3 ms·

What would you use to get the Wok Hot enough for Stir-Fry. My biggest hindrance to using a Wok is the lack of a proper burner. I imagine there are lots of peop

by dkhenry 14y ago

What would you use to get the Wok Hot enough for Stir-Fry. My biggest hindrance to using a Wok is the lack of a proper burner. I imagine there are lots of people in my situation.

deleted 14y ago
[deleted]
jpitz 14y ago
If you have the means to cook outdoors: http://www.amazon.com/King-Kooker-24WC-Heavy-Duty-Portable/dp/B000BWFTJE/ref=pd_sim_lg_17 http://www.amazon.com/King-Kooker-24WC-Heavy-Duty-Portable/d...
rdl 14y ago
I use a cast iron enameled flat-bottom wok on a glass-top electric range (maybe 14k BTU?) I know it gets hot because I IR thermometer it (450-550F!), and because once I left it empty on the range, left the range on, and got distracted. The glass top of the range had actually melted to the wok (um, wow), meaning it was in the 950F+ area. I had to buy a new $200 glass top and replace it (and the $20 wok). Annoying, but not as expensive as appliance repair or replacement would have been, and fortunately no actual fire. I think this shows electric ranges can get suitably hot with the right wok. I'd still like one of the 50A 3-phase induction woks used at high end restaurants, or an outdoor turkey fryer gas burner (40k BTU), though.
muraiki 14y ago
Well, even when I was in a cheapo apartment with a rather poor electric stove I was able to stir fry as long as I paid attention to how much I cooked at once. Wok Fast teaches a technique that works pretty well for cooking meat + vegetable dishes. I'm writing this from memory, so it might be off by a bit, but the key is to cook at the most two cups of ingredients at a time. 1. Wait until the wok surface is hot enough to vaporize a sprinkling of water instantly. 2. Add the oil + onions and/or garlic and stir fry for 30 seconds. Coat the wok with the oil as you do this. 3. Add the meat, let it sit on the wok until it is seared (at which point it will "unstick" from the wok) and stir fry about two minutes. Remove the meat, which is not yet fully cooked, and set it aside. 4. Wait for the wok to heat up again, but be careful about using the water droplet technique as that can cause the oil to splash. Add the vegetables and stir fry until they brighten, about two minutes. 5. If the wok is still pretty hot at this point you can just add the meat and cook another two minutes, then add the sauce and cook a final two minutes. If it seems like it isn't hot enough, remove the vegetables and let it heat up a bit before adding everything. It's definitely more effort than just being able to add the meat, stir fry, then add the vegetables, but it does work, and only takes 8-10 minutes for meat + vegetables. If you are cooking only vegetables, the water doesn't need to instantly vaporize -- it should sit for about 2 or 3 seconds before vaporizing. As I said, I'm recalling this from memory and I don't generally cook meat, so the instructions might be off (please don't eat undercooked meat!) But what I wanted to convey was that I found it possible to stir fry for two even with a low end electric stove. Maybe there are some stoves even worse than what I had, though! :)

by dkhenry 14y ago

What would you use to get the Wok Hot enough for Stir-Fry. My biggest hindrance to using a Wok is the lack of a proper burner. I imagine there are lots of people in my situation.

deleted 14y ago

[deleted]

jpitz 14y ago

If you have the means to cook outdoors: http://www.amazon.com/King-Kooker-24WC-Heavy-Duty-Portable/dp/B000BWFTJE/ref=pd_sim_lg_17 http://www.amazon.com/King-Kooker-24WC-Heavy-Duty-Portable/d...

rdl 14y ago

I use a cast iron enameled flat-bottom wok on a glass-top electric range (maybe 14k BTU?) I know it gets hot because I IR thermometer it (450-550F!), and because once I left it empty on the range, left the range on, and got distracted. The glass top of the range had actually melted to the wok (um, wow), meaning it was in the 950F+ area. I had to buy a new $200 glass top and replace it (and the $20 wok). Annoying, but not as expensive as appliance repair or replacement would have been, and fortunately no actual fire. I think this shows electric ranges can get suitably hot with the right wok. I'd still like one of the 50A 3-phase induction woks used at high end restaurants, or an outdoor turkey fryer gas burner (40k BTU), though.

muraiki 14y ago

Well, even when I was in a cheapo apartment with a rather poor electric stove I was able to stir fry as long as I paid attention to how much I cooked at once. Wok Fast teaches a technique that works pretty well for cooking meat + vegetable dishes. I'm writing this from memory, so it might be off by a bit, but the key is to cook at the most two cups of ingredients at a time. 1. Wait until the wok surface is hot enough to vaporize a sprinkling of water instantly. 2. Add the oil + onions and/or garlic and stir fry for 30 seconds. Coat the wok with the oil as you do this. 3. Add the meat, let it sit on the wok until it is seared (at which point it will "unstick" from the wok) and stir fry about two minutes. Remove the meat, which is not yet fully cooked, and set it aside. 4. Wait for the wok to heat up again, but be careful about using the water droplet technique as that can cause the oil to splash. Add the vegetables and stir fry until they brighten, about two minutes. 5. If the wok is still pretty hot at this point you can just add the meat and cook another two minutes, then add the sauce and cook a final two minutes. If it seems like it isn't hot enough, remove the vegetables and let it heat up a bit before adding everything. It's definitely more effort than just being able to add the meat, stir fry, then add the vegetables, but it does work, and only takes 8-10 minutes for meat + vegetables. If you are cooking only vegetables, the water doesn't need to instantly vaporize -- it should sit for about 2 or 3 seconds before vaporizing. As I said, I'm recalling this from memory and I don't generally cook meat, so the instructions might be off (please don't eat undercooked meat!) But what I wanted to convey was that I found it possible to stir fry for two even with a low end electric stove. Maybe there are some stoves even worse than what I had, though! :)