Side by Side Comparison of: HIC Harold Import Co. vs Joyce Chen

Got this as a gift for a buddy and his wife when they moved into their first home together. They love it! I've been over several times for stir fry, pan fried noodles, and etc. The pan works great on their conventional gas stove, cleans up well, and is keeping its seasoning. It does have the flat bottom, so things tend to stick a little bit more than a fully rounded wok, but for what they needed it is great!

Great quality! I looked at several woks for a Christmas gift. Saw this one in a cooking store for much more than what was on line. I was very pleased with the quality. It has a nice heavy feel to it. Give it a good season and you are good to go! Love Helen Chen's product line! I bought many of the utensils too.

This wok is great. I decided to buy the wok after reading that an expensive wok is not necessarily a good wok.
When the wok came I took my time and scrubbed it getting the manufacturing oil out. To get a good abrasive on the wok and lid, I threw some course kosher salt in the wok with water and then scrubbed. This worked like a charm.
I have had the wok for about a month and have used it just about every day for stir fried vegetables and rice. It is now getting a beautiful black color all over; the wok hei flavor has come!
This is a good wok if you take good care of it. (Do not use soap to wash. Just scrub off any food that sticks and rinse with water. Then put back on high heat to dry the wok. If you leave it wet, rust will come.)

Buy this wok if you want a dependable wok.

I love cooking and this was an add-on Amazon special. I'll admit it was a knee-jerk, spontaneous impulse buy, but truth be told, I'd buy a box of these in a heartbeat and give 'em out to my friends.

I've had a few wooden spoons and they are typically they cheap ones you can find at a department store sold in sets for $10. This one has quickly become one of my favorite, most reached for utensils when I'm cooking. The handle is a nice length and it feels good in the hand. The spoon has a nice tapered edge design and features a pointed edge on one side. I know, we're talking about round edges, but the picture will help you out.

That edge is one of the reasons I use this spoon so much. It's nice for scraping the inside edge of a pot or pan. I'm continually surprised how much I enjoy using this spoon. It's held up well, cleans easily and I only wash my wooden spoons by hand. I've seen people throw wooden spoons in the dishwasher, but they always look beat up and the wood opens up and well, you may might as well run out and grab a branch off a tree to cook with. Take care of your cooking utensils and they'll take care of you. But for the price of a double shot late from Starbucks, you can abuse this baby and buy another one to make yourself feel better.

Very fast shipping. Received 5 days after ordering. It was packed professionally in a well padded and secure box and arrived in perfect, pristine condition.
I followed the enclosed instructions on seasoning and it worked out very well. I followed the advice of several comments by other purchasers and went on-line and Googled "How to season a wok" which brings up a vast number of sites on the subject. I read many of these which makes the seasoning process much easier to understand. There are also many with videos which is helpful as you get a visual of what to expect during the process. Grace Young's video is superb and a must see.
Once seasoned, the wok has been a joy to cook with and the results outstanding. Clean-up after cooking is a breeze. After cleaning with hot, clear water, on a couple of occasions, I intentionally did not apply a thin coat of cooking oil, as recommended, just to see if it would rust and it did not. I am convinced that those who complained of rust did not take the time to properly season. Pay particular attention to placing the wok on the sides next to the heating surface or flame.
All in all, an excellent product. A value at the price and highly recommended.

I use this wok almost daily, and the items included in the kit are wonderful, since all of my pots and pans are non-stick. The tongs are great for getting toast out of the toaster, and the wood utensils are well made. I love it, because you know that you are eating more healthy, since you can cook with water. I make a big batch of vegetables, black beans, and sauce, then put them in small Tupperware for my lunches. Great value.

Hubby & I both love to cook with this - Joyce Chen has definitely met her goal, making cooking Asian food more accessible to those of us who didn't grow up with it! We have used this wok, which is a nice solid weight, frequently & on a glass, conventional cooktop since purchasing it 8 months ago & we haven't had any issues or complaints with it.

I love this wok. I bought it due to the fact it is made out of a little thicker carbon steel than most. This extra thickness adds a little heft to the pan which helps keep it from moving all over the stove. Maybe a little heavy for those who like to do a lot of flipping your stir fry back and forth.

