Tip for Cooking in a Wok

[Smokin Don]

Oct 24 2014

This is a tip on what not to do with your Wok. I like cooking on my Wok using my outdoor gas burner; using gas gives you good control over the heat. I did find that I could use my indoor glass top stove to cook in it. Using the ring lets it get hot enough to cook with it.

Last night I made chicken Pad Thai in it. After it was done I had shut the burner off and left it on the burner while serving and after. When my wife cleaned up after eating she put the leftover Pad Thai in a bowl to save. She said you can clean the wok, it’s a mess. It was a mess some of the noodles had burnt and stuck. I should have taken it off the burner right after it was done. I should know better, glass top stoves take a long time to cool down.

I left it set until this morning. I thought I would end up using sand paper on it. I scraped off all I could get and then set in the sink with hot water running. I used my Lodge brush on it and was surprised most was coming off pretty easy. I finished with the scotch blue pad and it cleaned up nice. I gave it a light coat of oil and was ready to go again.

First if you use your Wok on a glass top stove don’t let it set on the burner after done cooking. If you do get some burnt food on the bottom it still should clean up without a lot of effort if you had it seasoned well. Mine had gone through the six step seasoning process.

Before


After


Smokin Don

[Pappymn]

What I have seen online and what I now do is take the food out of the wok and immediately add a bunch of water to the wok and turn up the heat. That boiling water and my bamboo brush takes care of the crusties

[pz]

What I have seen online and what I now do is take the food out of the wok and immediately add a bunch of water to the wok and turn up the heat. That boiling water and my bamboo brush takes care of the crusties

I do similar, but have found that even the next day the stuck on food comes off easy with a cup of water in the wok and gentle heating and gentle scrubbing. 

[Las Vegan Cajun]

Great tips Don, thanks for sharing. 

[Northshore]

Purchased one of these after friend recommended it,  works on more than just cast iron.
The Ringer Cast Iron Cleaner XL 8x6 Inch Stainless Steel Chainmail
Just google cast iron cleaner.

[Hub]

Don't feel bad, SD I've done the same thing a few times.  My favorite way to bust out the crud is about three heaping tablespoons of salt and a couple of pints of scalding hot water.  Wet the crud lightly then put on the salt.  Wait about ten minutes then add the rest of the water and stir to dilute the salt.  Let it set for about an hour.  Rinse and scour very lightly to get any last nasty bits, then re-season.  No muss, no fuss, no elbow grease 

Hub

[Pam Gould]

I always take the food out and pour in water while the pan is still hot..just like deglazing..stuff comes right off when your ready.  Pam    .☆´¯`•.¸¸. ི♥ྀ.