AmazingRibs.com is supported by our Pitmaster Club. Also, when you buy with links on our site we may earn a finder’s fee. Click to see how we test and review products.

Helen Chen’s Asian Kitchen Carbon Steel Wok Set Review

Share on:
carbon steel wok

Flat Bottom Carbon Steel Is The Way To Go

The problem with stir frying is that most of the time you end up steaming rather than frying. You actually want them to fry and to fry quickly. That makes meat and vegetables browner, crispier, and more flavorful than boiling or steaming.

Unfortunately, when you try to do this in a frying pan at home, the food cooks too slowly and gives up liquid, which settles on the bottom of the pan. Because water boils at a much lower temp than oil, the pan cannot get hotter than 212F until all the water evaporates. So you end up stir steaming in your frying pan. The beauty of the wok is its bowl shape. You can pull the meat and vegetables up the curved sides and let the juices settle in the bottom so they can boil off or concentrate.

When buying a wok, the bigger the better. You don’t want to crowd your food. You can buy cast iron, but those woks are really really heavy, and they don’t cool off very fast when you turn down the heat. You can buy nonstick, but they scratch too easily. That leaves carbon steel, and that’s the stuff they use in most Chinese restaurants. Carbon steel needs to be seasoned and can rust, so you do need to wash and dry it by hand.

But if you want to cook more authentic Chinese food, you need a more authentic wok like carbon steel. Make sure you get a wok spatula, a special curved spatula that fits the curved bowl, a dome lid, a ring for it to sit on, and a drain rack. I prefer a flat bottom wok because it heats better on American stovetops, and I like handles on both sides so the wok is easy to lift. I bought mine on the cheap in Chicago’s Chinatown.

If you don’t have a Chinese store nearby, go for Helen Chen’s Asian Kitchen Flat Bottom Carbon Steel 14-Inch Lidded Wok Set. It has everything you need and is very reasonably priced.

Published On: 9/22/2018 Last Modified: 4/27/2021

  • Meathead, BBQ Hall of Famer - Founder and publisher of AmazingRibs.com, Meathead is known as the site's Hedonism Evangelist and BBQ Whisperer. He is also the author of the New York Times Best Seller "Meathead, The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling", named one of the "100 Best Cookbooks of All Time" by Southern Living.

 

High quality websites are expensive to run. If you help us, we’ll pay you back bigtime with an ad-free experience and a lot of freebies!

Millions come to AmazingRibs.com every month for high quality tested recipes, tips on technique, science, mythbusting, product reviews, and inspiration. But it is expensive to run a website with more than 2,000 pages and we don’t have a big corporate partner to subsidize us.

Our most important source of sustenance is people who join our Pitmaster Club. But please don’t think of it as a donation. Members get MANY great benefits. We block all third-party ads, we give members free ebooks, magazines, interviews, webinars, more recipes, a monthly sweepstakes with prizes worth up to $2,000, discounts on products, and best of all a community of like-minded cooks free of flame wars. Click below to see all the benefits, take a free 30 day trial, and help keep this site alive.


Post comments and questions below

grouchy?

1) Please try the search box at the top of every page before you ask for help.

2) Try to post your question to the appropriate page.

3) Tell us everything we need to know to help such as the type of cooker and thermometer. Dial thermometers are often off by as much as 50°F so if you are not using a good digital thermometer we probably can’t help you with time and temp questions. Please read this article about thermometers.

4) If you are a member of the Pitmaster Club, your comments login is probably different.

5) Posts with links in them may not appear immediately.

Moderators

  Max

Click to comment or ask a question...

Spotlight

These are not paid ads, they are a curated selection of products we love.

All of the products below have been tested and are highly recommended. Click here to read more about our review process.

Use Our Links To Help Keep Us Alive

Many merchants pay us a small referral fee when you click our “buy now” links. This has zero impact on the price you pay but helps support the site.


Amp Up Your Outdoor Cooking Game By Joining The Pitmaster Club

AmazingRibs.com Pitmaster Club
Now the largest membership-based BBQ and grilling community in the world, the Pitmaster Club is sure to step up your outdoor cooking game. Experience the countless benefits — from monthly giveaways, to free products, to exclusive content, and more– by signing up for a 30-day free trial below! Get a free 30-day trial here.


The Pit Barrel Cooker May Be Too Easy


The PBC has a rabid cult following for good reason. It’s among the best bargains for a smoker in the world. This baby cooks circles around cheap offset smokers because temperature control is so much easier. Click here to read our detailed review and the raves from people who own them.


GrillGrates Take Gas Grills To The Infrared Zone


GrillGrates amplify heat, prevent flare-ups, make flipping foods easier, kill hotspots, flip over to make a fine griddle, and can be easily moved from one grill to another. Click here for more about what makes these grates so special.


Is This Superb Charcoal Grill A Kamado Killer?


The PK-360, with 360 square inches of cooking space, this rust-free, cast aluminum charcoal grill is durable and easy to use. It is beautifully designed, completely portable, and much easier to set up for 2-zone cooking than any round kamado. Click here to read our detailed review of the PK 360 and get a special AmazingRibs.com price!