Wok

Wok

specialty

Pan

A carbon-steel hemispherical pan, 30-40 cm across, with a rounded bottom and high sloping walls. The bottom takes ferocious direct heat — a properly seasoned wok over a roaring gas flame holds 250-300°C, hot enough to deliver wok hei, the breath-of-the-wok smoky char prized in Cantonese stir-fry. The sloped walls give cooler zones for batch-cooking, and the rounded bottom lets a single tossing motion distribute oil and food evenly.

Origin

Documented in Han-dynasty bronze-and-iron foundry records (~2nd century CE), the wok evolved with cast-iron metallurgy in southern China. The hemispherical shape suits the high, narrow firepots of Chinese kitchen stoves — a flat-bottomed pan would lose contact with the flame. Carbon-steel wok-making spread along the southern coast in the Tang and Song dynasties, becoming the Cantonese kitchen's defining tool by the 1800s.

Native to

Chinese Thai Vietnamese

Featured in dishes

Anhui Hairy Tofu

Bacalao al Ajoarriero

Bai Liang Pad Khai

Banh Tom Ho Tay

Banh Xeo Mien Tay

Beijing Chao Gan

Beijing Stir-Fried Liver

Bitter Melon Stir-Fry

Boiled Sliced Pork in Spicy Sauce

Ca Tai Tuong Chien Xu

Caramel-Pulled Sweet Potato

Chili Stir-Fried Pork

Chinese Braised Eggplant

Chongqing Noodles

Dan Dan Noodles

Daokou Roast Chicken

Discada Norteña

Dong'an Chicken

Farmhouse Stir-Fried Pork

Fish-Fragrant Eggplant

Gai Tort Hat Yai

Goong Pad Pong Karee

Hangzhou Pork and Bamboo Noodle Soup

Henan Stewed Noodles

Hu Tieu Nam Vang

Hunan Stir-Fried Pork with Peppers

Kaeng Phet Pet Yang

Khao Pad Nam Prik Long Reua

Khao Pad Sapparod

Kongbiji Jjigae

Korean Rice Cake with Soy Sauce Glaze

Korean Tofu Skin Wraps

Kung Pao Chicken

Li Hongzhang Hodgepodge

Longjing Tea Shrimp

Lotus Root Pork Rib Soup

Mianyang Three Steams

Migas Castellanas

Migas a la Aragonesa

Myeolchi Bokkeum

Nagasaki Champon

Nine-Turn Pork Intestines

Oil-Exploded Shrimp

Oil-Splashed Noodles

Ojingeo Bokkeum

Oyster Mushroom Stir-fry

Pad Krapao Pla Muek

Phak Boong Fai Daeng

Porcini Fried Rice

Red Braised Pork Belly

Shandong Big Steamed Bun

Smoked Pork Belly with Dried Tofu

Sour Bamboo Shoot Pork

Spicy Diced Chicken

Spicy Malaysian Tofu and Long Bean Stir-Fry

Stinky Mandarin Fish

Stir-Fried Yu Choy with Garlic

Sweet Potato Noodle Salad

Sweet and Sour Pork

Sweet and Sour Yellow River Carp

Tea-Smoked Duck

Thai Basil Chicken

Three Earthly Delicacies

Tongan Sealed Pork

Trassi Shrimp Paste Fried Rice

Twice-Cooked Pork

Udon Noodle Stir Fry

Vegetable Udon Noodle Stir Fry

Wild Mushroom Hot Pot

Wuhan Eel Rice Noodles

Yangnyeom Chicken

Yangshuo Beer Fish

Yangzhou Fried Rice

Yellow River Stone Pot Fish

Yongzhou Blood Duck

Yunnan Edible Flower Plate