Christmas present help

[juliew]

I need some advice on a Christmas present for my brother and his wife. They eat out at Chinese restaurants a lot and so I was thinking of getting them a wok, chinese (american-chinese preferably) cookbook and some spices and sauces. The spices and sauces I think I have figured out. For the cookbook I was thinking of getting Martin Yan's Feast. Has anyone ever seen it? It sounded good on Amazon and got decent reviews there. Also can anyone reccommend a good wok that doesn't cost too much? I know Cook's Illustrated said not to use them, but... I have a Calphalon from Target, but I am not too impressed. There are only two of them. I just don't want to spend $100 on this and then they never use it.

Thanks.

[Ralph]

I don't have a recommendation for a specific brand, though I see Joyce Chen's around a lot. I can't even remember who made our's since we got it so many years ago!

The latest thinking on woks (which I'd get if I needed one) are the flat-bottomed ones. You don't need one of those goofy rings underneath the wok to stabilize it on the burner. I have faint recollection that Cooking Light also prefers these; it may have been in the Cooking Class series this year when they did Chinese cuisine.

[funnybone]

I bought my sister a Joyce Chen wok last year and she thinks its great. It's a stovetop one that came with the rack and some utensils. It was about $40 at Linens 'n Things. I don't know how often she uses it, though.

One thing, I love Chinese Food, but I have no interest in cooking it myself. Are you sure they would be interested in cooking the food? There are foods I make, and foods I only eat out (most shell fish), and that is how I enjoy them the most. Just a thought.

[bijoux22]

Going with funnybones thinking that they would prefer to get takeout rather than make it themselves, how about 2 chinese looking place settings, perhaps with bamboo placemats and some cool chopsticks. Maybe even a chinese teapot with the cups. I bet a place like Pier One Imports would have some of these things.

Cheryl

[donleyk]

I was just going to agree with the Joyce Chen wok. We have owned probably 6 woks and this is the best one we have owned. I can't remember what we paid for it but it wasn't outrageous... I was willing to pay more because I wouldn't need to replace it, hopefully. I would caution you to stay away from the non stick ones. Ours wore out quickly.

[rosen]

I agree w/ Bijoux22 that the place settings might be a safer bet. I love Chinese food, but don't really want to make it. Pier One has beautiful Chinese type dishes, chop sticks, etc. This way they also are not stuck w/ a huge Wok to find someplace to store. Or how about gift certifs for their favorite places?

[juliew]

I guess I was not really thinking that by getting them this, they would completely stop going out to eat Chinese. My brother had expressed interest in getting a wok when I had gotten mine and he would live off of fried rice if he could so this way they could have simple stir frys etc. for lunch (my SIL makes my brother lunch to take to work everyday). I don't know how well Oriental type dishes would go in their relatively country kitchen and they don't know how to use chopsticks nor do they drink tea. I am just tired of getting them gift certificates and was trying to think of something a little different, but still halfway useful. I guess I will have to think about it some more.

[rosen]

Ahhh, but they have expressed an interest in a Wok & now this changes everything! I would go ahead & get them the Wok & a nice Chinese cookbook! Since they ARE interested in trying this at home....by all means go ahead & get them started! I mis-understood before...sorry!

[BarbaraL]

I had some no-name wok from Bamberger's or someplace that I absolutely loved. Then I bought a new oven; the burners were different and couldn't accommodate the "ring-thing." I bought a Joyce Chen flat-bottomed, no stick wok. I liked it, but the non-stick coating didn't last too long. It might be our fault (DH can't always be relied on to be careful which spatula he uses), but I was disappointed.
If you're brother's expressed an interest in Chinese cooking, go for it! Years ago, I gave several gifts of a wok (that came with various implements) and a great cookbook, called "The Chinese Menu Cookbook." Unfortunately, it's out of print -- it was great. It taught different Chinese cooking techniques, and suggested menus that worked together and could be prepared easily together. It also defined terms, explained ingredients and gave suggestions for substitutions for hard-to-find ingredients (I think that's where I learned you could freeze fresh ginger).

You could also include some Chinese oils, spices, etc (or a Penzey's catalog!). Happy Holidays!

[lhall]

I got DH a hammered one for Christmas about 6 years ago. We still use it, and it came with utensils. I also got him a meat cleaver, but not the nice chinese one because I didn't know about them then. Ours is not nonstick and we have not had any problems with it. I think it was $30.00

Leigh