13” Carbon Steel Wok by Babish with flat bottom and durable rust resistant finish

I was excited when I saw this flat bottomed carbon-steel wok made by Babish. Let me first tell you, this review is coming from a guy who takes his stirfry seriously! I have a 13” round bottom carbon steel wok and an outdoor wok burner but I recently got an induction cooktop and I’ve been looking for cookware that I can use with it. I needed a good flat bottom carbon steel wok. I know from watching Babish’s work when he started his YouTube channel that he takes what he does seriously, so I figured if he put his name on this wok then it must be a good one.
This wok has actually surpassed my expectations, I’m extremely impressed. Firstly, it’s a nice all-around sized wok at 12.5”, suitable for a single person or a small family. The removable wooden handle has a nice looking finish and has a metal loop at the end for hanging. This also serves as the screw that keeps the handle secured in place. There is no wiggle whatsoever. Very well made. At the other end there is an additional metal handle for when you have a full load of food to carry to the table. (Use a towel to protect from the heat!) What’s different about this wok is that it has a rust resistant finish that not only protects the surface of the carbon steel from rusting, but absorbs oil to make seasoning easier. It’s not a typical “nonstick” surface. This is a durable, metal-utensil-safe coating. Unlike a typical nonstick surface, this surface can be seasoned like a cast iron pan or a carbon steel wok. Take note, the first time I used this wok, I didn’t preseason it, I just got it hot, added some oil and got stir-frying. It did okay, not as slick as a seasoned wok but it wasn’t nearly as bad as a non-seasoned steel wok. This rust resistant surface still benefits from a good seasoning though. I’d recommend seasoning like you would any carbon steel wok for a super slick surface. Either way, it will get more slick with repeated use and proper cleaning (no soap, towel dry).
The wok heated up quickly on my induction stove top and the oil was smoking fast. I was a little concerned whether it could really handle a steel utensil like a wok turner but I went for it. I did some stirfry rice noodles and tested it with a couple fried eggs. I really got in there, turning and scraping the wok with the metal utensil and after stir frying and cleaning, there wasn’t a single scratch. It handled the steel wok turner beautifully. I don’t know what the surface is, but it’s amazing. I’m very impressed. So, now that I understood what kind of surface I was dealing with, I wanted to season it properly. I removed the handle and began the seasoning process like I would with any carbon steel wok.
Lightly oil and heat it as high as your oven will go for an hour and repeat this process 3 or four times for a nice protective slick surface. I show that in the video so you can see how it turned out. After seasoning it, I heated it up on my outdoor burner this time, and made a quick fried rice to break-in the seasoning. By the time the rice was done, the surface was perfectly slick and nonstick. This is a great wok. The versatility of the shape of the wok makes it a perfect cooking utensil. If you like steaming foods in your wok, a bamboo steaming basket fits nicely with about an inch underneath for the water. Suitable for aggressive stir fry to steaming veggies or making rice or soup. If I were traveling, I would bring this wok with me. It’s well made, durable, versatile, and just a beautiful piece of cookware. This really is a great wok, I highly recommend it.