The maintenance of cooking woks is necessary to make sure they will last longer. There are things you have to consider when taking care of your precious woks. Woks are bowl-shaped pans utilized for traditional Chinese cooking. Hence, since Chinese cuisine has become more internationally known due to its developed dishes as well as ‘advanced cooking techniques’.
Woks are now considered one of the most efficient types of cooking pans. Aside from this, woks distribute heat throughout the pan making them very hot. This is what makes them so great for stir-fry cooking dishes. The stove that you will use in cooking plays a major role in the outcome of these dishes too though. Usually, a wok has a rounded bottom because it is originally used for big ‘cast iron stoves’. It also has two actual handles. One on both sides, suitable for carrying and lifting them. Modern woks are made of aluminium, copper and stainless steel. Instead of side to side handles, woks today commonly possess one long handle like a skillet. Many feel it makes woks easier to move and use.
Woks can easily take away the need for potholders. Fourteen-inch cooking woks are also estimated as the most versatile kitchen utensil. Stainless steel cooking woks are not good heat conductors because all the food gets stuck unto the metal. Because of this, they are not as recommended as something with more even heat distribution. It also makes the presentation of the dishes look bad.
Tips on how to take care of your cooking woks: Once you find your cooking wok, it is important to take proper care of it. You should usually season your wok before using it for the first time. This is in order to remove the oil on the wok and to prevent it from rusting. You need to also clean your wok immediately after each usage in order to keep it clean and to avoid corrosion. In cleaning your carbon steel wok, you need to wash the wok in hot water, softly scrub, or lift off away food particles with a nonmetallic scrubber. Wash the wok and then dry the exterior and interior potions with paper towels. When you finish drying your wok, place it over medium heat, and then swab the inside of the wok with a dab of vegetable oil. This will keep your carbon steel wok free of rust.
As a warning, do not pour oil directly onto your hot wok during the time you are cleaning it. This can cause fires since the wok is very hot. Several people like it better to have the oil added earlier. Thus, to let it heat up with the pan. Be careful to not spill the vegetable oil. Especially if the wok is very hot. This is since it can spark a ‘grease fire’ very easily. It is best to avoid washing most woks with detergent as this can ruin the carefully built seasoning. Chefs recommend cooking wok users to make use of a bamboo brush in order to keep it clean in between seasonings.
Tips for buying a cooking wok: It is a fact that there are quite a number of different kinds of cooking woks available in the market these days. Carbon steel woks are considered the best choice because of their high quality. You also have an option in choosing a cooking wok that does not possess a round bottom. These are also termed as flat cooking woks. If you are cooking with the use of a western electric range, the best choice would be a flat bottom cooking wok. Though these do not work nearly as well as their round bottomed counterparts on an open flame stove. The size of the cooking wok is another significant aspect you should consider when buying frying pans or wok. Since woks are made with a variety of sizes, the appropriate size of the cooking wok depends on the preference of the user or on the size of the gas stove. If it is too large, the wok will become difficult to manage. Too small and the ingredients become crowded and will give undesirable results for your stir fry.
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