4 ms·

I got a flat bottom wok that I am happy stir frying on my induction cooktop. The flat bottom gets rippin hot and the sides only warm. Have to work within that s

I got a flat bottom wok that I am happy stir frying on my induction cooktop. The flat bottom gets rippin hot and the sides only warm. Have to work within that smaller hot zone but I prefer the wok to skillet for containing the mess.

eyeball 5y ago
wok cooking is the main place I find induction lacking sides stay far too cool. luckily I don't do it that often so just bought one of those butane table top burners for those cases.
- radicalbyte 5y ago
  In our previous house we cooked with gas, we had a fantastic stove with a wok burner. Amazing thing. With our new house we - against my best judgement - went for induction. It's amazing, way better than our old gas stove. I'll never go back.
  - eyeball 5y ago
    you find a flat induction stove better than a gas one with wok ring for wok cooking?
    - radicalbyte 5y ago
      Yup - induction heats up quicker, although you have to use a heavy iron wok which sits still. It probably says more about how bad the consumer wok rings are though. If you have a commercial one you'd never switch from gas.
      - chii 5y ago
        > although you have to use a heavy iron wok which sits still. but you need a flat bottom for such a "wok" to sit - otherwise a round bottom wok isn't close enough to heat up evenly.
- trmsw 5y ago
  I found those burners too weak for stir-frying. I suspect that unless you have special ventilation, a burner that's hot enough for wok cooking will not be safe for indoor use. Ours is used outside because that's where the gas bottle has to be kept and because apparently it generates too much carbon monoxide to be safely used inside. And because we have three small children and this thing burns with a foot-high flame like a jet afterburner. It's great fun
- goodpoint 5y ago
  Induction is excellent for wok. Blame your induction heater or induction wok.
  - eyeball 5y ago
    I suppose if you have one of those round made-for-wok induction hobs. the flat ones just don't heat the sides of a wok and you can't even use a round bottom work. far from "excellent".
Kon-Peki 5y ago
Lodge makes a flat-bottom cast iron wok (the interior cooking surface is completely rounded, however). It's too heavy for my kitchen scale, but according to my bathroom scale it is between 11 and 12 pounds. You'll need two hands to move it around :) https://www.amazon.com/Lodge-Pro-Logic-Handles-14-inch-Black/dp/B00063RXQK https://www.amazon.com/Lodge-Pro-Logic-Handles-14-inch-Black...
bch 5y ago
Do you wrangle the wok on the surface (or a frying pan) for a sauté[0]? What I'm really trying to find out is: how durable is the work surface? Does it deal well with pans being slid over it, and on/off it? [0] https://youtu.be/CTyV3JExDT8 https://youtu.be/CTyV3JExDT8
- angry_octet 5y ago
  Yes, never had a scratch.
  - noveltyaccount 5y ago
    I have microscratches on the ceramic surface but nothing horrible. The instructions said explicitly to lift pots and not drag them. I don't baby it and it's fine.
    - BaseballPhysics 5y ago
      And if you're worried about it just buy a silicone cooktop mat to put between the ceramic and the pan, something you can't do on any other cooking surface.
      - namibj 5y ago
        When frying potato pancakes, we went outside, took a countertop induction plate, and covered the area in old newspapers. I.e., cover the plate/table in newspapers, put the pan on top. I can only recommend such tactics for messy cooking; it's indeed the real "killer" feature of induction that even gas can't match.
clumsysmurf 5y ago
Can you share which flat bottom wok you got? I'm mostly going to use one to prepare frozen broccoli in olive oil when I can't get fresh broccoli.
- noveltyaccount 5y ago
  It was on sale at my local grocery store, no idea the name. It is lightweight carbon steel, means it gets hot in a flash and is easy to move around with one hand. I probably paid thirty bucks for it, nothing special. Edit: pretty sure this is the wok, definitely the correct brand. https://kenhomwoks.com/store/products/ken-hom-excellence-carbon-steel-uncoated-wok-14in-kh436003u.htm https://kenhomwoks.com/store/products/ken-hom-excellence-car...
Aaargh20318 5y ago
> I got a flat bottom wok There is no such thing. A round bottom is a defining feature of a wok. If it doesn’t have a round bottom it isn’t a wok by definition. A round bottom is essential to how a wok is used.
- noveltyaccount 5y ago
  Lol this is an unusual hill to die on
  - Aaargh20318 5y ago
    Not sure what you’re trying to say. A wok is a very specific type of cookware for specific uses cases. The round bottom is the entire point of a wok. A flat bottom wok is like a square wheel.
    - elil17 5y ago
      Cannot imagine why op wrote “flat bottomed wok” instead of “A pan similar in shape to a wok, but with a flat bottom, so that it can be used on induction cooktops but still allows for the tossing motion that cooks use to mix ingredients in a wok”
      - Aaargh20318 5y ago
        Easy tossing for stir fry is just one feature of a wok. For example, the round bottom causes liquids to pool in the center. I’m not saying that large flat bottom frying pans with high edges aren’t useful, I have one and it’s probably my most used pan, it’s just not a complete replacement for a wok.
        deleted 5y ago
        [deleted]
    - wtallis 5y ago
      You're being argumentative instead of clarifying what you're trying to say. If you've read the other comments in this thread, then you can see there are things being sold as woks that have a flat bottom on the outside but still have a curved surface on the inside. Do these also offend your notion of what may be referred to as a wok?

