Electric woks

[Darienne]

(I tried to search a dozen different ways and found no such topic.)

I missed buying a second-hand electric Wok the other day and then wondered if they are really worth buying anyway. I have a regular wok...back home...of course...but none here. And you can't buy one here anyhow. This is Moab, land of red rocks and blue skies. Actually mountain bike capital of the world.

Comments about electric woks most appreciated.

[Octaveman]

They are not worth it. They cannot generate enough heat to wok properly. You'd be better off without it.

[Darienne]

They are not worth it.  They cannot generate enough heat to wok properly.  You'd be better off without it.

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Many thanks.

[Matt_T]

They are not worth it.  They cannot generate enough heat to wok properly.  You'd be better off without it.

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+1.

[Edward J]

They are not worth it.  They cannot generate enough heat to wok properly.  You'd be better off without it.

A wok is just a metal bowl--like a pot or pan, the heat comes froma Kwali, and the ones in most Oriental kitchens generate around 100,000 BTU's per burner, very serious heat.

OTOH, I've been guilty of buying those cheap electric woks, but for entirerly different reasons. Stacking bamboo dim-sum baskets can sit in them and the wok does generate enough heat to quasi-steam dim sum, but I usualy pre- steam itmes and display/keep warm in baskets sitting on a cheap wok.

[Darienne]

We, OTOH, used crock pots to dump our finished dishes into to keep them warm and it worked well.

Still, what about the wok on the electric stove problem?

It was great last week, we cooked on gas, but in my Moab house we have only electric and at home in Ontario we have only electric. Can't even get gas.

Is there some method which makes cooking on an electric stove more satisfactory?

[nickrey]

The problem with electric stove tops is similar to that seen with commercial household gas rings; they do not get hot enough to properly stir fry. As a consequence, food is quite often steamed rather than fried, which gives a very different outcome from commercial wok burners.

A free-standing wok burner that has large pipes (see here for an example) is a satisfactory alternative but it is a very high heat product that can be dangerous if misused. In Australia we often have wok burners on our gas BBQs that put out a more respectable heat than domestic range wok burners.

For an electric range if you have to use it, it is likely to be preferable to get a flat bottomed rather than a round bottomed wok as more of the heat can then hit the food at the same time. It is also more stable than the round based ones. Keep your range on extremely high heat all the time and keep the food moving.

Another thread on eGullet has talked about cast iron woks. The link is here. These may be preferable to carbon steel as they are likely to retain their heat more and it is heat control that you are looking for. I'm not sure if they come in a flat bottomed version.

[Darienne]

The problem with electric stove tops is similar to that seen with commercial household gas rings; they do not get hot enough to properly stir fry. As a consequence, food is quite often steamed rather than fried, which gives a very different outcome from commercial wok burners.

A free-standing wok burner that has large pipes (see here for an example) is a satisfactory alternative but it is a very high heat product that can be dangerous if misused. In Australia we often have wok burners on our gas BBQs that put out a more respectable heat than domestic range wok burners.

For an electric range if you have to use it, it is likely to be preferable to get a flat bottomed rather than a round bottomed wok as more of the heat can then hit the food at the same time. It is also more stable than the round based ones. Keep your range on extremely high heat all the time and keep the food moving.

Another thread on eGullet has talked about cast iron woks. The link is  here. These may be preferable to carbon steel as they are likely to retain their heat more and it is heat control that you are looking for. I'm not sure if they come in a flat bottomed version.

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Thanks for all that information. It gives me something to think about.

Added: I think I'll just let it go until we get home. We're only a couple of hours from Toronto and our daughter lives in the Chinese section so perhaps we'll go to Toronto to find a thinner cast iron wok.

Edited March 21, 2009 by Darienne (log)

[C. sapidus]

For an electric stove, you can pre-heat one burner to high, one to low or medium, and switch the pan back and forth as needed for rapid temperature control. If your stove is weak, your best recourse is to strictly limit the amount of food added at one time when stir-frying.

