Tom Douglas by Pinzon 14-Inch Carbon Steel Unseasoned Chef Wok
by Tom Douglas
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List Price: Category: Kitchen See more product details |
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Tom Douglas by Pinzon 14-Inch Carbon Steel Unseasoned Chef Wok
Customer Review: professional commercial wok
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a real wok, not one of those teflon coated large pans they sell at ikea. You will need to have a powerful gas range to use it, but otherwise this thing is perfect.Customer Review: Pleasantly surprised
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
I should note at the start that there are already four steel woks on active duty in my kitchen: one of the southern two-handled variety (14-inch, bought at the Wok Shop in San Francisco), and three stick-handled (pow wok) types - a hand-hammered 14-inch from Chinatown in Boston, a stainless 12.5-inch from the Kitchenaid Gourmet Excellence line, and a 12-inch flat-bottom stir-fry pan from Joyce Chen (Joyce Chen Pro Chef 14-Inch Flat Bottom Wok uncoated Carbon Steel). So I may not be the typical reviewer.
This wok was mostly a pleasant surprise.
Pros:
- From the dark color in the picture and the cleaning instructions, I expected it to be lacquered for shipping (saves on packaging, but a pain to deal with). Instead, it was bright shiny metal, coated with mineral oil and shipped in a plastic bag (a much better solution, really - just scrub and season, no need to soften and scrape off the coating).
- Unlike many factory-made woks, the edges are very nicely smoothed. (Unfortunately, this doesn't extend to the end of the handle, or the hanging hole, both of which are rough-finished).
- The wok is very light, and actually thinner than 1mm. This is a feature if you want to use the tossing technique, and will make it easier to keep a hot spot in the middle and a cooler area further out.
- The handle is relatively long - this helps balance the wok, and will keep your hand cooler when the wok is on the stovetop.
Cons:
- Because the wok is so thin, it bends easily (a firm press on the rim will deform the shape). If dropped on end, it will probably deform permanently.
- The handle is relatively thick (1.5 inches). Great for a lower heat technique, but for a real bao stir fry, where you need to put a towel or potholder over the handle to keep from burning yourself, it will be a little too thick.
- The bowl is relatively shallow for a pow wok, and more like a two-handle bowl. This is good for letting out steam, and will give a better result on a weaker burner (otherwise you will stew, not stir-fry), but not as good for tossing.
Overall, this wok is a very well done adaption for the American market. It cooks like a two-handle, not a pow. Since most western cooks do a spatula-stir/ch'ao/slop-and-glop instead of a high-heat toss, this isn't a bad thing. The handle will work well to stabilize the wok while you stir with the other hand.
The only changes I would make are to better smooth the end of the handle and the inside of the hanging hole, and to add a helper handle (not traditional, but makes it easier to run the hot wok under hot water to clean it, and to hang the wok with the handle down). The insert that claims the wok is dishwasher-safe is also utterly wrong, and I can only assume that this leaflet was a last-minute addition as the box was heading out the factory door. Seasoning instructions would be more valuable, as noted elsewhere.
A note about braising and steaming - the promo material for this wok says it can be used for braising and steaming, and this is true (also true for all woks). However, you will need a wok ring for either of these techniques, to hold the wok over the burner on your stovetop. Given that the wok is 14 inches in diameter, and the typical American stovetop is 25 inches front to back, split between two burners, this wok will hang over the front edge of your stove. If you are lucky enough to have a fifth burner in the middle, this is a great use for this wok. If you don't, however, especially if you have little ones running around, you may want to think twice before using this technique.
Customer Review: Wok Works Well
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Carbon steel is the preferred material for a traditional wok. Unlike most cookware where cost is indicative of quality, spending more will not result in a better wok. This is a traditional wok for use on a gas stove. Flat bottom woks work better on electric ranges. Do not be tempted to buy stainless steel because it looks more attractive -- it doesn't conduct heat properly, and from personal experience, even copper bottom stainless steel woks have definite hot spots. Cast iron, another option, is quite heavy to manuver on the stove top, and non-stick coatings are a particularly bad idea for cooking at high heat -- something that is a necessity with a wok.
If you are someone who wants everything to look beautiful, a wok may be a constant irritant. The idea is to season the pan so it develops a blackened color which creates a non-stick coating of its own, like a cast iron skillet. Washing with soap is not recommended -- wiping it out with a papertowel is the usual cleaning method because almost any other action will scrape out the hard-earned seasoning. Most of the time the pan is going to look pretty funky -- that's what a proper well-used wok looks like. If you must wash the pan you will need to re-season. The wok works great, and I prepared a delicious shrimp stir-fry as soon as I finished the initial seasoning of the pan, and was very pleased with the results.
The reasonn I am only giving the wok 4 stars instead of 5 is because no instructions on how to season the pan were included in the box. Granted the information is readily available on the internet and on the product page, but proper handling is imperative. A step-by-step guide should be in the box. The pan comes from the factory with a machine oil coating to protect it from rust until it reaches the consumer. The pan should not be used until the protective coating is removed -- again steps are on the product page but unless the buyer thinks to return to the page when the pan arrives they may forget or be unaware. Most products do not require such careful handling and if they do instructions are usually pasted all over the item. And, I would recommend scouring the pan completely after removing that protective coating or the first couple of dishes prepared may still have a hint of machine oil.
