My kitchen is bursting at the seams with pots, pans and gadgets for every possible thing you could want to do or make. It’s not a large kitchen, it’s just very very well stocked.
Part of that is because I’m a product reviewer and every new gadget I see looks like my next article. The reason is that I go through phases when it comes to cooking at home. This means I got all the special pans, all the specialized food processors, all the slicers, peelers, choppers etc etc. It quickly became clear to me that I was somewhat over burdened by products which meant two things: I needed to have a good old fashioned garage sale asap, and I needed to find something simple that would cover a lot of bases in the kitchen to replace the clutter.
The first thing I noticed was a glut of pots and pans. I had 5 brands of mixed and matched basics, a giant stock pot, two dutch ovens, two skillets, three saute pans, two large stir fry pans, a stove-top deep fryer and on and on. The cabinets were bursting. Those were the first items that needed to be downsized, and so I started looking for a replacement.
While strolling through the internet, I was confronted with a classic meme. A GIF that has popped up in conversations and videos for years and it got me thinking… Could that be me? Here, I’ll share it, tell me you’ve seen this one.
Magestic. That guy is making enough fried rice in one pan to feed an army! It always made me smile whenever it would come along, but it never really made me stop and think about the tool he was using, a wok.
A Bit About the Humble Wok
A wok is one of those pans that can just be used for nearly everything. That tiny man with that giant pan set me on a path to enlightenment that I will never turn back from. I’m a wok guy, now! The wok is all about the shape. The bottom of the pan gets super and the sides remain cooler, allowing ingredients to be moved away from direct heat without removing them from the pan entirely.
Apart from the obvious stir frying, a wok can be used for sautéing, pan frying, deep frying, steaming, braising, simmering, and can make a mean scrambled egg. Its large cooking surface makes it easy to make huge meals, while its curved shape keeps smaller portions in the center without ingredients spreading too thinly across the pan.
So after much reading and a surprisingly rich history lesson on the wok (the tool has been a mainstay in Asian kitchens for centuries and much has been written about them) I went to Reddit to find a good pan!
The Yosukata
Lots of woks were mentioned in posts about what wok is best, but I noticed one brand popping up a lot, Yosukata. They make a seriously reliable pan that isn’t too costly so I got the 13.5 inch pre-seasoned blue carbon steel wok. I’d like to tell you I got it because I read up on the details, did a careful comparison, found the best one for my needs, but that would be a lie. I just liked how it looked. It’s a pretty pan with it’s burnished blued steel, solid looking handle and clean lines. What can I say, I’m a sucker for aesthetics.
It arrived at home and, following the recommendations on the site and of the folks online, I went about adding a couple more coats of seasoning to the pan. It says it’s pre-seasoned, but they recommend seasoning it one more time with the oil you use at home.
Here’s a basic how-to for seasoning a “pre-seasoned” pan.
- Wash very gently with soap and water. Make extra passes while rinsing, make sure there isn’t a hint of soap left behind
- Dry completely. Putting it on the stove and letting it heat up is a great way to assure it’s completely dry, which is incredibly important.
- Using a high smoke point oil that you keep in the kitchen regularly, add a few drops to a paper towel until you have a mandarin orange sized spot of oil soaked into the towel. You don’t want a lot of oil. You’re going very light here.
- Heat the pan uniformly. Turn it and tilt it, you want the entire pan hot.
- Adding a few more towels behind the oily one (to protect you from the heat), rub the paper towel thoroughly into the entire inside of the pan, making sure to scrub that oil into every inch of the pan’s surface.
- Wipe the pan dry with a clean paper towel. The pan should almost look dry.
- Repeat the heating step and really let that thing get hot. You’re cooking your oil into the metal. The pan will smoke, darken and the oil will bond to the metal. Do this until the smoking mostly stops.
Make sure the first thing you cook in the pan is fatty. Avoid acidic things like vinegar, tomatoes or citrus. Great first things to cook are sausage, fried rice, chicken thighs or all of the above, a meaty fried rice is always delicious!
Once I had my pan seasoned I followed my own advice and made a mixed meat fried rice and oh boy was it delicious. Here’s what I made:
Meaty Fried Leftover Rice
I scrambled two eggs, diced two chicken thighs, chopped one smoked sausage and set it all aside in a bowl.
Then I chopped one red pepper into tiny, tiny bits, and got a small scoop of pre-minced garlic, a cup of frozen peas, a small can of corn (drained) and chopped one large carrot into tiny bits. The really important trick to a good fried rice that a lot of people don’t know, or are too impatient to follow, is to let it sit over night in the fridge before you fry it. Freshly cooked rice will always make a gummy, mushy textured dish, you want the slightly dried out day-old rice to make this work, so if you’re making fried rice just make sure you’re not using something freshly steamed.
Once all the ingredients were ready, I added two tablespoons of oil to the pan and threw in my chicken and sausage. I tossed it in the pan until everything was cooked through, set it aside and re-oiled, added the veggies and tossed those on high heat for about 3 minutes. Then I pushed the veggies to the sides, added the rice in the middle and stirred it around for about 2 minutes.
Once it was warm, I added the meat, eggs, a bit more oil and drizzled some soy sauce over everything and started tossing it all together like a pro!
The end result was a fresh, hot fired rice that was absolutely to die for. Some people like to add spices and later on I tried this with some finely chopped hot pepper … very, very tasty.
The Yosukata was great, the flat bottom design let me use my standard western cooking range (classic woks are fully rounded and meant to sit over open flame) but nothing seemed to stick too hard to the flat portion of the pan. The shape makde it easy to swish the food around which is always fun, and the sides took on nice even heat and the large wooden handle stayed nice and cool no matter how hot the pan got.
Later on, I tried frying in it. I cooked a few soups and one simple stew. I made some fried eggs and browned a big slab of beef for the slow cooker. The Yosukata handled it all with ease. I’m very impressed and don’t feel like I’m missing anything after selling off the vast majority of my other pans (I had to save the really fancy ones, of course) because this wok really does cover a lot of bases.
One important thing to remember is to brush-clean it without soap in nearly all cases. Treat this like a cast-iron pan.
Is it Worth the Price?
Usually, I’d say this is best for one type of cook and not quite right for another type, but everyone needs a good wok in their kitchen! For $94.99 it’s a steal, considering how long this will last you if you care for it well. This is a must-buy and I highly recommend the Yosukata brand if you’re looking for something good and affordable.
About the Author:
George Berger
Ever since a young George was disappointed with a toy that did match up to the advertising, he became a tireless advocate for consumers. He’ll review anything that folks have to spend their hard-earned dollars on. George is grateful that he gets to use his skills as a writer and an artist to help connect with consumers and help them make the best decisions possible.
This article is for informational purposes only and reflects the author’s independent opinion. Readers should verify details directly with the manufacturer or retailer before making a purchase decision.