A flat-bottomed pan is best for an electric stove. Ah Leung (hrzt8w) used an ordinary frying pan to produce an amazing array of Chinese food – see Chinese Food Pictorials (click) .

[Alex]

Can you not get propane in Moab (or Cavan)? You'd have to have a professional run a line from the tank to the house, of course. You then can convert a conventional gas stove or cooktop to work with LP, a simple enough process. The stove still wouldn't be powerful enough for true wok heat, but for everything else, well...

[Darienne]

For an electric stove, you can pre-heat one burner to high, one to low or medium, and switch the pan back and forth as needed for rapid temperature control. If your stove is weak, your best recourse is to strictly limit the amount of food added at one time when stir-frying.

A flat-bottomed pan is best for an electric stove. Ah Leung (hrzt8w) used an ordinary frying pan to produce an amazing array of Chinese food – see Chinese Food Pictorials (click) .

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I think I have died and gone to food heaven. I downloaded all the photos and I see that they each have recipes to accompany them.

Thank you for this wonderful boon.

[Edward J]

For wok cooking, electric just doesn't cut it. Look, a proper Kwali range has gas jets, not only aimed at the bottom of the wok, but the sides too, heat is almost the same on the sides as the bottom. This basically doubles your cooking surface, which is why wok cooking is so fast.

With electric, you'll only get heat on the bottom.

Now, how about getting one of those outdoor propane gas stoves. You see them at CDN Tire and Costco sometimes called Turkey fryers or camp stoves, single burner jobbies, albeit with close to 60,000 BTU's, and they put out some serious heat. A wok will fit on it, and I wouldn't worry about all that piping in of gas and ventilation and stuff in your home--Wok outside!

[SuzySushi]

I have an electric wok. I never use it to make stir-fries (that's what my wok on the rangetop is for). But I do use it to make & serve paella at the table (it's large enough) and to make & serve fondue!

I don't like the one I have, however. I used to have one that was fully immersible in water once the electric cord was detached. When that kicked the bucket (due to falling from the top of the kitchen cabinet and getting bent completely out of shape), I bought the only one I could find locally. It can't be detached from its base and is a b**ch to clean.

[nickrey]

I have an electric wok. I never use it to make stir-fries (that's what my wok on the rangetop is for). But I do use it to make & serve paella at the table (it's large enough) and to make & serve fondue!

Great uses for it but it really makes it sort of a half spherical electric frypan rather than a wok.

[SuzySushi]

I have an electric wok. I never use it to make stir-fries (that's what my wok on the rangetop is for). But I do use it to make & serve paella at the table (it's large enough) and to make & serve fondue!

Great uses for it but it really makes it sort of a half spherical electric frypan rather than a wok.

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That's true.

[Darienne]

For wok cooking, electric just doesn't cut it.  Look, a proper Kwali range has gas jets, not only aimed at the bottom of the wok, but the sides too, heat is almost the same on the sides as the bottom.  This basically doubles your cooking surface, which is why wok cooking is so fast.

With electric, you'll only get heat on the bottom.

Now, how about getting one of those outdoor propane gas stoves.  You see them at CDN Tire and Costco sometimes called Turkey fryers or camp stoves, single burner jobbies, albeit with close to 60,000 BTU's, and they put out some serious heat.  A wok will fit on it, and I wouldn't worry about all that piping in of gas and ventilation and stuff in your home--Wok outside!

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What about a barbecue outfit? We have one of those outside.

[budrichard]

DON'T.-Dick

[Darienne]

DON'T.-Dick

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Great, but why?

[Darienne]

DH has just entered the fray and wants to know about the stainless woks by Cuisinart and others? Do any have aluminum bottoms? Are they useful?

Thanks.

[nickrey]

DH has just entered the fray and wants to know about the stainless woks by Cuisinart and others?  Do any have aluminum bottoms?  Are they useful? 

Thanks. 

