Wok Cooking Adapted for Oriental and Western Modes

This invention relates to the art of cooking and is especially concerned with wok cooking adapted for both oriental and western modes of woking.

Cooking with a conventional wok has numerous advantages, as are well known, especially for stir frying, braising, and the like. However, the conventional wok has a rounded bottom, which makes it difficult to use the wok on a flat gas range burner grid or an electric range heating unit, or on a charcoal grill, and the like, which are conventionally flat for supporting conventional western mode flat-bottomed cooking utensils.

A principal object of the present invention is to provide for new and improved wok cooking adapted for both oriental and western modes of cooking.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved cooking method utilizing a modified wok utensil.

A further object of the invention is to provide for stir frying, braising, or the like, utilizing less oil than in conventional wok cooking, but attaining results equal to conventional wok cooking, and further improving the cooking results by draining oil from the cooked food while maintaining the cooked food at a desirable temperature.

In accordance with the principles of the present invention, there is provided a method of wok cooking in a utensil having a generally flat bottom cooking area and a generally upwardly facing food retaining shoulder means which is elevated alongside the cooking area and extends toward an upwardly extending wall, and comprising cooking food on the cooking area, and shifting cooked food from the cooking area onto the shoulder means.

For practicing this method, a new design of wok as disclosed in my copending design patent application, Ser. No. 731,774 filed May 8, 1985 may be used. Certain improvements in the utensil of that application are disclosed in the present application.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent from the following description of representative embodiments thereof, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, although variations and modifications may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the novel concepts embodied in the disclosure and in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a utensil for practicing the cooking method of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional detail view taken substantially along the line II in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the utensil of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of a modification of the utensil.

FIG. 5 is a segmental fragmentary elevational view looking toward the side wall in the utensil of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 5 but showing a further modification.

A utensil 10 as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 3, is essentially the same as one of the forms of utensils shown in my copending design patent application, and is adapted for practicing the method of wok cooking adapted for both oriental and western modes of cooking to which the present invention is particularly directed. For this purpose, the utensil 10 has a generally flat bottom area 11 and a generally upwardly facing food retaining shoulder means 12 alongside the bottom cooking area 11 and which extends toward an upwardly extending wall 13 high enough to avoid splattering and reinforced by means of a turned finishing and reinforcing upper edge bead 14. One or more suitable handles 15 may be mounted on the upper outside portion of the wall 13. In the prefered construction shown, the utensil 10 may be a spun metal structure in which the bottom wall area 11 is circular and of a diameter to rest in stable heat exchange relation upon a heating surface 17 which may be of any preferred type such as a gas burner grill, electric stove heating element, and the like. It will also be appreciated that the generally flat bottom area 11 is well adapted to be supported on a charcoal or like grill.

The shoulder 12 comprises an upwardly and radially outwardly slanting upwardly humped, cross sectionally curvate annular concentric structure continuously about the bottom area 11 and serves a dual function. It serves not only as a food retaining shoulder, but also as a food warmer/slow cooking area.

In cooking with the utensil 10, the food to be cooked, generally identified schematically at 18, is placed upon the flat bottom cooking area 11 which is in heat transfer relation to the heat source 17. Cooking oil 19 may be received on the cooking area 11. Stir frying or braising of the food 18 is then effected until the food 18 is deemed adequately cooked, and the food then being shifted as indicated at 20 onto the shoulder 12 selectively to any point about the circular area of the shoulder, which provides a convenient ramp up which the food can be slid. The pitch of the shoulder is at an angle of repose which substantially retains the food 20 against slipping back toward the cooking area 11. However, such pitch is ample to permit oil to drain, as indicated by the arrow 21, back into what is in effect a well or sump defined on the cooking area 11 within the confines of the surrounding shoulder 12. Further, the generally concave elevated undersurface of the shoulder 12 receives heat escaping from the heat source 17 and thereby provides a warming surface for the food 20 thereon.

It will be apparent that the method of wok cooking enabled by the utensil 10 has numerous advantages. The food 18 can be cooked with a minimum of oil 19 because the flat cooking area 11 permits the oil 19 to distribute over the area in a shallow depth, in contrast to a concave bottom wok where the oil tends to collect in the center and therefore a relatively larger volume of oil must be used in order to assure that adequate oil will be present for the food being cooked over the entire concave cooking area.

In a conventional concave wok, the food normally tends to return toward the lowest portion of the wok cooking area. In contrast, the food 20 supported on the shoulder 12 is retained on the shoulder and the oil advantageously drains back toward the cooking area 11. The warming facility of the shoulder 12 not only enhances oil drainage by maintaining the oil liquidity, but also maintains the food 20 warm, without any further substantial cooking effect provided the heat source 17 is properly regulated, or additional slow cooking may be effected.

The food 20 can remain on the shoulder 12 as long as desired while additional food 18 is being cooked. Continuous cooking is facilitated because cooked food is shifted from the cooking area 11 onto the retaining shoulder 12 from which the food can be served as desired without interrupting the cooking.

If there is a period of interruption in the cooking of additional food, the already cooked food 20 can be held for an extended interval on the shoulder 12 warm and ready to serve, without necessity of removing the utensil 10 from the heat source 17 which in such an interval may be regulated to reduced heat just sufficient for warming purposes. At this time a lid may be placed over the top of the utensil 10 to avoid drying out of the food 20.

In the modification of FIGS. 4 and 5, the cooking utensil 10' may, in essential respects be substantially the same as the cooking utensil 10 and identity of structure is indicated by the same reference characters as in FIG. 1. In the utensil 10', however, the retaining shoulder 12' is provided with means for improved cooked food retention and oil drainage comprising a plurality of annular humps including an inner annular hump 22 concentric with the bottom cooking area 11, and an outer annular hump 23 concentric with the inner hump 22 and joining the wall 13. At juncture of the humps 22 and 23, there is an annular ledge 24 which further facilitates retention of food on the shoulder 12'. An annular series of radially extending oil drainage grooves 25 extend across the shoulder humps 22 and 23 and drain oil from food retained on the shoulder 12' to the sump or well defined over the cooking surface 11. The concave cross section undersides of the humps 22 and 23 facilitate warming heat transfer to the food on the shoulder 12'.

In another modification of food retaining shoulder 12" as seen in FIG. 6, the shoulder has a large number, herein shown as six relatively narrow humps 27 of progressively greater diameter from the cooking surface 11 to the wall 13 in a generally stepwise fashion. There may, of course, be a greater or lesser number of the annular generally rib-like humps 27, if desired. The plurality of hump ribs 27 provides upward projection means or food retaining formations affording additional assurance of food retention. Warming heat retention is improved by virtue of the annular grooves or channels on the undersides of the hump ribs. At the upper side of each of the hump ribs 27, there is a ledge 28 which affords fairly positive cooked food retention, especially where relatively finely chopped or otherwise discrete food is being cooked and retained on the shoulder 12" for oil drainage and warming. Oil drainage is assured by means of radially extending drainage channels 29 extending across the rib humps 27 and leading out at the cooking area 11.

It will be understood that variations and modifications may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the novel concepts of the present invention.