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Woks can exist used to steam fish, make fried rice, boil stew, and even pop popcorn — but in that location's a reason you come across them employed most ubiquitously for stir-fries. J. Kenji López-Alt, whose forthcoming volume is dedicated to cooking with woks, explains that while Western skillets are more than concerned with estrus retention, woks are built to dial in on estrus reactivity. This ways they go hot really fast and stay that style if you lot desire them to — but also absurd down quickly as needed. What's more, the bottom is hotter than the sides because of the Five shape, further profitable each component of a given dish to get to the temperature it should be. Bottom line: Woks seamlessly cook large quantities of vegetables, meat, noodles, and whatever else you similar in a matter of minutes. "If you are quick-cooking, brand sure you accept all your ingredients portioned out and ready to become," advises Brandon Jew, chef at Mister Jiu's in San Francisco. "The process goes fast." Nosotros chatted with López-Alt, Jew, and other chefs and cookware experts to become their recommendations for their favorite woks.

Best overall | Best customizable | Best round-bottomed | Best Cantonese-fashion | Best woklike frying pan

Fabric: Woks come in carbon steel, bandage iron, anodized aluminum, stainless steel, nonstick, and enamel-lined bandage atomic number 26. Almost experts adopt carbon steel because, as "stir-fry guru" and cookbook writer Grace Young explains, information technology "impeccably sears ingredients and gives stir-fries the elusive, smoky essence prized by Chinese gourmands." She'south not the but one with a preference for that particular cloth. Nearly every wok on this listing is made of carbon steel. López-Alt notes that "information technology is strong but not breakable." This is "unlike cast iron, which volition crack if you make it sparse plenty to be lightweight." Eventually, the surface of carbon steel will develop a nonstick patina.

Shape: Woks are traditionally round-bottomed, meant to be placed on burners that specifically concur that shape (you'll often see full ranges like this in Chinese restaurants). Just many have flat bottoms designed to work on standard dwelling burners, whether gas, consecration, or coil. You can, in fact, convert a regular burner with a wok ring if you prefer that style (or practise equally López-Alt did and buy an outdoor setup for round-bottomed wok use).

Handle: When it comes to handle shape, Mandarin-way woks (the majority of woks on this list) have an extended handle on i side, similar to the skillets yous're likely familiar with. This is helpful for maneuvering the wok around a burner and tossing ingredients with ease. Cantonese-way woks have two smaller handles on each side, which is good for fully picking the vessel up off the stove. When information technology comes to handle material, "information technology doesn't affair that much," says López-Alt. This is where artful preference comes into play — though it should be noted that metal tends to get hotter than forest, a downside if you lot don't want to use pot holders or dish towels.

Joyce Chen Carbon-Steel Wok

Carbon steel | Flat lesser | Standard mandarin-style with wood handles

"Introduced by Joyce Chen, flat-bottomed woks immune the cookware to be used on any stove and made stir-fry a far more common dish in American households," says Taylor Erkkinen, co-owner of the Brooklyn Kitchen cooking school. Chen's woks are still some of the nigh relied-upon models yous see today. Of course, the carbon steel makes it perfectly sensitive to heating up and cooling downwardly. It isn't also heavy and has comfortable handles that grip well and stay cooler than the trunk of the wok. "The loops on metallic woks get superhot, and you need pot holders to handle," says Matt Rodbard, founder of Taste and co-author of Koreatown: A Cookbook. Wooden handles avert that. Sohui Kim, the owner and chef of Insa in Brooklyn, is also a fan of this model. "It can handle a ton of vegetables," she says of the fairly standard fourteen-inch size that comfortably feeds 2 to four people. "I especially like it for greens that first so giant in volume. Y'all can add together everything in so motion them around hands as they shrink."

The Wok Shop Carbon-Steel Wok

Carbon steel | Apartment or round lesser | Mandarin-style with wood or metal handles

López-Alt'south recommendation comes from San Francisco's Wok Shop, which has many options for sizes (equally small equally 12 inches and as large as 16) and handles (wood, metallic, loop, extended) should yous want to customize. "Personally, I similar a long handle," he says. "It makes information technology easier to toss your ingredients." Immature loves Wok Shop, too, calling owner Tane Chan "the most knowledgeable person selling woks in the globe." This is also the best place to peruse wok accessories. López-Alt believes the 1 nonnegotiable is a wok spatula. The material doesn't matter so much; the important part is the specialized shape, which "fits the curve of the wok and is practiced for scooping," he says. If you want to utilise your wok for making a stew or homemade popcorn, y'all'll demand a chapeau. For her role, Young recommends a domed shape over a flat one because it will divert condensation away from your nutrient.

Hand Hammered Carbon-Steel Pow Wok

Carbon steel | Round bottom | Mandarin-style with one woods handle, one metal handle

Equally stated above, traditional woks have round bottoms, which allows them to reach intense temperatures over burners that shoot the flames straight up rather than in a circular pattern. If you're serious about your wok game and have the power to modify your dwelling house range, a wok ring like this 1 costs just $10 and replaces the grate and metal disc on a gas burner pretty easily. Amelie Kang, co-possessor and chef of New York City's MáLà Project, recommends the Prisoner of war Wok, which is made from conductive carbon steel. "It'southward suitable for quick, loftier-temperature stir-fried dishes," she says. Simply exist careful: "Information technology'due south especially easy to burn the dishes if yous are not fast enough."

Lodge Cast-Iron Wok

Cast iron | Flat bottom | Cantonese-style with cast-fe handles

This cast-iron Cantonese wok, heavier than its carbon-steel counterparts and with ii smaller loop handles on both sides, isn't and so easy to maneuver around the stove. Simply "nothing retains heat similar cast iron," says Jew. And different with stir-chips, this is an important attribute when it comes to fried rice, the success of which depends on the grains staying hot throughout the whole cooking process. "With a home stove, yous're only not going to get to that aforementioned level you exercise in a restaurant," he says, so you might as well gear up yourself up the all-time y'all tin.

Made In Carbon-Steel Frying Pan

Carbon steel | Flat bottom | Mandarin-fashion with metallic handle

If y'all but don't have the space for a dedicated wok, Lucas Sin, chef at Junzi Kitchen, stands by Made In'southward carbon-steel frying pan. The high-sided shape and carbon-steel material brand information technology similar enough. "To accomplish high heat for stir-fries, I prefer apartment bottoms for as much surface contact as possible," he says. "Tall walls mean that the same pan tin exist used for braising, steaming, and boiling." As for the size, it's slightly smaller than the woks on this list, but Sin likes the size, saying that it "comfortably cooks for ii."

• Taylor Erkkinen, co-owner of the Brooklyn Kitchen
• Brandon Jew, chef at Mister Jiu's
• Amelie Kang, co-owner and chef of MáLà Project
• Sohui Kim, owner of and chef at Insa
• J. Kenji López-Alt, chef and writer
• Matt Rodbard, founder of Taste and co-author of Koreatown: A Cookbook
• Lucas Sin, chef at Junzi Kitchen
• Grace Immature, cookbook author and "stir-fry guru"

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The 5 Very All-time Woks