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They seem to be a conventional European approach to an Asian cooking utensil: good production but they so don't understand the concept.

The use of very thin carbonised steel or cast iron is so that heat conductance is at a maximum. As we all know, stainless steel is a relatively poor conductor of heat, which is why aluminium or copper sheets are used in the bottom of saucepans. You are right to ask whether the woks have aluminium bottoms but even then the conductance is reduced over traditional equipment.

While I'm having a rant about this, let's have a look at "non-stick" woks. Wok cooking is meant to occur at extremely high temperatures. Non-stick coatings break down at extremely high temperatures. Why oh why would you use these on a wok?

Get the carbonised steel or cast iron wok and season it well: I always do mine over extremely high heat that reduces the oil to a black goo that bakes on the wok -- this is the non-stick surface that is so prized in wok cookery. It is likely to go against your instincts but black is the best. After doing this, do not ever wash it with soap and make sure you re-season it similarly to how you would treat cast iron cookware.

To season, heat to very high then put a thin layer of oil in. Be careful about this as the oil will ignite readily if it goes anywhere near the flame. Let the oil bake in and then repeat several times until the surface is black.

[Darienne]

Get the carbonised steel or cast iron wok and season it well: I always do mine over extremely high heat that reduces the oil to a black goo that bakes on the wok -- this is the non-stick surface that is so prized in wok cookery. It is likely to go against your instincts but black is the best. After doing this, do not ever wash it with soap and make sure you re-season it similarly to how you would treat cast iron cookware.

To season, heat to very high then put a thin layer of oil in. Be careful about this as the oil will ignite readily if it goes anywhere near the flame. Let the oil bake in and then repeat several times until the surface is black.

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I have the carbonized steel wok at home although I have not used it for a long time. Shall re-season it when we get home.

In the meantime, can someone please answer my question as to why I should not use the barbecue, especially as it has a separate burner on one end.

Thanks.

[budrichard]

An electric wok simply cannot supply the BTU's(heat) needed to cook with a wok, you end up stewing, rather than frying. Even with 15K BTU/hr burners on my Viking, its really not enough heat but I make do.

You certainly can use the gas burner on your BBQ.-Dick

[Darienne]

An electric wok simply cannot supply the BTU's(heat) needed to cook with a wok, you end up stewing, rather than frying. Even with 15K BTU/hr burners on my Viking, its really not enough heat but I make do.

You certainly can use the gas burner on your BBQ.-Dick

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Many thanks

[ray goud]

I have the Cuisinart electric wok, from Amazon, and I LOVE it! It draws 1800 watts (!) and cooks super fast. It heats up in no time. One might need a dedicated outlet for it (I rewired my kitchen ages ago and everything like the micro and wok have their own breaker). DO NOT believe that all electric woks are the same! This Cuisinart is over the top. The only, and I really mean only, complaint is that the non-stick coating (over the stainless) is not super durable. But then I am very aggressive and others might find it OK. It could also have benifitted from an additional long handle on the side, for scooping the food directly into dish without use of a hand scoop.

I would buy another of this model wok YESTERDAY if i needed it! It DOES heat uip enough to sear or do anything a regular wok does!

Ray

Edited March 24, 2009 by ray goud (log)

[Darienne]

I have the Cuisinart electric wok, from Amazon, and I LOVE it! It draws 1800 watts (!) and cooks super fast. It heats up in no time. One might need a dedicated outlet for it (I rewired my kitchen ages ago and everything like the micro and wok have their own breaker). DO NOT believe that all electric woks are the same! This Cuisinart is over the top. The only, and I really mean only, complaint is that the non-stick coating (over the stainless) is not super durable. But then I am very aggressive and others might find it OK. It could also have benifitted from an additional long handle on the side, for scooping the food directly into dish without use of a hand scoop.

I would buy another of this model wok YESTERDAY if i needed it! It DOES heat uip enough to sear or do anything a regular wok does!

Ray

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Thanks for the information. I'll look it up on Amazon.