I have a flat top electric stove which makes it very hard to season it the traditional way. Like all carbon steel woks, seasoning is a very important 1st step before you start cooking with the wok. Proper seasoning will make the difference if you enjoy the wok or not! I read another review here suggesting using the oven method, doing it a similar way you would season a cast iron skillet.

1st I removed the factory oil per instructions. I then coated the pan, inside and out, with a light coating of canola oil (just about any high temp / high smoke point oil will do). VERY IMPORTANT TO REMOVE BOTH plastic handles! (It's very easy to remove these handles.) Pre-heat your oven to 450 degrees (this carbon steel needs more heat than your cast iron). Place pan upside down on the oven rack (may want to place foil below it to catch any oil that may drip off) and season/bake for about an hour. Let cool in the oven. Repeat this about three times, applying a light coat of oil each time. This will help put a good initial seasoned coating over your whole wok, inside and out. Of course, the more you use it the better the seasoning gets! (Photos below shows the outside and inside of the wok AFTER seasoning in the oven.)

Oh boy, bought this item on risk and get the right item. I was weighting on 1.5mm and 2.00 mm thickness, Reviews was right, 2.00mm is thicker , bit heavier and heat consume on pan more. But i feel that you may not need 2.00mm for home kitchen. My freind has 1.5mm and more easier to cook and manuever. Also on insturction of this pan was wrong, First part, you suppose to "scratch" hard to remove coating and on Second part of seasoning, you suppose to heat the pan without oil first and also missing the seasoning with some garlic and ginger. Alot of instruction on web is different that this. Also first i was doubt to buy non stick or Excalibur coating, Friend told me that these coating will flank off over time becasue cabron steel conduct more heat . I also see that somepeople complain about rust, Yes, carbon steel are easy to rust when it contact with water, and you will get this overtime no matter what, when it happen you can scratch it off easily.

I also have the 9½" and 12" versions of this pan.
I haven't had any problems with the coatings or handles with any of the pans.
I wish they offered a Joyce Chen 14" glass lid, but I haven't found one yet - I had to settle for the metal domed lid. It fits okay, but the rivet heads inside the wok kind of get in the way. A minor problem - hardly worth mentioning.
The helper handle is much appreciated.
Actual capacity: one gallon fills it up to 1" from the top.

BTW, this pan DOES work on induction cooktops.

I did seasoning as instructed online and it works great. Nothing sticks and stir fried food tastes great in it. However, it was missing dome lid screw. So I can't even use the dome and there's no customer service contact. Don't know where to contact to get the missing screw.Bummed about that.

I love this Bamboo stir fry spoon. It's a great shape and I've used it for multiple purposes. I gave it 4 instead of 5 stars because the front edge and about 1/2 inch down has become rough and porous even though I use Totally Bamboo Revitalizing oil on it. If the manufacturer could fine polish this and seal this area, that would be great. Even so, I do recommend it.

Right handed. Due to the shape of the spoon itself, as well as the shape of the handle, this is a right-handed stirring spoon. It's not too big in your hands (although I have big hands), but if you're a lefty like me, you're going to have some awkwardness. That said, the edge of the tip is "sharp" enough to scrape up little browned bits from the bottom of the pan, as well as not damaging your nonstick cookware.

I've had this wok for about a year now. It's easily been my most used kitchen pan in that time and seen some heavy use, stir frying and deep frying very well. I've used it on a grill to some success as well. If you only anticipate using a wok once in a while, this would most likely suit your needs. If however you use it everyday like I did, you may want to look elsewhere. The bamboo handles do eventually fall apart. I've had to peen the rivets once or twice to get the handles sturdy, the cast ring at the front of the main handle is long gone and I've had to shorten the threaded rod that holds said handle a couple times. It's just worn out. I'd say I probably got my money's worth and will be investing in a new wok soon.

