wok?

Zippylip

Bought a cheap non-stick wok a few years ago & it has become my most frequently used stove-top pan.  I use it for everything, seriously everything.  Because of that it’s becoming a bit of a pain in the ass to clean as the non-stickness is wearing yet I’m still careful not to use anything abrasive to clean it to maximize its lifespan.  I’d rather at this point get a new one, one that I can use any kind of utensils in & scrub with more abrasive sponges & so forth, basically looking for an upgrade.  I’m not trying to be the next iron chef or use it for anything precise or traditional, for example last night I threw some olive oil in with chopped garlic & hot pepper flakes then a can of tomato sauce with water, cooked that for a few minutes then tossed in some pasta.  Tonight I’ll be sautéing a bunch of different vegetables for a batch of veggie burgers.  These are typical type uses it’ll see, along with some soups, stir fry & fried rice type things.  Also it’s not likely to see the inside of the egg, strictly for stove-top use.  With all that in mind I’m looking for a reasonable way to go. I popped around the internet & of course the prices & types of these things are all over the place.  I’m lazy & not interested in doing the research myself, figured someone here has already done that so I’m looking for a recommendation.

theyolksonyou

Buy a cheap carbon steel and season it. Use what ever you want to cook/clean. Amazon or wokshop.com

hoosier_egger

I bought my wok from CGS 

fishlessman

my wok sits stove top year round, my most used pan, even scrambled eggs. you just need a carbon steel wok.  hand hammered is an upgrade, allows you to pull meat up the sides for better searing, helps it to hang highr up. the wooden handle makes it look nicer and you dont need a mitt. the aluminum domed cover is a must as well as the matching wok shovel. i have a few, china town is just 30 minutes from me, the 14 inch pow wow wok is the one i use most, the 16 is too big for my burner at 18000 btu

Carolina Q

Agreed with carbon steel. Seasoned well, it's pretty non stick. With a dome accessory, you can make stovetop popcorn too. You might want to consider a flat bottom wok, depending on the stove you have and how it would sit on the burner.

If you ever get into Philly, surely Chinatown will have a good selection.

Zippylip

Carolina Q said:

Agreed with carbon steel. Seasoned well, it's pretty non stick. With a dome accessory, you can make stovetop popcorn too. You might want to consider a flat bottom wok, depending on the stove you have and how it would sit on the burner.

If you ever get into Philly, surely Chinatown will have a good selection.

my current one is flat bottomed, that's a must as I don't want to have to use the ring to stabilize it.. trying to simplify things.  Thought about Chinatown, I'm in town once a month give or take, but was looking to point/click/deliver something reasonably priced for my purposes.  Said I'm lazy

Carolina Q

wokshop.com

OhioEgger

Go into the kitchen of any Chinese restaurant and all you'll see are cheap carbon steel woks.
A quick wipe when you turn the food out of it and it's clean. Done.