Spec me a decent Wok

Merlin5

Merlin5

Merlin5

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Finchley, London
I've got a cheapo Wok where some of the coating wore away, so stir fry rice noodles tend to weld themselves to that part of it. I also threw away some other Wok I got from Ikea with a similar problem. What brand of Wok do I need or what should I pay for a decent teflon coated Wok?
 
Ahleckz said:
This has come up before, and the agreed solution was go to a large Chinese supermarket and get one from there and read how to season it.
Here is a good thread on the latter:
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18438766&highlight=season
Click to expand...

Blimey that seasoning is a bit of a process. I haven't read the whole of the thread yet so none the wiser as to why it has to be from a chinese supermarket. I presume this seasoning would have stopped the coating coming off my cheap pans?
 
My post wasn't very well written.

Go to a Chinese supermarket and just get a carbon steel wok with a secure handle. Chinese supermarkets will sell a good wok, at a good price. It has nothing to do with seasoning. Chinese people use woks, they also use Chinese supermarkets. ;) I'd suggest seasoning if you got one from a cookshop, Amazon, John Lewis or ASDA.

Then, season it. It's quite easy to do, and is very worthwhile and will keep your wok in great condition for years.
Cheap, nonstick woks are pretty useless as the nonstick coating will come off quickly and the metal is prone to warping.
If you go nonstick, rather than carbon steel and seasoning then buy wooden (or silicone) utensils to use it on. Metal utensils, used carelessly, will scrape the coating off quickly. But, you should really avoid nonstick because the high heat demanded by a lot of wok cooking will degrade the coating and ruin it quicker (some claim that there are health implications of heating up non stick coatings too high but I'm not sure about that).
 
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Ahleckz talks a lot of sense on this subject.

Personally I went with a good quality tefal teflon coated wok for a couple of reasons but primarily for convenience, I don't use it very often and found storing/cleaning/maintaining it much more straight forward.
 
I've always found the average Tefal wok or frying pan lasts a hell of a long time with a bit of common sense and care. Strictly no metal implements has worked a charm on my frying pan which is regularly heated to ridiculous steak searing temperatures. It's pretty much good as new 2 years on. Not bad for a £15 pan!

I have a Le Creuset wok which performs well but is expensive and I fully acknowledge is form over function. Saying that, I can use it without a curved wok holder on any type of heat. One day perhaps I'll buy a Chinese supermarket special and season it.
 
I've got a Chinese supermarket special. I bought it about 3 years ago and have never looked back. To be completely frank, the guy in that other thread made a proper palava out of seasoning. You can do it just as well by heating a bit of oil in the wok until the whole surface goes shiny black (smoking out the kitchen in the process). Obviously you need a gas hob to do this. If you've got electric then stick with Tefal non-stick woks with the machined flat bottom.
 
Jonny69 said:
I've got a Chinese supermarket special. I bought it about 3 years ago and have never looked back. To be completely frank, the guy in that other thread made a proper palava out of seasoning. You can do it just as well by heating a bit of oil in the wok until the whole surface goes shiny black (smoking out the kitchen in the process). Obviously you need a gas hob to do this. If you've got electric then stick with Tefal non-stick woks with the machined flat bottom.
Click to expand...

Agreed. I admired his thoroughness but in the past I've basically done what you've said - or doused a cloth or kitchen paper piece (big piece) in oil and wiped the oil onto the pan repeatedly whilst it is smoking hot - works well and is very quick.
 
Yep, I've got a Chinese Supermarket wok and seasoned it like Jonny and FrenchTart.
After a while it becomes as non stick as any non stick pan, I can cook an omelette in mine now without anything sticking.

Just make sure not to scour it when washing (a simple rinse out with warm water usually does the job fine) and it should stay non stick forever.
 
Jonny69 said:
I've got a Chinese supermarket special. I bought it about 3 years ago and have never looked back. To be completely frank, the guy in that other thread made a proper palava out of seasoning. You can do it just as well by heating a bit of oil in the wok until the whole surface goes shiny black (smoking out the kitchen in the process). Obviously you need a gas hob to do this. If you've got electric then stick with Tefal non-stick woks with the machined flat bottom.
Click to expand...

Interesting, i've never heard of this. Very tempted to try now! How many times do you need to repeat that process that for it to become effectively non-stick?
 
Richdog said:
Interesting, i've never heard of this. Very tempted to try now! How many times do you need to repeat that process that for it to become effectively non-stick?
Click to expand...

I had one which we never managed to get non-stick but I think I was too thorough when cleaning it as I don't like putting greasey pans away!
 
Decent Carbon Steel Woks on ebay for about £10-£12 depending on whether you want 12" or 14"

Seasoning is just heating it up a few times, and then burning the oil onto the surface to form a protective layer. No big deal.

Its crazy to spend any more money on a wok than this, especially as the real chinese places use exactly these sort of woks, and not some fancy super expensive John Lewis jobs.
 
Richdog said:
Interesting, i've never heard of this. Very tempted to try now! How many times do you need to repeat that process that for it to become effectively non-stick?
Click to expand...
Technically you only need to do it the once, but you do need to stick to a few rules. You can't dry-fry like you can with a non-stick teflon pan so you alweays need to use a bit of oil; things containing sugar DO stick like hell and you can't really do anything about it; if you scrub it clean you scrub most of your seasoning off and you need to give it a quick go before you cook in it again. I'm like Alex2001 - I don't like putting greasy pans away so I tend to clean mine each time and just get it seriously hot and give it a quick season before using it. It takes seconds with a proper wok.
 
Just lobbed mine out as it has gone rusty after not being used. Was a cheapish non-stick jobbie. Need a new one asap but we have a black glass ceramic hob, so can't use a proper one from a Chinese supermarket.

Seen these in my local store today and they look quite solid. Says can be used on all hobs as well.

http://www.sainsburys.co.uk/sol/sho...ssentials_2piece_wok_set.html?hnav=4294967025

Good deal, or should I look at a Tefal one?
 
Ahlekz speaks sense.

However, I've never felt the need to go the half hour to china town and buy a wok there as my Tefal one has lasted absolutely ages and is still going and is 100% recommended- I've been using only on gas as well. It's also very versatile and I use it for lots of other things other than stir frying and for that reason I'd recommend it.

When it eventually dies I will get a china town special as well as another tefal.
 
PapaLazaru said:
Cheers, that is what I thought might be best.
Click to expand...
People will tell you that a cheap carbon-steel or heavy cast-iron wok is the best, and to some extents that is true.

But unless you have a gas hob with a burner that would double-up as a jet-engine, you'll never reach and maintain the sort of heat you would normally associate with a commercial kitchen - and it's that which you need to get the best out of those materials.

For home use, the thermal properties of aluminium with a good non-stick coating are ideal.

Hard-anodised cookware would be a preference (the Raymond Blanc Anolon one is quite good) but as long as the aluminium is thick-gauge and the non-stick material is sound, it's more down to your preference on shape, size, curvature of the sides, etc.
 
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