This only problem with this wok is the poor quality lid, but it's a major flaw. The knob on top of the lid is fixed in place by a long screw that comes in from the bottom. However, the plastic of the knob is too weak to hold the screw in place, so the knob isn't firmly fixed on the glass lid (i.e., turning the screw will never tighten to the point where you can't turn it anymore). Since the rest of the lid is heavy glass, the knob came off several times and I ended up throwing out the lid because it was a heavy piece of glass just waiting to shatter on the ground. But I haven't had any problems with the wok itself after a month of using it.

I initially got the classic series. But then changed my mind an got this. I truly love it, because
1. Light weight still sturdy
2. Handles help a lot and does not get hot while cooking
3. 14" is the ideal size for cooking for 4 people

Following are the steps I used:
1. Boiled 7 to 8 cups of water. Scrub the inside and outside of wok thoroughly in warm soapy water to move the chemical coating.
2. Heat the wok, add 1 tbsp oil and evenly rub it on the inside surface and keep it on med heat for 8 to 10 mins.
3. Let it cool and repeat this process 3 times. A golden layer will form on the inside of the wok. This is the non stick layer.

After you use the wok for cooking. Scrub in warm water until you remove the residues. Once you clean it, heat up the wok until it dries completely. Rub 1.5tsp oil on the inside and store.

This is a wonderful wok. I am new to stir fry and I have really used this wok. Easy to clean, nice flat bottom and even comes with a recipe book,. I looked at a lot of woks before buying this one. I would recommend this wok. Thank you Joyce Chen.

Love it. It's heavy duty, and doesn't get scratched up like my other wok used to. It's very heavy-duty - emphasis on heavy. Stir-frying with this wok is a workout on its own - it feels like I'm both lifting some light weights, and cooking. (Good or bad, depending on how fit you are, and whether you'd rather do some weight-lifting while you cook to knock out two birds with one stone.)

The review gets only 4 stars because the plastic handles seem more likely to melt under heat, the handles aren't as grippy (and the one of the far side isn't as wide) as was I would have liked. Besides that, this thing is virtually flawless. The flat bottom is very good if, like me, you live in an apartment where you only have electric stoves rather than natural gas as your only option. It makes stir-frying a bit trickier, but at least with this thing you can still do it on an electric stove. (Ideally a more curved bottom where the food goes would be better, but you need the metal that contacts the stove on the bottom to be flat for it to conduct heat well on an electric stove.)

This wok is great. I use it on a gas burner and sometimes on a ring on my charcoal grill when I need really high heat. The manufacturer's coating came off easy with a scouring pad. I seasoned it a few times and have been cooking with it since. After a dozen or so meals, it's practically nonstick. It's well made and works flawlessly; however, If I had to buy it again, I would get a model without the extra handle. It just seems to burn and get in the way. I also think the long handle could be riveted to the body a little better. If this is your first wok, I highly recommend the cookbook The Breath Of A Wok. It explains how to season and cook in your wok..

It heated up as well. It does require to be seasoned. The texture inside is a problem. It is rough which means using a paper towel to help clean it between uses doesn't work. It shreds the paper towel. The good part meats or vegetables pushed to the side as you add something else to the bottom to cook stay there. I like using it I just hate cleaning it. I always used to clean with a bamboo brush but because of the texture in here I am afraid to try that on here.

Disappointed with this wok, I had very high hopes but it's been such a hassle. I followed instructions and seasoned with 4 rounds of oil, cooling between each time. On my first use it rusted and has been impossible to fully get out. I scrubbed the thing so much to no avail. I say screw it and I just leave the rust as is. Then I seasoned it again, this time with 5 rounds of oil. AGAIN it rusted even more. The warranty doesn't cover rusting because it's not a defect. This wok is definitely not worth it.

Since I'm a chef I could always use another wooden spoon. I typically use this with stir fry because of the wide bottom. I did try it on a batch of caramel, but won't be doing that again.... it had a tendency to flake off slivers of bamboo. I will state that doesn't happen with normal use, though now that I've started the flaking off, I don't know how well its going to hold up.

Hand wash.

