, maybe there is another direction here then ...

Do I want to cook using a wok *as* they would in China or do I want to use a wok *like* they use in China?

Eg, 'stir frying' food might be easier in a wok than say a frying pan just because it's bigger / deeper. Is that in fact all I need, to do what I want (though I'm not sure what I want yet) ..;-(

Because I'm not actually much interested in food (as a hobby I mean) we were looking for something that might give us a bit of interest / variety[1] and even try cooking things we not have done before (like our own idea of a stir-fry rather than just heating a packet stir-fry).

theme) and that is probably part of the 'gadget' interest in owning one. Like 'enjoying' building / maintaining PC's V a Mac that you just buy then it sits there on it's own working .. (yawn) .. ;-)

All the best ..

T i m

[1] As I'm not bothered what I eat and if the daughter isn't about 'she' (or I) often can't be bothered cooking something nice / good / nutritious just for 'us' (so end up with something more 'snacky'). If we can knock up something quick, simple and a bit 'different' by using a wok then it might be worth a go (but not the extent of going to wok classes or fitting an extraction system)?

[Peter Parry]

A supporting ring would be preferable but is not always necessary especially for stir frying where the Wok is held in one hand and used with a small shovel like implement to move everything around continuously. It's easier to do this in a round bottom Wok.

Carbon steel, a wide range at very low prices in Wing Yips, Chinese supermarket about a mile from J1 of the M1.

have some in the on-line store but more are in store in the catering supplies section. Get a spatula while you are at it - it's needed to shovel stuff around.

Handle the Wok before buying. It is not usually left unattended much during cooking (many will simply tip over in the support ring as the handle unbalances them) and is held with one hand while the food is moved a lot using a steel spatula in the other hand. There is a trade-off between heavy and being handleable. Look for a good strong wooden handle such as on

't bother with any of the flimsy things you find in most shops.

[Huge]

Wing Yip is a brilliant place. We go there for a huge oriental shopping trip about once a quarter. Try and find the sugar glazed pistachios which are delicious. The frozen giant prawns are about 10% the price in Sainsers (although you do have to buy a 10kg box). They do nice gioji (little pork dumplings). And they have a large cookware department.

They could work on their customer relations skills a little, though ...