Hello all. I am in the market for a new wok. I have a gas cooker. But Ihave no idea where to start looking for a really good wok. The closest 'chinatown' area is in London for me. I don't want to spend too much but will pay for a good one if that makes sense.
I don't have a car but am happy to shop online or try to find a shop locally.
Anyone got any tips?

TK Maxx sell a wide range of woks, starting around £5 or so for a carbon steel wok.

I always think it's worth investing a little more in a hard anodised wok because they make much better use of the heat available from a standard domestic burner, and you don't have to worry about seasoning, flaking, etc. Plus, they are a doddle to wash up.

TK Maxx had some really nice MPW, Beka, HA woks, for around £30.

Or, the larger branches of ASDA do one for about £16.

They are trouble free and very versatile.

Hi Animal. Find out where your local Chinese get their wholesale ingredients from. Go there and buy your wok. It will need degreasing and then seasoning with groundnut oil. I have never spent more than £20 on a wok and they last for years. Just purchased a small flat based one for single meals for my Granddaughter and that cost £6. Remember that once you have seasoned the wok you do not use soap or anything else to clean it. Hot water and a brush does the business.

Good Luck

David

Thanks gastrosurf. I will look in TK Maxx the next time I am able to. I am willing to spend the extra for an anodised wok. Are you sure I dont have to season it first? I will look online at Asda as well as there is one kind of close to me.
Chef de Maison, the shop I go to for chinese ingredients doesnt have woks but I agree with your suggestion. Are you talking about a basic steel wok?
Thanks to both of you for the quick replys!
Animal

Hi Animal. Yes a steel wok. You need a Chinese wholesaler for the woks. They sell everything used in the food prep way, knives, woks, pans, strainers etc..

David

I can vouch for TK Maxx. I bought one with a lifetime guarentee from their. Been using it for 3 years and I cannot fault it.

Hi David. I will have to have a search online for a Chinese wholesaler but I think it is worth a try.
Also, bongedone, will have a look at TK Maxx asap!
Thanks

Hi Animal

You won't need to season a hard anodised wok - anodising provides a very durable non-stick surface that is easy to wash-up and requires little in the way of maintenance. The aluminum-alloy body will absorb the heat from your burner far more efficiently than a carbon steel wok will.

The problem with a standard gas burner of around 3.kw is that it really doesn't produce enough heat to run a decent sized wok, plus they tend to be too small to throw a flame up under the sides of the wok.

The idea with a wok is that you keep the food moving around the very hot walls of the pan - but if the walls don't get that hot, what's the point? You are better off using a frying pan.

Woks were designed to be used over a fire-pit.

A large commercial burner with two rings would do the job - but do you have that?

It partly depends on what size wok you want to use, and what you hope to gain from using a wok rather than a frying pan. If you can make do with a small wok, say between 7 to 9 inch, then maybe you can get away with it on a 3kw burner.

But if you want something around 14 to 16" inches, and you have a standard burner, then I would recommend a HA wok.

I think a lot of people like the idea of using a wok, but in fact end up only use the lower section of the pan, which really is no different from using a good frying pan. In fact, a good HA frying pan will run much better than any wok on a standard gas ring.

Because of the shape of a wok, and because of the size of the average domestic gas ring, there is too much reliance on radiation of heat to the upper walls - the larger the pan, and the farther it is away from the flame, the more air there is to cool it down. The upper walls act as cooling fins do in a heat sink.

You can pre-heat it of course, but when you add the food, it will just lose heat and settle to a soft fizzle, as opposed to a busy sizzle, which is why you don't get crispy veg like they produce in traditional Chinese cooking.

Plus, if you are using oil, you will end up with a sticky ring around the upper region of the pan, which when left for any length of time, will become rancid because it hasn't been turned into carbon - yuk!

But anyway, if you are a seasoned wok user, and you are happy, then go for whatever rocks your boat (or rather woks your saute!) :-)

If you go for uncoated carbon steel, I would recommend Swift or Typhoon, two quality brands, and I have seen them both in TK Maxx for around £8.

Happy woking - may your veg always turn crispy!

Hello gastrosurf.
Thanks for all the info. I am a pretty seasoned wok user and the only reason I want to replace mine is that the coating is coming off. It was a christmas gift. I will get into a TK Maxx as soon as I can. I tried their website with no luck.
Going to make some Singapore noodles tonight anyway!

Animal

I've heard it's a common fault with the coated non-stick woks - I suspect it's the pre-heating that does it.

Whereas with the hard anodised wok, all you need to do is to wipe it with some oil, wait until it just starts to smoke, and off you go.

So easy to wash up too!

Modern technology has its advantages

I agree and I would not have bought one myself.
Will look at getting an hard anodised wok, and now I can't wait!
Will let you know when I get one and where.