I purchased the Helen Chen's bamboo spoon and was very happy with it, so I thought I'd get the spatula. However I'm disappointed that the spatula isn't as nice as the spoon. The finish isn't as smooth as the spoon, in fact there was a piece of wood chip that came off the surface. Which makes me concerned about using it (I don't want wood chips in my food). It's also heavier and more bulky than I expected. I considered returning it, but it doesn't seem worth it for what I paid. I probably won't buy any more unless I just wanted another spoon.

The actual wok is fine - it's a nice thickness and heats up well. The bamboo handles are totally awful. Not only are they bamboo - which is like the cheapest possible wood and actually conducts heat so you can burn yourself on them - but they aren't even "solid" bamboo, they are glued-together small pieces of bamboo. This means that they will start coming un-glued during seasoning (especially if you season in the oven - even when you protect the handles w wet washcloths). I've owned this wok for less than a month and already the handles are coming apart and splintering. I don't want to go through the whole seasoning thing again so I'm just dealing with a constant fear of splinters, but if I had it to do again, I might get a different wok that has better handles (preferably removable ones if made from wood).

Pros
Thick metal with good heat retention and distribution.

Cons
Handle rivets started loosening after a few months. I was able to tighten them but this shouldn't happen in the first place.

Notes
I tried seasoning with pure flaxseed oil and had issues with peeling and flaking. In the end, it was easier to just start cooking with it and let the seasoning build up instead of coating it and baking it in the oven. Just make sure to dry on the stove and wipe with oil after each use.

Have not used yet, but was very difficult to remove the factory coating. Boiled water and scrubbed twice. I have seasoned on my electric stove top and 5 times in oven (after removing handles), and am going to season one last time on my outdoor gas crawfish boiler stove. I'll update after a few uses.

Throw away after two months use. I cook for two adults daily and live in a New York apartment. This is too large and heavy for my purpose. The seasoning is also a pain. I tried to follow the comments here - steel wool to remove the hard to see "plastic" surface and season with flex seed oil. Made the apartment full of smook by seasoning five times but the layer is lost within three days. is very HARD to make it "black". But - the large wok enable me to do some large batch of stir fry so does has its use. I finally throw it and bought a 30cm steel wok from Alibaba's online store. The wok plus shipping fee is under $30 and seasoning is super easy.

I loved this wok at first but perhaps I didn't season it properly. The first initial seasoning took a long time. I followed steps left by another reviewer on here. It stunk up my house so bad I had to open the back door and several windows. That being said the first few weeks of use it was great I used this every day. After that it seemed my seasoning was wearing off as the food was sticking like crazy. I had to use steel wool to scrub off the coating and re-season. This took a lot of elbow grease and it seems to be lasting a little longer this time. Like I said I am new to seasoning pans so this may be user error but its more work than I expected. The food cooked in the wok is great! Cooks evenly and fast.

The wok dish itself is definitely quality material, but the handles are not. Through my many attempts at seasoning, the smaller plastic(?) grip handle came off (most likely due to heat). Also if you're new to seasoning like me, I cannot recommend this wok - I had a friend recommend after the fact that it's best to get a carbon steel wok with detachable handles because you can consistently rub an even coat of oil through the wok, flip it upside down and set it in an oven to get an evenly distributed seasoning.

I know the plastic handles of this wok can withstand heat (eg it won't melt, just come loose), but I'm unsure if they can withstand whatever temperature is required of an oven to perform seasoning.

I am not sure if this is normal for a wok but used the wok ONE time and dried it out after seasoning and using it and now it is rusting. It has a thin layer of rust colored powder throughout the inside. I had thought I dried it very well after reading other reviews about it rusting but evidently I somehow needed to dry it more.As for using it, it worked perfectly fine. If a wok is meant to rust and you need to reclean it alot maybe it deserves more stars but I certainly didn't expect it to rust after one use.

Spoon split at spatula end soon after purchase. Would not purchase again.

Expected high carbon steel and not so much scrubbing before seasoning. Will update after the prep and use. Do not mind seasoning and do this with all my cast iron pans. This so far is not what I expected. Since this was a gift and after looking at several products I choose this. I hope the quality is better than it appears.

