Carbon Steel Wok - 36cm

Having used a range of non-stick and pseudo woks, I finally came to the conclusion that I needed the real thing after trying a friend's professional-class wok. This wok fits the bill nicely, with the one concession being a small flat bottom: big enough to use over your gas wok ring, although I expect it won't be so good for electric (those of you looking for something that will work over those glassy glass or ceramic easy-clean sufaces, give up and get a gas hob, as you cannot seriously cook with a wok without a true flame). Good solid traditional construction, this wok seasons easily over a good flame and has the right composition and wall thickness to get heat right to the food quickly. Heat distribution is very good and food seals and cooks rapidly. UPDATE 2024: The wok is still going strong! Apart from some scorching to the bamboo on the D-handle, this wok keeps getting better. However, most of the negative reviews for this wok are revealing rookie mistakes in failing to either prep the wok correctly, failing to season properly, failing to follow care instructions or having unrealistic expectations (especially re. use on anything other than a gas wok burner). If you purchase a real wok like this, you have to accept that this is a traditional tool and not a modern non-stick convenience pan. The advantages over modern pans - higher heat transfer leading to a more authentic high temperature cook - outweigh the inconvenience for me, but you may think differently. I would therefore not recommend this for anyone looking for a zero-maintenance option that'll work on induction or electric rings. But for those of you prepared to put some work in to get great cooking results, here's some tips: 1. Follow the wok preparation instructions to the letter. Take time to ensure that the (bees)wax coating is fully removed and the steel has blued correctly. 2. Follow the seasoning instructions to the letter. If you're not familiar with seasoning pans - a skill that has all but been lost since the inception of non-stick coatings - it takes some time to get the hang of it. So practice! What you're looking for is an almost solid, but very thin, "gel" coat on your pan. Once you get the hang of this, you'll be rewarded with a higher temperature cook than you can ever achieve with non-stick coatings, which insulate from the heat. Plus you'll acquire a skill you can transfer to your stainless steel and even cast iron pans that will take your cooking to the next level, as well as keeping all those nasty non-stick chemicals out of your body. 3. Follow the care instructions to the letter. Woks should be washed, dried and seasoned as soon as possible after cooking. If you don't, you may find rust spots forming (remember, this is NOT stainless steel, as some reviewers have misunderstood). If you have rust spots, well then you need to put some work in to remove these (a good scourer with something like Pink Stuff will make short work of this). Then season - twice if needs be (I usually do two passes) and make sure you haven't burnt-off the seasoning. Do this and you'll be fine. As for reviews citing poor handles, clearly if it breaks, you may have a faulty one so return it. Mine are solid still, with only occasional tightening of the main handle needed (the steel hanging eyelet is actually the end of a screw-fitting for the handle, so just requires tightening occasionally by turning clockwise).

I purchased this Wok after noticing that my non-stick wok was losing its teflon coating bit by bit, which horrified me, luckily when I only washed it and not during cooking, so I took great pleasure in binning it and getting a real one. This one to be exact. When it arrived, it was a thing of beauty, but like all woks, it you want it to work properly, you have to seal it. So from a beautiful shiny metal colour, it has to go almost black on the inside and it colours from the heat on the outside. But, don't let that put you off in getting a real wok like this one. It's light, so easy to clean and it far more non-stick that my teflon coated non-stick wok ever was from a previous life. I have had it for a good while now and it cooks so well, and so long as you keep it lightly oiled, it will last forever, I reckon. All in all it is one of the best kitchen implements I own. Can't recommend it enough!