eyeball 5y ago

wok cooking is the main place I find induction lacking sides stay far too cool. luckily I don't do it that often so just bought one of those butane table top burners for those cases.

radicalbyte 5y ago
In our previous house we cooked with gas, we had a fantastic stove with a wok burner. Amazing thing. With our new house we - against my best judgement - went for induction. It's amazing, way better than our old gas stove. I'll never go back.
- eyeball 5y ago
  you find a flat induction stove better than a gas one with wok ring for wok cooking?
  - radicalbyte 5y ago
    Yup - induction heats up quicker, although you have to use a heavy iron wok which sits still. It probably says more about how bad the consumer wok rings are though. If you have a commercial one you'd never switch from gas.
    - chii 5y ago
      > although you have to use a heavy iron wok which sits still. but you need a flat bottom for such a "wok" to sit - otherwise a round bottom wok isn't close enough to heat up evenly.
trmsw 5y ago
I found those burners too weak for stir-frying. I suspect that unless you have special ventilation, a burner that's hot enough for wok cooking will not be safe for indoor use. Ours is used outside because that's where the gas bottle has to be kept and because apparently it generates too much carbon monoxide to be safely used inside. And because we have three small children and this thing burns with a foot-high flame like a jet afterburner. It's great fun
goodpoint 5y ago
Induction is excellent for wok. Blame your induction heater or induction wok.
- eyeball 5y ago
  I suppose if you have one of those round made-for-wok induction hobs. the flat ones just don't heat the sides of a wok and you can't even use a round bottom work. far from "excellent".

Kon-Peki 5y ago

Lodge makes a flat-bottom cast iron wok (the interior cooking surface is completely rounded, however). It's too heavy for my kitchen scale, but according to my bathroom scale it is between 11 and 12 pounds. You'll need two hands to move it around :) https://www.amazon.com/Lodge-Pro-Logic-Handles-14-inch-Black/dp/B00063RXQK https://www.amazon.com/Lodge-Pro-Logic-Handles-14-inch-Black...

bch 5y ago

Do you wrangle the wok on the surface (or a frying pan) for a sauté[0]? What I'm really trying to find out is: how durable is the work surface? Does it deal well with pans being slid over it, and on/off it? [0] https://youtu.be/CTyV3JExDT8 https://youtu.be/CTyV3JExDT8

angry_octet 5y ago
Yes, never had a scratch.
- noveltyaccount 5y ago
  I have microscratches on the ceramic surface but nothing horrible. The instructions said explicitly to lift pots and not drag them. I don't baby it and it's fine.
  - BaseballPhysics 5y ago
    And if you're worried about it just buy a silicone cooktop mat to put between the ceramic and the pan, something you can't do on any other cooking surface.
    - namibj 5y ago
      When frying potato pancakes, we went outside, took a countertop induction plate, and covered the area in old newspapers. I.e., cover the plate/table in newspapers, put the pan on top. I can only recommend such tactics for messy cooking; it's indeed the real "killer" feature of induction that even gas can't match.

clumsysmurf 5y ago

Can you share which flat bottom wok you got? I'm mostly going to use one to prepare frozen broccoli in olive oil when I can't get fresh broccoli.

noveltyaccount 5y ago
It was on sale at my local grocery store, no idea the name. It is lightweight carbon steel, means it gets hot in a flash and is easy to move around with one hand. I probably paid thirty bucks for it, nothing special. Edit: pretty sure this is the wok, definitely the correct brand. https://kenhomwoks.com/store/products/ken-hom-excellence-carbon-steel-uncoated-wok-14in-kh436003u.htm https://kenhomwoks.com/store/products/ken-hom-excellence-car...

Aaargh20318 5y ago

> I got a flat bottom wok There is no such thing. A round bottom is a defining feature of a wok. If it doesn’t have a round bottom it isn’t a wok by definition. A round bottom is essential to how a wok is used.

noveltyaccount 5y ago
Lol this is an unusual hill to die on
- Aaargh20318 5y ago
  Not sure what you’re trying to say. A wok is a very specific type of cookware for specific uses cases. The round bottom is the entire point of a wok. A flat bottom wok is like a square wheel.
  - elil17 5y ago
    Cannot imagine why op wrote “flat bottomed wok” instead of “A pan similar in shape to a wok, but with a flat bottom, so that it can be used on induction cooktops but still allows for the tossing motion that cooks use to mix ingredients in a wok”
    - Aaargh20318 5y ago
      Easy tossing for stir fry is just one feature of a wok. For example, the round bottom causes liquids to pool in the center. I’m not saying that large flat bottom frying pans with high edges aren’t useful, I have one and it’s probably my most used pan, it’s just not a complete replacement for a wok.
      - deleted 5y ago
        [deleted]
  - wtallis 5y ago
    You're being argumentative instead of clarifying what you're trying to say. If you've read the other comments in this thread, then you can see there are things being sold as woks that have a flat bottom on the outside but still have a curved surface on the inside. Do these also offend your notion of what may be referred to as a wok?