["Followup-To:" header set to rec.food.cooking.]

> temperature and that heat is concentrated on the bottom only.

That's pretty much the ideal. Some food items can be pushed up on the sides to retard
cooking while the bottom still provides mucho heat for other food items.

> Only a gas range or open fire does a wok justice.

True, but a flat bottomed wok can be used on an electric. Get a Turkey
fryer and put your wok on that burner. Those suckers are typically in the
100-170K btu range. Way more than enough to drive a wok. I got mine at
Lowes at an end-of-season sale forr $19! You can hardly get a lone burner
that cheap.

nb









Use an uncoated
> heavy iron or steel wok. It holds and distributes the heat to provide
> a better heat gradient from the center to the rim, sort of like why
> people prefer to use a cast iron skillet to bring out the best
> flavoring and texture. To clean empty the wok and add a cup of water
> to heat over the range. Swirl the boiling water to dissolve the
> residual food. Chinese restaurants use a stiff bamboo whisk to
> unstick food morsels. Its unlikely you can use a whisk in a home as
> the whisk will flick dirty water outside the sink. A few quick
> swipes with a souring pad should suffice. Repeat. Rinse each time.
> Wipe with a paper towel and "burn" off the remaining rinse water
> adhering to the wok over the range. In an iron wok the residual heat
> is often enough to vaporize that dampness.