Decent wok, seasoned easily enough. Slightly flimsy handle though. Can see this lasting a long time as long as handle holds. Nice to get real wok hei as a home cook. Picture is post seasoning

Had a steel wok years ago and moved to a non-stick. Then after watching a film called Dark Waters (2019) about DuPont and the C8 (and possibly the newer chemical as well) in their non-stick coating being poisonous, I decided to go back to steel. Am loving it so far, forgot how great food tastes in them. You must prepare it properly before use. There is a coating on there I scrubbed twice with a scouring pad and when I tempered the steel in a gas flame it still gave off a plastic smell for a while. I use it on a halogen hob but had a camping gas stove that I used to temper the steel and then season it with oil. The guide in another review using the oven would be good if you don't have a gas stove, or maybe use a barbecue. I followed a YouTube video on how to do this and it took me about one hour to finish. I heated the wok all over until it went dark, then rubbed oil all over it and smoked it off three times, again turning the wok so all parts got very hot. I fried two onions in it and threw them away, then cooked a meal. Tasted great and cleaned up very easy. To store I put a thin layer of oil all over the inside to prevent any rusting. See picture after first cook. Very happy so far will update if have any problems. Update after 2 months use: Handles became a bit loose so I had to hammer the rivets on the back of a vice, they have been solid ever since. They say to re-season the wok after the silver metal shows through (see picture) but I have not needed to do this as any food that sticks on the base comes of so easy with hot water and a scouring pad that it seems pointless to re-season. Update after 1 year: Handles still solid and only needed the rivets hammering that one time. Still not re-seasoned it as its not an issue, found that using a lot of oil to cook will almost eliminate all sticking, but not really needed as cleaning is still not much of a problem. This wok is really only for people who take the time to look after it. Great wok will probably have it for many years.

Amazing 👏

This is a fantastic wok. Very very pleased with it. The two photos I have provided show the wok after it has been seasoned in an oven for twenty minutes and after it has been seasoned again on the electric hob by charing onion in it. My wok came with a sticker on the inside bottom but this came off really easily. The wok us also coated in a waxy film, but again this comes off easily in hot soapy water (the only time I would recommend using detergent on your wok). Once you have given it a good clean pop it on your hob at full heat and leave it on there until the Base starts turning a grey blue colour but don't leave it unattended. Leave your wok to cool down then remove the long handle by unscrewing it and wrap the small helper handle in a damp tea towel and some kitchen foil (see photo). Rub both the inside and out with a thin coat of vegetable oil and put it in a pre heated oven at 200 for twenty minutes, put the wok in upside down. Take the wok out after twenty minutes and it will be a lovely golden brown colour. Leave to cool. Finally, chop up a medium-sized onion, put a little oil in your wok and heat it up, and fry the onion until it's chard. Rub the onion all over the inside of the wok. This serves three purposes 1) you get to season any little bits you missed 2) it will blacken off the bottom and make it really non stick and 3) it gets rid of any residue metallic taste in the seasoning. Finally wipe out your wok and it's good to go. As I say, this is a really awesome wok very well made and good quality. I hope my seasoning tips are helpful. Have fun 😃

The positives: Great size and works on my Iwatani Portable Stove. It's a sturdy, carbon steel wok. Negatives: As others have said-the handles are poorly riveted and there are only two for the handle fixing which for such a large wok isn't strong enough. After only one use the rivets were already loose which is disappointing. I can't really recommend this but nor can I not recommend it. The Wok part is heavy gauge steel and I'm sure that after a couple more uses the seasoning will improve. Update on this: The seasoning has improved with use and works very well. It just took some time. The big negative is that both the handle and helper handle become loose in no time at all. This seems to be an issue that Jeremy Pang and co. are ignoring. ***Regarding reviews complaining about a carbon steel wok rusting after 1 use-that is all down to the user not taking the time to season then maintain the seasoning after each use. It is simple and takes seconds and YouTube has hundreds of videos showing how to take care of a wok-including the most basic of instructions: Only use hot water-No dishwashing detergents. ***

