I want to make stir fry and fried rice. Stupid question, but should I cook it in a wok, or can I pull off the same quality in a cast iron skillet? What are the benefits of woks if I want to invest in one?
>>7252963
Cast iron skillet is fine.
Woks are obsolete really, waste of money.
>>7252963
You need heat and lots of it. The average gas stove in homes is about 7,000 BTUs. A good wok burner will push you up to 130,000 BTUs and more.
And since you're going to be cooking on a wok burner, then a wok is the right choice.
But if you just want to make shitty stir fries, then by all means do it your way.
>>7252967
Please don't give advice if you are not qualified to do so. Thanks.
>>7252981
:^)
>>7252981
Too easy.
>>7252985
>>7252993
You can use a skillet.
The only issues I ever have is when I try to use rice that's only a day old, or so, as it still has a lot of moisture and can want to stick to the pan. Rice that's been in the fridge for 3 or more days always turns out good.
>>7253134
>can never do this because any little bit of leftover rice I leave in the fridge my mom inhales
>>7252978
Basically this. Good fried rice requires some serious heat. It also requires being tossed, which is difficult to do with the heavy weight and flat shape of a skillet
On the other hand, Woks require an actual fire--either gas or over charcoal/wood/etc. If you don't have that then you have no choice but to use a flat skillet, in which case you'll have to make an approximation of the dish instead.
>>7253153
I have a wok, but nothing to burn it on at the moment, I inherited it recently. Is it worth it to get a fire pit for it? I use a charcoal grill, so I usually have charcoal on hand at any given time.
>>7253167
Not in my opinion. If you want to buy something that lets you use the wok easier then I'd suggest a "turkey fryer" burner like pic related. They are less expensive and easier to use than an actual fire. I posted the pic with the grill to illustrate that you can do that in a pinch if you already have the grill (which many people do).
>>7253180
Thanks! I'll keep this in mind
>>7253167
You can use the charcoal grill.