Joyce Chen 23-0003, Lightweight Cast Iron Stir Fry, 11.5-Inch

My last wok, after fifteen or so years of service, bit the dust. Having actually met Joyce Chen and eaten many bowls of her hot and sour soup in “Joyce Chen’s Small Eating Place” in Central Square In Cambridge, and a proud owner of her (autographed) cookbook, of course I bought this. It is a lovely wok!

So . . . a couple things about this wok. First, I find it aesthetically pleasing. Not to sound superficial, but my prior wok was a flat-bottomed Taylor & Ng blued carbon steel wok. And while that wok served me well for years, it simply never got that total pitch-black patina that I had read about in books. After a while, every time I looked down into that mixed blue, brown, and black interior, I just felt defeated. Here, this Joyce Chen wok is (1) made of cast iron so--right out of the box--it has that blacked appearance already. Presto! Other aesthetic features I liked about this wok were its (2) nice practical wooden handle, (3) the absence of any unsightly welding, and (4) the wok's 'heft.' This Joyce Chen wok certainly has more weight than a 'typical' thin walled carbon steel wok but it doesn't weigh nearly as much as a comparably sized Lodge cast iron pan.Second, this wok performs well in the kitchen. I have a gas-fired range but it's not one of those custom ranges that can launch a small object into orbit. The cast iron here helps holds heat and I have yet to hear the wok stop hissing after I drop in ingredients. Granted, even cast iron isn't going to compensate for the lack of a true commercial range, but, still, I'm getting plenty of 'sizzle up in my hizzle' so I'm happy.This wok size is probably best for one or two people if you are stir-frying noodles or rice dishes inside the wok (as opposed to stir-frying a side dish that will be eaten with separately cooked and served rice). What this means for a family of four is that using this Joyce Chen wok will involve cooking in batches. That really isn't as inconvenient as it sounds though because I was already cooking in batches even with a 14-inch wok. Plus, cooking with a wok on high heat takes around 5 minutes so, even if you are cooking in batches, it's not like your family can't sit down and eat together.

This flat bottom cast iron wok is great for cooking on electric stovetops especially glass stovetops. The cast iron retains heat well and it comes pre-seasoned so, unlike carbon steel woks it's pretty much ready to go right out of the box. After cooking on it for almost a month I decided to buy a 14" carbon steel wok for stir frying but I'm keeping this wok for general cooking and smaller stir fry meals. The sides of this wok are higher than a traditional carbon steel wok and while it retains heat cast iron is slow to heat up and slow to change temp, two things needed for wok cooking.Although this wok is pre seasoned I recommend going through one or two rounds of seasoning to protect the cooking surface and make it more non stick. I found that using metal utensils scratched through the pre seasoning exposing bare metal so proper seasoning will minimize this although using wooden or silicone utensils are probably a better option.This wok is good for households such as mine when cooking for one or two people and doing some occasional stir frying but if you get serious about wok cooking and stir frying I would probably go with a 14" carbon steel wok if you're on the fence about which to choose. Having said that, I find this wok to be extremely useful for all kinds of cooking and it is constantly sitting on my stovetop.

Many people would say nothing beats carbon steel woks. I tend to agree if you have a gas stove top that can handle rounded bottom woks. But for electric top, I encounter problem with a flat carbon steel wok: it loses heat as soon as you lift it up to toss food (losing direct contact with a heat source). I did some research and found that iron cast retains heat better than carbon steel, but iron cast takes longer to heat up. However, this wok overcomes those problems. It heats up quickly and retains heat when I toss food in the air. It is surprisingly light for iron cast, yet very well built. However, don't expect carbon steel lightness here. It is still an iron cast. The handle feels nice and sturdy. Its large flat bottom increases contact surface with heat source. It also comes with 25 year warranty, and the quality seems to last even longer. The wok is pre-seasoned, which save me from doing the work. But as with every steel wok, you need to season it regularly. If you never use wok before or use only stainless steel cookware, you should do some research before buying iron cast or carbon steel woks. They need proper care and maintenance.In sum, Joyce Chen cast iron wok is a great wok for electric top. I never use it on gas but I bet it performs equally well. I would recommend this wok for those whose stove tops are flat, either gas or electric. If you have the top specially designed to take a wok, then you probably already know what you want anyway.

After used it for a month, some black coating starts falling off and mixed with food when I cooked. The description stated as: pre- seasoned and no non sticking coating, but the black stringy stuff came off the pan looking like Teflon coating. Very disappointed! Cast ion should be seasoned with oil, not with non stick chemicals, those chemicals might cause cancer!!!