If you are new to Chinese cooking, then you better refer to this guide on various cookware needed to prepare Chinese Recipes. The Chinese use a variety of cookware but the 3 basic types are – Wok, Chinese spatula and Bamboo steamer. The wok, is the most multipurpose Chinese cookware, it looks like a hybrid of a huge pan and a hollow dish. Wok was traditionally constructed of iron or clay; however, nowadays it is not uncommon to see Teflon coated or anodized woks. Woks are generally used for deep frying, shallow frying, stir-frying, steaming, boiling, and simmering food. A Chinese spatula looks like a bowl attached to a long handle. This spatula is a great device when cooking low fat recipes like stir-fry vegetables or chow-mien. Some people also use it for chopping garlic, shredding cabbage, and cracking water chestnuts. Last but not the least bamboo steamer is basically a flat, broad, wired mesh attached to a long bamboo handle. The mesh is place on the wok for steaming various foods. It may also be used to scoop out deep fried food from the wok.
