Non-stick wok, 28 cm

The movement that makes a wok a wok

With stir-fried noodles dinner does not depend on the ingredients but on whether you can fold them together. In a flat pan the vegetables stick to the edge and the noodles sit in the middle. The curved wall of a wok drives both back to where the heat is, and a turn of the wrist is enough.

28 cm, 3.2 litres, a 7.4 cm wall

Those three numbers together are the reason to keep a wok. The 28 cm diameter gives enough surface for searing, the 7.4 cm wall holds ingredients that are being moved about, and the 3.2 litres leave room for the sauce above the noodles.

A flat base, no ring

The base is flat rather than round, so it does not rock on the hob. That detail is worth more in a European kitchen than the traditional wok shape: no ring, no balancing, you simply put it on and start. A round-bottomed wok barely touches a flat hob, and high-heat frying is decided by how hot the base of the pan is. Here the whole underside lies on the ring.

Pushed up the side

The curve of the wall does more than help with stirring. When you push the ingredients up the side you take them out of the heat without reaching for a plate: the meat rests on the slope while the vegetables brown at the bottom. In a straight-sided pan that does not work, because whatever you move aside stays on the same hot metal and keeps cooking while the other ingredient finishes.

Forged aluminium, matt outside

The wok is made from forged aluminium and its inside is protected by the brand's hard-wearing titanPro non-stick coating. What makes the shape unusual is that the flat base runs into the high wall in one curve: the cooking surface and the sloping side are a single piece, with no corner where sauce could sit.

The handle stays cool, sits ergonomically in the hand and is soft to the touch. In a wok you work continuously rather than waiting for the food to finish on its own, so the quality of the grip is not a comfort question here.

The outside is matt and the style minimalist. On this wok that means the high wall is one smooth surface all the way to the rim, with no decoration and no pattern.

titanPro coating

The brand's own hard-wearing non-stick surface. It covers the whole inside of the wok, from the base up to the wall below the rim.

Saucy noodles come out too

A soy, honey or cream finish is what usually stays behind on the bottom of a pan. From the titanPro surface the noodles go into the bowl in one piece, with nothing to scrape afterwards. The coating is hard-wearing, and in a wok that matters up the wall as well: the spoon scrapes the side with every movement, not only the base.

Washing up after a stir-fry

The wok is easy to clean. In a wok that applies to the high wall as well: splashed sauce does not bake on if the cooled pan goes into lukewarm water. An uncoated wok has to be soaked and scraped at this point; here one pass round the inside with a soft sponge does it. Wipe the root of the handle too, because that is where most of the fat runs down from the rim.

Thursday evening, twenty minutes

The wok goes on, the chicken hits hot oil, comes out, the vegetables go in, then the meat and the cooked noodles return. The sauce arrives last and you fold everything for a minute. That is all. There is no second pan on the table and none in the sink.

At the weekend the same wok carries a rice dish close to a risotto, or a large batch of fried vegetables as a side. Because of the high wall nothing lands on the hob while you stir.

Serving is rarely mentioned, yet food can go to the table in this wok: the matt outside and the clean shape do not shout on a laid table. One pan fewer ends up in the sink.

Care

• Work at moderate heat with wooden or silicone utensils.
• Leave metal spatulas and wire wool out of it; both harm the coating.
• Let it cool before it goes into water.
• A soft sponge and washing-up liquid are enough; no scouring powder is needed.
• Wipe the top third of the curved wall as well, because that is where most sauce lands.
• When storing, put a tea towel between the wok and anything stacked on top so the coating is not scratched.

Why this becomes the pan you reach for first

A wok becomes useful when it is not reserved for special occasions. This 28 centimetre size covers dinner for two and for four, it sits on an ordinary hob, and the flat base means it needs no accessory. That is all it takes for this to be the first pan you reach for on a weekday.

If you cook fast, over a high flame

Frequently asked questions

Technical data