My opinion and advice on cooking with a wok

The wok allows us to prepare original and healthy recipes. Laura, author of the gastronomic blog Because, knows this type of cooking very well, so I asked her if she could give us her advice and some guidelines to keep in mind when using it. I leave you with her article, which I'm sure you'll find interesting!

More than a decade ago, wok cooking became fashionable in Spain. It was then that we began to see these rounded pans in shops and the first specialised restaurants began to open in the big cities. Healthy cooking, generally at affordable prices, aroused our curiosity.

Like many other customs imported from the Far East, they come to us filtered through a Western sieve, and of course we adapt them to our environment, trying to retain the most positive aspects. This is why, after all these years, the wok is still in many of our kitchens, considered a unique utensil for achieving healthy cooking of vegetables, fish and seafood mainly.

This is undoubtedly its most practical aspect, but it is a matter of knowing this utensil a little better to be able to get the most out of it and make it one of our best allies in the kitchen. I will tell you the keys to this, let's get started!

Wok Ken Hom (spatulas not included). Recipe for Prawns in coconut and ginger sauce

Choosing a good wok

The wok is a utensil that you can use a lot. In fact, most people I know have one, which they use daily or weekly. Therefore, it is important to know which wok to choose, or understand what you are buying.

The two main aspects for this are: the material and the shape.

As for the material, the best ones are those made of carbon steel and cast iron , since they better withstand high temperatures and maintain heat evenly. You should consider that the former are lighter and therefore much easier to handle.

Woks used in street cooking in the East are almost entirely curved and placed over a flame thrower at high temperatures. They usually have a wooden handle that makes it easier to stir the food.

We are not going to be so purist as to install a flamethrower at home, right? And although some people have a gas stove, which is more similar to its original use, the truth is that most of us have induction or glass cookers... So, from all this, what we have to take away is that a more curved shape will give us a larger surface to support the food at a similar temperature and that the wooden handle facilitates the proper movement of the wok.

The Ken Hom wok is a very good option: made of carbon steel, lightweight and with a wooden handle. Ken Hom is the best-selling wok brand in the world, guaranteeing good product and quality, and also at really affordable prices. There is both the gas and vitro version, as well as the Ken Hom induction wok ( this one ).

In the shop you will find the 31cm diameter Ken Hom wok , but also a 10-piece Ken Hom set that is worth considering, because apart from the wok it includes the lid, the rack, chopsticks and other accessories to offer a complete Asian method experience.

(Left) Ken Hom carbon steel wok ; (right) Le Creuset cast iron wok

On the other hand, there are Le Creuset cast iron woks. Although these are heavier, their vitrification makes maintenance easier and provides an excellent cooking surface. In addition, they are much thicker, which allows the entire utensil to heat up much more evenly. These cast iron woks can be used on induction, and even in the oven if necessary! They have a lifetime guarantee from Le Creuset, which also speaks for the brand.

The keys to cooking in a wok

Prepare all the ingredients in advance. It is extremely important in wok cooking, and in general in all types of oriental cuisine, to have everything prepared in advance.

This means cleaning, cutting and drying all the solid ingredients and mixing the ingredients of the sauces or broths you are going to use. We will start by cooking those foods that will require a longer cooking time. Some woks have a rack that is placed on the edge and on which you can place ingredients once they have been cooked so that they continue to cook in the steam of the wok while you cook other foods, or simply to maintain their temperature.

It is advisable to maintain a certain uniformity in the cutting of the ingredients, to ensure that they are cooked in a homogeneous manner.

Cook in batches. Don't overload the wok; the food must be in contact with the surface at all times so that it seals on the outside and maintains its juiciness on the inside.

Cook over high heat and lower the temperature of the wok in a controlled manner. Spray the pan with oil and place it on high heat. Add the ingredients when it starts to smoke.

Use the broth or sauce to lower the temperature of the wok and prevent the food from burning. This is probably the most unknown step in wok cooking. People tend to think that wok cooking consists only of sautéing, when in fact the broth has two very important functions that should not be overlooked: on the one hand, it contains the seasoning, for example, soy is the salt of the preparation, if we do not add it the result will be bland and if we add salt directly to the vegetables while they are hot cooking, the ingredients will lose all their juiciness. The other important point is that, once the ingredients have been sealed in heat, the broth helps regulate the temperature in the wok and cooks the food better. If we were to take them out directly after sealing them at high temperature, most of them would be hard and undercooked. That is why they should be taken out once the liquid has evaporated.

Stir it around. Stir the food while holding the wok by the handle, or with the help of a spatula or wooden chopsticks. The important thing is to stir the food so that it seals evenly in a short time.

Wok recipes

Go ahead and try wok cooking, it's the healthiest fast food!!

Here are some ideas to get your wok started:

- Squid with onions, beans and clams

- Prawns in coconut and ginger sauce with Thai rice

Wok Le Creuset. Recipe for Squid with onions, beans and clams