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Woks

Whereas twenty years ago, the wok was viewed as a strange eastern cooking utensil seen only in films and travel programmes, it now occupies pride of place in the modern kitchen as an important part of the modern cook’s arsenal. Learning how to use a wok opens up a whole new palette of tastes and smells as you create stir-fries, Chinese stews and Thai curries for you and your family.

What are Woks?

Woks are basically round, tapered steel dishes with handles and a round base. This creates a multi-zone heating effect, with the greatest concentration of heat focused in the centre and the excess graduating outwards. This makes woks excellent for stir-fries, which involve stirring ingredients in and around the centre of the pan at a high heat. Depending on how much water you use, a wok can also be used to make stews and to steam ingredients.

Electric woks add more versatility to the mix by allowing you to vary the heat of your wok. This is very handy if you are required elsewhere in the house and you don’t want things to burn! Another advantage of having a steady temperature is that you can leave a stew to its own devices whilst you attend to other matters.

Further Information

You can find out more about some of the top models of wok available on the market on our Top Wok Models page.

You can also find some hints and tips on what to look for when choosing a wok on our How to Choose a Wok page.

If you want to buy a wok, you can find out more about some of the top online wok suppliers including details of their delivery times and postage and packaging costs in our Where to Buy section.

You can learn more about other types of cooking appliance in our Types of Cooking Appliance section.

You can find out about specific cooking appliance manufacturers and brands in our Brands of Cooking Appliance section.