Wok Hei

In the cuisine of Cantonese restaurants in China and North America, "wok hei" is a special smoky flavor and aroma, usually translated as "wok breath". It is produced by extremely high temperatures combined with tossing the food through flames. In China, this method is characteristic of Guangzou (Canton) and is little known elsewhere in China. It is a restaurant cuisine, not used in homes, even in Guangzou.   Photo by JimmysWG licensed under Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike v3.0 unported.

This style of cooking is also quite popular with patrons of Chinese restaurants in North America. This is the result of nearly all early Chinese restaurants In North America being owned and operated by people from the Canton region, and the method became traditional here.

Unless you have a restaurant stove producing obscene BTUs, high ceilings, and have developed the skill of tossing things high through the flames, this style is impractical for home cooking. Even the highest priced home stoves can't do it. On the other hand, J. Kenji Lopez-Alt has developed a method to produce the same effect in a way practical for home cooking. This is possible as the smoky flavor and aroma actually come from burnt oil. The steps below follow his method.

Wok Hei at Home

Your will need:"

1. A Wok. This should be a sheet steel model as it is the best kind for high temperature frying. Tri-ply woks heat slowly and are hard to clean after high temperature frying. A non-stick Wok is completely out of the question. 13 inches (23 cm) is about the minimum practical size for a wok, with the standard 14 inches (36 cm) able to do larger batches.
2. A Wok Shovel. For a sheet steel wok you can use a metal shovel, which gives you the best control.
3. A Kitchen Torch, preferably with the yellow Map Gas bottle.
4. A Rimmed Baking Sheet. This can be a quarter sheet (13 x 9 inches - 33 x 23 cm) for modest batches, or for bigger batches from a 14 inch wok, a half sheet (18 x 13 inches - 46 x 33 cm).

Procedure

1. Prepare your ingredients as usual for stir fry, making pieces as close to uniform same size as you can.
2. Heat your Wok to smoking temperature and stir in the needed amount of oil. Stir in ingredients in the order specified and stir fry normally up to the point of adding the sauce.
3. Spill the Wok contents onto a baking sheet, spreading to a single layer, or as close as you can get.
4. Fire up the Torch and play the flame back and forth over the food in a leisurely manner.
5. Heat the Wok back up over high flame. Pour the contents of the pan back into the Wok and go on to the saucing step.