Included in the box is a small brochure about the Tom Douglas "Pinzon" line of cookware. It is a generic flyer and unfortunately it says "dishwasher safe, hand washing recommended." It may be dishwasher safe, although it will rust rather quickly if left wet, but even if it doesn't rust, the seasoning will be removed and the pan will again, need to be re-seasoned. It hsould not be washed in the dishwasher.
A round bottom wok is most traditional, but that shape requires a constant grip on the handle because it wobbles. If the plan is to make tempura or any other dish requiring a lot of oil, the purchase of a wok ring would be a good idea. This item will permit the pan to sit upright and remain stablized over the heat.
If I were designing the pan I would have made the handle a little thinner and a little longer. My hands aren't freakishly small but they tired holding the handle, and the handle definitely heats up so plan on having a pot holder or towel handy. I would add another inch or so to the handle to keep a greater distance from the pan, but not a big deal, and the current design is not at all unusual -- just a couple of things I would tweak.
The wok reminds me of a couple of other items in my kitchen that require a little special care but are well-worth the effort. I will have this wok for many years.
Customer Review: Good solid wok, well balanced
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
This is a solidly constructed wok, well weighted, and I know it's going to be a definite go-to piece in my kitchen. It IS a round-bottomed wok, meaning it's not going to sit flat and stable on a burner. It will roll, which is one of the reasons it's such a great functional wok, but you can't let go of it without risking it rolling off the burner.
The product description says the wok is best for gas stoves, and I was thinking that's because it would sit better on gas burners, but now I think it's probably more because you can quickly bring the wok to the high temperatures needed for superior stir-frying with gas, then turn it off without residual heat. But wok rings are cheap. So cheap, that I wonder if it wouldn't have been a good plan for Pinzon to include one with the wok, sparing buyers the need to buy (and pay to ship) one after the fact.
UPDATE: I was wrong! Wok rings are for sissies. I ordered an open-style ring for my gas stove, but I'm only using it to sit the wok on if I bring it to the table. I've been cooking with the wok without a wok ring and realize now that it's better without one. A wok ring would be in the way. The wok will roll around on the burner, but it does not seem to be in any danger of rolling off onto the floor. I thought you'd need some kind of handle potholder for it, too, but in my experience so far, the handle stays cool enough where you don't need one even if it's steel.
Now, about the seasoning. I'm a long-time cast iron fan, so I know a bit about seasoning. I knew better than to try to use olive oil to season this carbon steel wok, but that's all I had on hand when it arrived and it was so beautiful I couldn't wait. Mistake. I should have waited until I got some canola or peanut oil. Olive oil is healthy, but it's also dense and does not hold up well under heat. It gets gooey when it breaks down. I've now got dried-on gooey oil streaks that I'm going to have to scour off with steel wool and try again. This is my fault, not the fault of the product. I knew better and did it anyway. I'm just telling you so you don't make the mistake of doing what I did.
For a wok this large and well-rounded, it's remarkably light (well, compared to the cast iron I'm used to!) and I can see myself doing some impressive food-flipping moves with it. Even with some pretty bad arthritis in my hands, I find it's not uncomfortable working with this wok. I very much like the hanging hole in the handle, because I'm sure I'll wind up hanging this near my stove so it's always handy. It will also be good when cooking outdoors to hang it on a nail driven into a tree.
Oh! And I've got the bamboo steamer in the Tom Douglas/Pinzon line, so the wok is going to be absolutely perfect to use with it. I just learned you're not supposed to allow the bamboo steamer to sit down in the water, so the flat-bottomed pans I was using with the steamer really are not good to use. The round bottom of the wok is perfect for holding the right amount of water underneath the steamer, which sits on the upper insides of the wok and above the water during steaming.
On the whole, I'm very pleased with the quality of this wok. It looks like it should last a lifetime. The handle rivets look indestructible, and I'm looking forward to getting my wok to blacken up good. Then it will fit right in with my cast iron.
Customer Review: A real wok.
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
This is a traditional wok, round bottomed and made of carbon steel. It is smaller than a "family" sized wok, but is also the most common size sold today for smaller households. It will hold a stack of 9-10 inch bamboo steamers nicely and prepare fried rice as a main dish for a family of four.
This wok is meant to be used over a gas stove with a wok ring accessory. The handle is also made out of carbon steel and does get hot so a pot holder is necessary. The shape of the wok (regardless of material) creates a natural hot spot in the middle with gradual decreasing temperatures closer to the edge.
The wok arrived packaged in a plain box with a simple leaflet on Tom Douglas and his line of kitchenware for Pinzon but failed to contain any seasoning or care info on the wok. This info is available in the product description on Amazon but it needs to be included with the wok.
Care and storage for a carbon steel is very similar to cast iron:
* It needs to be scrubbed with hot water to remove the machine oil used to coat and protect it before first use
* It also needs to be seasoned with a lght coat of oil (same as cast iron) before first use
* Wash with hot water and a stiff bristled brush. Refrain from using dish-washing liquid.
* Dry wok completely by heating it gently on the stove after washing and coat lightly with fresh oil. Carbon steel can and will rust if left wet.
* Although you can put it in the dishwasher, doing so will remove the seasoning and the wok will need to be reseasoned.
* With repeated use and proper seasoning, the carbon steel will develop a natural semi-non-stick coating and a black patina.
* When storing the wok between uses or for periods of non-use, lightly wrap in kitchen paper (or newspaper) and store in a dry place.