Here are some points to keep in mind: - The wok is constructed from carbon steel, so it MUST be seasoned or else it will rust. It is not made out of stainless steel like many pans. - The small 'helper handle' is useful, but unfortunately it cannot be removed so the wok cannot be seasoned in the oven. - The sticker on the inside of the wok is extremely difficult to remove.This is irritating, especially as the residue left by the sticker is hard to get off. - The entire wok has a coating to protect it from rusting during transport, and this coating must be removed before seasoning and cooking. It requires very thorough scrubbing with steel wool and soap, until the bare metal underneath is exposed. This can take some time but it may be easier if you pour some boiling water over it before hand. - To season, use paper towels to coat the wok in a thin layer of oil, inside and out. You can use vegetable, corn or peanut oil. Some suggest using flaxseed oil because it can make seasoning easier. Then use a dry paper towel to wipe the pan to get rid of excess oil. Only a very thin layer should remain. Place the wok over a high heat. The wok should start to smoke and blacken. As this happens, tilt the pan to make sure all areas are seasoned. Once the wok stops smoking, turn off the heat and let the wok cool naturally. Repeat the seasoning another few times until your wok is blackened. At this point the wok is rust-resistand and food will not stick to it as much, however you must always hand wash a carbon steel or cast iron wok by hand and dry it immediately. If you take care of the wok like this it will last for years. Over time and with frequent use the seasoning will become even better.

Attention à bien suivre les instructions d'assaisonnement et de lavage. Bien laver à l'éponge qui gratte. Sur induction il faut le chauffer en 3 étapes, je mets d'abord au milieu (5) puis ensuite +1 et ensuite +1 encore. Laisser chauffer jusqu’à ce que le fond devienne bleu acier. Laisser refroidir puis assaisonner d'huile avec un sopalin. Ensuite remettre à chauffer jusqu’à ce que la fumé disparaisse. Ne vous fiez pas à la couleur car même si c'est noir ou bleu acier le wok n'attachera pas si c'est bien fait, même si le fond est noircie. Pour le ranger, il faut le remplir à moitié d'eau, faire bouillir, puis vider l'eau et nettoyer à l'eau bouillante avec du mir. Ensuite bien essuyer, refaire chauffer à vide, et ensuite on peut ranger. Le vrai wok se fait lui même sa surface anti-adhérente par l'acier chauffé. Pas besoin de téflon et autre qui ne sont pas adapté aux température d'un wok. Je vous conseille vraiment celui ci, c'est un vrai wok. En plus le prix est cohérent.

I bought this for my husbands birthday, he has always wanted to professional wok. The process of preparing it was interesting and educational and a lot of fun. We used it the next day, and the food was phenomenal.

I actually used a youtube video's (Pailin's Kitchen) tips and advices on what to look out for in a new wok. I am glad I picked this one, it ticks all those requirements. No need to spend so much on a fancy wok, this type is tried (for centuries, haha) and proven. Quality seems perfect, size is just right (14''), so is the price and it was quite easy to do the seasoning procedure. It's already kind of non-stick after using it just a couple of times. The second handle is very useful, too. I use it on a gas stove (a small portable one). It probably wouldn't be this good on ceramic or similar hard surface. For cleaning, I put it under running hot water, give it a quick brush, dry with paper towel and smear a couple of drops of oil on the surface. Done, ready for next time! I would buy it again, but I think it will last me my lifetime!

Buon prodotto che va comunque preparato per l'utilizzo come del resto indicato nelle istruzioni per l'uso.

Showed up dirty, with a dent, I think it's been used, see pictures. The school of wok logo on the wooden handle was starting to fade and there's also a ring around the center?? I debated returning it, but decided to try it out first. I successfully seasoned the wok and had no issues with food sticking. It worked well, and the food cooked evenly. However, after the first use, the handle started to come loose. I read about loose handles in the reviews, but also read that to help resolve the loose handle issue, they had changed the handle design so that there were three rivets, not just two. Mine only has two rivets. Overall, very disappointed. Regardless of how the Wok became soiled, whether it was a used product or old stock dirty from warehouse storage. I don't understand how SOW could send, what is supposed to be a brand-new wok, in this condition, to a paying customer. I now have the handle coming loose on top of everything else. I enjoy the SOW videos, but regret buying the wok and won't buy any more SOW merch in the future.