The YOSUKATA Carbon Steel Wok Pan isn’t your average stir-fry pan. It’s a flat-bottomed beauty that boasts a unique blend of tradition and innovation, crafted from heavy-duty carbon steel for lightning-fast heat distribution and a naturally non-stick surface.
In this article, I’ll address some of the great features of this versatile pan, from its pre-seasoned readiness to its compatibility with all stovetops, as well as address some of its drawbacks.
An Authentic Workhorse of a Wok
Most home-use woks are cheap, flimsy affairs that will never let you craft restaurant-quality stir-fries at home. If you want to achieve the smoky, caramelized flavors of authentic Asian cuisine at home, you need some quality steel.
The YOSUKATA Carbon Steel Wok Pan is that kind of workhorse. With it, you can unlock a world of culinary possibilities, from fiery Kung Pao chicken to delicate Pad See Ew, all from your humble home kitchen.
16 Gauge Carbon Steel
The Yosukata is made of 16 gauge, 1 mm thick heavy-duty carbon steel promising excellent heat retention and distribution. This is achieved not only through the quality of the material but also through a gradual change in thickness from the bottom up to the edges.
This gradual but even change helps the heat spread through the wok consistently and evenly, eliminating hot spots or uneven heating of the pan.
- GENUINE TASTE: Discover the rich, authentic flavors of Chinese and other Asian cuisines in your own home. The Yosukata 13,5 inch wok with flat bottom is specially designed to lock the juice and flavor inside ingredients. Our outdoor wok is conveniently designed for use as a camping wok, wok BBQ, grill wok
- PRE-SEASONED: Our carbon steel wok is pre-seasoned at high temperatures over 600F using special technics unlike unseasoned woks and stir fry pans. Still require full seasoning with oil like any Chinese wok
- HIGH-QUALITY MATERIALS: This large wok pan is made from heavy-duty, black carbon steel. The ergonomic design of the wooden handle ensures a comfy grip when you use this pow wok
- VERSATILITY: In addition to stir-frying, with the Yosukata carbon wok pan, you can cook healthy meals using various traditional cooking techniques like pan-frying, braising and deep-frying
- EASY HANDLING and STORAGE: Our steel wok is convenient to carry and easy to store
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Pre-Seasoned For Your Convenience
What’s more, the wok comes pre-seasoned using high temperatures over 600F. This is a big advantage as with carbon steel, you have to season the pan in a similar way to a cast iron pan. The black carbon steel 99% iron. Seasoning such a wok would be, to put it plainly, a pain in the butt!
It can be hard to achieve a non-stick surface and you may need to season a pan several times, coating it with oil and heating it in cycles. Although the makers state that you still need to season the pan like any Chinese or Japanese wok, the pre-seasoning should make it a lot easier to get the pan ready to go.
This way, you can at least skip some of the oiling and heating and get right to get right to the important stuff, the cooking. Given that, some reviewers, having not noticed the instruction to season the pan, were able to cook a fried egg right out of the box with no problem (using oil, of course).
The thick gauge carbon steel heats up quickly and evenly. It retains the heat for long periods of time. This is what you need to create authentic Asian stir-fries an other wok-based dishes.
Users report that food tends to slide right off and it’s easy to clean.
The wok also addresses another common problem with cheap home woks. It has a flat bottom instead of a rounded bottom with a bowl shape.
Flat-Bottom to Fit Any Heat Source
Tradiatinal woks have a rounded bottom. This helps distribute heat evenly and allows less oil to to be used. However, the traditional round-bottom wok doesn’t fit well with modern American appliance. The Yosukata has a flat bottom that eliminates the need for a wok stand.
The flat bottom is a more traditional shape for home cooking and makes it much more compatible with your home gas stove, but also electric stove-tops. To put it simply, you can actually get the heat to the wok without having to have a flame that shoots practically to the ceiling and having an extra piece of equipment to keep the wok from wobbling dangerously.
And, it even works with induction stovetops and ceramic cooktops!
The main wok handle is 5.5 inches long and made of heat-resistant wood, providing insulation against the heat. You’ll never be burned by the handle when grabbing this pan.
There are no rivets to hold on the handle like on some cheap woks. The handle base is welded strongly to the outside without affecting the inner surface of the wok.
Basic Features
♦ size: 13.5 inches wide and 3.15 inches deep (other sizes available)
♦ weight: 3.6 pounds
♦ color: black
Pros:
- High quality steel to last a lifetime
- Heats up quickly and evenly
- Preseasoned and easy to clean
- Versatile
- Durable
- Works on gas, electric, ceramic, induction, grill, and open flame
Cons:
Some users feel that the handle is a bit awkward to hold. As well, at 3.6 pounds, some feel that it is a bit heavier than expected. This, however, may be expected from those used to cheap, thin-walled woks. Also, some reviewers dislike the ‘coating.’ The coating is an oil seasoning and not a non-stick surface based on Teflon.
Overall, the YOSUKATA Carbon Steel Wok is not only a well-made and versatile wok but one of the most affordable choices for a home-cook who wants a truly durable and reliable wok that will last through the decades.