The Wok is basically a cooking pan with a flat bottom and rounded edges. It is the best kitchen tool for cooking food perfectly even at a small heat. It provides even heat to the food in the center. With the wok, you can make restaurant-style stir fry easily. You don’t need to stir food; with the help of its handle, you can shake the ingredients while cooking. The wok is a Chinese kitchen tool and is very helpful in making Chinese food. Wok gives food an incredible restaurant-style taste, making vegetables crispier and desirable browning of the meat, adding natural flavor to food.
Why you should buy it? There are some main advantages of wok like it allows you to do deep frying by using less oil, good for making healthy food. The versatile tool you can cook all cultures dishes in it very easily also it disperses the heat evenly and quickly, giving you instant results. The wok is not only made to make stir fry but it’s a versatile kitchen tool capable of roasting, stewing, frying, and steaming. It gets warm quickly than other pots, thus it can boil the noodles, macaroni, or pasta instantly. Thereby, saving your time and flame. Many styles of the wok are present in the marketplace; some are made of iron or steel or aluminum, some use non-stick or stainless material.
If you love stir fry and many other Chinese foods then you should definitely add a wok in your cookhouse. You must be wondering that how to buy the best Wok? Well, this article will guide you in this regard.
Key Points to consider
Keep in mind the following points when buying a wok. These points would help you in buying the accurate good quality.
Check the Wok Material
Double-check the material of the wok you are considering. Don’t buy any for its price and brand name. Choose a conductive material. Among all types of materials, we highly suggest you buy the one that is made of carbon steel. Carbon steel one ‘s is the choice of many Chinese chefs.
If you failed to find a carbon steel one then your second option should be aluminum one’s. Yes, the aluminum wok is also considered good and worthy. It is particularly light in weight thus it’s easy to shake the ingredients in it.
There are many other materials that are good to consider like cast iron. You can also get a cast-iron wok; it will give you a good service. All the traditional woks are made of cast iron. Cast-iron one’s are a little heavy in weight and require extra care. Although they are heavy but can make the best crispier food. All you got to do is to make a smart decision. Your first priority should be carbon steel material. This all depends on your priority and budget.
Review the Coating of Wok
Check the type of coating. Go for a non-stick coating. It doesn’t allow the ingredients to get stick to the surface, thus you can easily shake the ingredients in the wok thus enabling the user to wash it quickly with no effort. When you buy a nonstick one, there is no extra need to do seasoning before cooking. Teflon non-stick covering would do a nice job at a medium temperature. But high temperatures may damage this coating. If you purchase one with Teflon coating then you have to take care of the temperature. Ceramic coated woks can withstand high temperatures and are better than Teflon ones.
Wok handle
Woks come in different handle styles. Some have two handles and other has only one handle. Usually, the traditional style one because it has two handles. Well, two handles woks are good for restaurants. But the single handle woks works best, especially the wooden handle. With the single handle, one can conveniently lift the pan and shake or glide the ingredients with a little effort. Again it depends on your choice and priority. You can either go for a double handle or single handle wok. Both are good in functionality.
Wok Shape and Size
Before purchasing any wok, ask yourself what kind of shape and size you want? First, fully understand your needs and demands. Then go to the market the purchase a Wok. Wok size usually ranges from 13 to 20 inches. You should purchase a wok that is right fir for the stove. Go for a big size wok if you have a large family. But the best size you should buy is a 14-inch wok. It works well for big as well as small families.
Many shapes of the Wok are present ranging from round to flat. But for the even distribution of heat, we prefer you to have a round bottom and round edges. Chinese chefs also recommend the round bottom woks than flat ones. In the round bottom Woks, heat is centralized in the bottom and round edges disperse the heat to the sides. This shape works well for gas stoves or outdoor grills.
If your cookhouse has an electric stove then you should buy a flat shape wok. Flat shape Woks are made to sit directly on the stove surface and receive the heat directly from the electric ranges.
Conclusion
Many brands or manufacturers are manufacturing up-to-date Woks. Woks vary in style, design, shape, material, and quality. Among many varieties, you need to pick the accurate one. It is not a tricky or confusing job. Purchase a reliable company product from a well-known store. We have shared some buying tips, follow these tips and grab a nice one for your cookhouse.
Hello Kitchen knows best about kitchen tools and we have fine quality Woks in our stores that will surely give you nice performance. First, we test the product and then include it in our store so one can rely on our products. Top brands of appliances and tools are present in our stores. Make a visit today and grab top-quality kitchen tools.