My husband is our chef, and loved this product at first. The lack of ribbing on the sides makes it much easier to clean than traditional woks, and it's very large-- all the better if you like a lot of vegetables in your stir-fry.But less than a year after purchasing it, the non-stick coating started to peel off, which now makes the wok worthless. We've had to throw it out. That's a first.Save your money.

Some time ago, I've stopped buying non-stick because the coating always end up wearing off and it doesn't make sense to keep paying for a new non-stick every time. But some foods are just plain sticky and cast-iron or carbon steel just doesn't cut it. So I was expecting based on the good reviews and the premium grade "Excalibur" coating that it would be different this time and I went for it after a long hiatus.I've owned this wok for a little over a year now, and it's now showing signs of the non-stick peeling off. I probably use it more often (cooking two meals a day with it) than the casual cook would. It just doesn't stand up well to heavy use despite being careful in using only a nylon spatula and careful washing. Back it goes and back to carbon steel for me, until some day when they can come up with a truly non-stick wok that won't peel.So I would say go for it if you are a casual cook, as it seemed to stand better than the lower grade non-stick woks out there.

I bought this wok based on the good reviews and attractive design. I've had it for 6 months now and the bamboo helper handle has dried out and fallen apart in pieces literally. Lesson learned - I would recommend buying the plastic handle woks instead of these glued bamboo handles especially if you use high heat for stir frying.It's not worth the shipping for warranty and have it rejected to say that it's been abused due to using high heat, which is how you are suppose to cook with a wok anyway. Additionally, I don't want to bother going through trouble of re-seasoning a new wok again.The exposed helper handle is actually composed of two L-shaped metal pieces with a gap in-between them instead of one solid U-shaped handle. so it loosely rotates a little and is rendered useless without the bamboo wrapped around it - bad design I'd say. For now, I've made a fix by wrapping a makeshift pipe around those two metal pieces to serve as a handle.I would never buy wooden handle cookware, especially glued bamboo types, again.

The coating IS difficult to remove. You need to use fine grit sandpaper and then wash well with hot soapy water before seasoning. This pan bottom warped on me during the very first use. I have returned this pan.

I did all I could to season my wok, and did it so so many times. Better ask a chef to help you bc the fire from our kitchen it's not enough

The metal steamer support started to corrode after the second use, the wok is Ok so far.

Spent an hour seasoning it. Then noticed that the handle was loose. FYI, the handle is attached to the wok with only 2 rivets. Other woks have 3 or 4 rivets. Returned it and bought another brand.

The carbon steel itself is ok however both handles are poorly attached with rivets and are loose. The long handle should have 4 rivets securing it. I was afraid welding on such thin material might burn through so I got some high temperature cold weld and sanded the hand attachment and applied the weld. The handle now is secure for the time being. Disappointed, could have been much better product with a little more attention to design.

So disappointed. Impossible to remove the lacquer off of this wok. I will try to find a hammered wok, that is not spun, and is treated with mineral oil, not covered in excessive amounts of lacquer. I want a refund, useless to cook with it, unable to properly season.

Used three times.every time when I finish,I use hot water to clean. There always are some gray stuff come off from the wok , not sure what it is, returned.

cheaply made and thin. I returned and bought a Walmart one at less than half the price and was made of a much thicker carbon steel branded IMUSA. This one even stained my brand new induction Tio from the coating it has. I do not recommend

Returning this, not safe to cook with. Very poor quality, as little pieces of wood are sticking out. Think of cheap chopsticks that you have to rub together to get rid of the tiny pieces of wood sticking out.

I have got this wok couple weeks ago and I don't like it at all. After first cooking there is rust on the wok.

For 2.5 yrs of used not frequently, i must say the down fall i have is my wok i starting to show visible of rust. Not safe to use anymore

The handles on this wok melt. As I was seasoning the wok the handles started melting over medium heat and releasing the terrible smell of burning plastic. If you are thinking about getting this wok, get the one with wooden handles, you will thank yourself later.

