We challenged our friend, Serene, who has been raving about her light-weight cast iron wok, to test it against our Zenez ceramic-coated cooking wok.
“We’re talking portioning everything out by weight, ensuring the same settings on the hob when using the Zenez cooking wok and cast iron wok, having all ingredients cut to the same thickness as much as possible and making sure the timing taken to cook was the same.”
You can see, she took this experiment as seriously as she would with any scientific ones! Now, before we go into the details of her Zenez cooking wok review, let us give you a little background on the two cooking woks.
What is a Zenez Cooking Wok?
Zenez cooking wok is 100% made in Korea, and is coated with a non-stick ceramic-coating that is PFOA and PTFE free. This non-stick ceramic-coating means lesser oil is needed when cooking.
What is a Cast Iron Wok?
A cast iron wok takes a long time to heat up but it retains heat well. This makes it really good if you want to cook under a high heat setting. Also, its well suited to being seasoned, building a very nice non-stick surface over time.
Serene’s Zenez Cooking Wok Review
During Cooking
The Zenez cooking wok heated up faster and started smoking well under a minute while our cast iron wok took slightly longer. The Zenez cooking wok also cooked more evenly – you can see that the garlic and ginger that were fried in the cast iron wok were slightly burnt.
Main Taste Test
For the main taste test, we had bought some good ribeye which always cooked up reliably well in our cast iron wok. Within seconds, I could tell the difference – the char on the ribeye that was cooked in the Zenez cooking wok was spectacular! The beef seared and took on a beautiful and even char is less than 30 seconds. However, the high heat also meant that the sauce reduced even more quickly giving a more intense taste. On one side, we got a less charred ribeye with a milder taste to the sauce – cooked in our cast iron wok, and a better charred ribeye with an intense taste to the sauce.
Verdict
If you need to brown something quickly at high heat, Zenez cooking wok will do the job. For stewing, which requires a little more controlled simmering, the cast iron wok might be a better choice.
However, like any science researcher, I must acknowledge the experiment’s limitation. I could not use both cooking woks at once therefore I had no choice but to use one before the other. This meant that one dish had to sit out for a little bit but according to my two taste testers, the temperature of the dishes did not affect the results!
Honestly, I haven’t had this much fun in the kitchen in a while!
The original Zenez cooking wok review can be found here!
Where can I buy a Zenez cooking wok?
We have many of our readers asking where they can purchase a Zenez cooking wok. We are happy to let you know that it is available in Singapore! V-Care is the sole distributor for all Zenez non-stick cookware. You can find Zenez cookware on our online store. Alternatively, you can head down to OG Albert, OG Orchard Point and OG People’s Park to enjoy daily demonstrations by our friendly promoters.
Zenez cookware offers a range of sizes to suit your different needs. Whether you are looking cooking woks, cooking pots or frying pans, Zenez has it all!
What are your thoughts on this Zenez cooking wok review? Are you on team cast iron or team Zenez? Share it with us in the comments section below!
