Flat bottom woks?

I received a flat bottom wok for Xmas. It is a very well made piece, but I am wondering how useful it is. Is it a worthwhile addition to the kitchen? What will it do better than a saute pan? Thanks

What will it do better than a saute pan?

Three things that I have noticed at home:

1. Fewer spatters and splashes than a saute pan.

2. More cooking area.

3. Items at the bottom of the wok cook more quickly than items pushed up the side.

I'm sure Paul will mention additional benefits.

Good for deepfrying prawn crackers.

Much easier to use than a saute pan for oriental-type stir-frying. Not as good as the traditional round-bottomed wok, but if you have an electric or conductive stove you can't use the round-bottomed wok.

Uses less oil for deep-frying.

-Paul W.

Thanks all. I'll keep it.

I have one and I love it. Been using it for 30 years. It was a present from a Chinese-American grocery salesman when I was a chef in San Francisco.

Is it still a wok if it isn't round-bottomed?

I'd say so. The flat-bottomed woks that I've seen are the same shape as the traditional wok, except that a small part of the bottom is flat so it will sit on an electric stove element. When stir-frying, flat-bottomed woks behave more like a wok than a saute pan. I suppose it's a matter of degree where the utensil stops being a flat-bottomed wok and starts being a flare-sided saute pan.

-Paul W.

Every time I see the title to this thread, Queen lyrics pop into my mind singing:

Flat bottom woks you make the wokin world go round.

Redwinger

Thanks, Bill, for putting that tune in my head for the weekend! It's OK, my whole family loves Queen.

[David M. Bueker]

Oh thank God Bill put the lyric up before I did. Whew!

I thought it was Spinal Tap?

Flat bottom, flat bottom
talk about stir fry, my wok's got 'em.
Flat bottom, so fine
Lets me deglaze with wi-i-ine.

You don't want to deglaze with wine in those iron woks.

Anybody here need a new wok every week?

From the NYT

"Residential stoves here produce about 10,000 B.T.U.'s, but restaurant stoves in Hong Kong, where the chefs use compressed gas to create a more intense heat, can produce as much as 200,000. At that level of heat, and with the intense activity of a restaurant kitchen, even top-quality woks warp instantly and have to be hammered back into shape after each night's cooking. While a home wok can last a lifetime, the legendary wok warriors of top Hong Kong restaurants must buy new woks every 7 to 10 days. The best chefs buy their woks from artisans who hammer each one from a single piece of carbon steel, positioning each strike of the hammer to create a perfectly smooth cooking surface."

Big bottom. How can I leave that behind?

The flat-bottom wok someone gave me is Teflon-coated, so it's okay with wine. I'm predicting the usual admonitions about Teflon and woks--yada, yada, yada--but I'm not going to throw that wok away. I also have four other round-bottomed woks sans Teflon, so there. They're all useful in their own way.

Used it for the first time tonight. Worked great. Definitely a keeper.

I thought it was Spinal Tap?

Spinal Tap did "Big Bottom".

Queen did "Fat-bottomed Girls". ("Get on your bikes and ride!")

-Paul W.