14" wok too small...16 or 18 next?

[berettafan]

Family has declared I am the master of fried rice with my jet engine wok burner and 14" wok. I positively love cooking on it. I am however finding I'm at or beyond max capacity for enough rice for 4 people. Also have to do shrimp in smaller batches. So I'm going with the same 'brand' wok and they are available in 16 and 18" sizes. Should I get both and experiment or just go 16"?


Current wok is the 'Town Food Service' 14" Peking. Bought others before settling on this. Perfect thickness IMO.

[javadog]

I’ve never needed anything bigger than a 14 inch. Asian food is better if you cook it in small batches. I can cook enough fried rice in a 14 inch wok to feed four people, but the end product is better if it’s cooked in two batches.

[BK911]

Mmm, love me some flied lice.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by BK911

Mmm, love me some flied lice.

Ditto, when I was a kid and lived in Japan, I lived off of it.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by berettafan

Family has declared I am the master of fried rice with my jet engine wok burner and 14" wok. I positively love cooking on it. I am however finding I'm at or beyond max capacity for enough rice for 4 people. Also have to do shrimp in smaller batches. So I'm going with the same 'brand' wok and they are available in 16 and 18" sizes. Should I get both and experiment or just go 16"?


Current wok is the 'Town Food Service' 14" Peking. Bought others before settling on this. Perfect thickness IMO.

Originally Posted by javadog

I’ve never needed anything bigger than a 14 inch. Asian food is better if you cook it in small batches. I can cook enough fried rice in a 14 inch wok to feed four people, but the end product is better if it’s cooked in two batches.

I haven't cooked on an actual wok, but I'm imagining that it's easier to cook on a bigger wok than a smaller one, and if it's better (per javadog) to cook in smaller batches, then using a larger wok for a larger batch would be like cooking a smaller batch on a smaller wok (assuming you've got the heat/flame to use with giant wok).

I'm voting 18"

[stevej37]

Originally Posted by BK911

Mmm, love me some flied lice.

My fav lice!

[Steve F]

Dumb question, but will they work on a electric range?

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by BK911

Mmm, love me some flied lice.

LOL...You WOCK

[javadog]

Originally Posted by masraum

I haven't cooked on an actual wok, but I'm imagining that it's easier to cook on a bigger wok than a smaller one

No, the opposite is true.

[IROC]

I was in Japan recently and took this picture of the information placard in the hotel elevator (the 3rd floor is the Lobby):

[masraum]

Originally Posted by Steve F

Dumb question, but will they work on a electric range?

No, I don't think there's really a good electric stove wok alternative.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by IROC

I was in Japan recently and took this picture of the information placard in the hotel elevator (the 3rd floor is the Lobby):

It's funny that almost everywhere that there should be an "L" there is except for the robby.

[Steve F]

Originally Posted by masraum

No, I don't think there's really a good electric stove wok alternative.

Thanks, I kinda thought so:<)

[Bill Douglas]

Originally Posted by BK911

Mmm, love me some flied lice.

Ah, pork flied lice. How do you say it in English - most excellent.

I grew up on it as a child too, my parents were art school kids.

[javadog]

Originally Posted by Steve F

Thanks, I kinda thought so:<)

There are flat-bottomed woks for electric stoves but the biggest problem is home stoves (of whatever kind) produce nowhere near enough heat to use a wok properly.

Buy a big-ass propane fueled wok burner and use it outside. Or cook on one in a charcoal grille, etc. The wok does not care how it gets hot, it just wants to be screaming hot.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by javadog

There are flat-bottomed woks for electric stoves but the biggest problem is home stoves (of whatever kind) produce nowhere near enough heat to use a wok properly.

Right, we had one. It was basically a really tall, rounded skillet with a smallish bottom. We got rid of it because it wasn't really that useful.