It rusts!!!! Nothing special. Dont waste your money

Poor. Bent in just second use. Had to throw in recycle

Well, it was looking pretty good until I tried to put the small handle back on after seasoning the wok. I had taken it off because I seasoned the wok over a high propane flame and didn't want to melt the plastic handle. After it was seasoned, I tried to screw the small handle back on and the screws just spun and didn't tighten. On top of that, I can't UNscrew the screws..... they're jammed in. Seriously, I know how to screw and unscrew..... and this is just garbage! I'm not sure if a plastic handle is all that good if you're going to be using this on a high BTU propane flame. I had ordered one for my mom, also, and the handle is loose. I think I'm going to go buy a solid metal wok at the san francisco wok store. Disappointing. If not for the crappy handles, seems like a nice wok.

Before I begin I just wanted to give a little insight, I am a culinary arts student who recently found a huge respect for the art of Wok Hei. Upon extensive research, I found that the only way to even closely resemble authentic Asian cookery at home would be through the use of a properly seasoned carbon steel wok. $30 for a simple bowl of carbon steel is not cheap, our school uses 12" woks that cost a mere $15 a piece and we had them for about 4 years; thus I assumed this would be a quality wok.

I received the wok and I was actually surprised at the thickness of the material, its thicker than a standard Cantonese style wok. This material is perfect for standard western home kitchens as it helps retain some heat when you add fresh product for cooking, minimizing recovery time.

So I received the wok and seasoned it until it was perfectly black, after the seasoning process concluded (about an hour of a smoke filled house) I noticed the handle got worryingly loose. The cheap little ALUMINUM (are you kidding) rivets began working their way out. I thought this was a fluke, so I contacted amazon and they quickly sent me a replacement. The second wok handle felt secure and in-place, so I proceeded with another hour of seasoning, and once again the handle got ridiculously loose, even more than the first.

Woks are supposed to last a lifetime, and the value of the wok comes from the quality of the patina you buildup over years of cooking. What good is a wok if you have to replace it all the time because the handle falls off?

In the end its a good wok, but its NOT WORTH THE HASSLE. The two cheap aluminum rivets ruin everything. Next wok I buy I will head to Chinatown and buy an authentic, quality wok.
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For those leaving one star reviews because of rusting issues, you need to understand that a carbon steel needs to be properly seasoned. These types of high carbon alloys will rust from the sheer moisture in the air, thus the reason you are advised to scrub the wok before seasoning, as its coated in a oily wax to prevent this issue. The directions aren't very clear as to how to properly season it, but here is my method I use and it work's perfectly. [Note: If you don't have a gas stove with a burner with at-least 10,000 BTU, this wont work that well. If you have an electric stove, don't even bother with this method, do it at a friends home.]

1. Scrub the wok with hot (as hot as you can stand) soapy water. Use a stainless steel scrubbing pad, note that scotch pads or abrasive sponges wont work, you really need to scrub the surface with a metallic sponge. Scrub the inside and outside very thoroughly, you will smell a metallic chemical smell, this is the coating coming off. Place the wok onto high heat, and add about 2/3 full of a wok of hot water and boil for 5 minutes. Drain and scrub/ clean again.

2. immediately dry the wok and place it on a high, emphasis on high here, gas burner. The wok will turn black near the burner, keep turning the wok so it gets black on all sides, cover the helper handle with a soaking wet paper towel to prevent the wood from burning.

3. After the wok is completely black, you might see some areas with a sticky residue, these areas you did not remove the factory wax well enough. Scrub these areas again. If your wok looks perfectly black in a single toned sheen, proceed to the next step.

4. Add a touch of oil to a small bowl & dip in a folded paper towel, using a paper towel held with a pair of tongs, carefully spread the oil onto the hot wok, outside and inside. It should begin to smoke upon contact with the oil. Your oil shouldn't drip and pool, just enough to cover and give a nice sheen. Return to flame, turning to heat evenly.

5. After the wok stops smoking add another sheen of oil as in step 4. Repeat about 5 times.

6. Your wok should now be completely black and almost ready for use. After the wok cools a bit, take a medium onion with about a 1/2 cup of oil and sir fry until the onions get a very, very deep brown, (est 10 min on medium high) making sure you spread the oil to all the sides. Now just drain and discard the oil and onion. Wipe with a paper towel & your ready to WOK!