Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

This is for those who reviewed this poorly due to "coating coming off in food" or "it rusts!"- and those who are put off by those reviews. This is a carbon steel wok. Carbon steel, like cast iron, rusts if not seasoned. To inhibit rust formation in storage/transit, it is coated with some sort of oil or wax to protect the steel until it arrives at your home. This must be removed by a thorough cleaning (many methods, but simple hot soap/water and elbow grease will get the job done, though heating the pan on the stovetop and cooking some sacrificial potato skins works pretty well, too). Check youtube... Then the pan must be dried and seasoned. Again, check youtube for a multitude of videos on how to season carbon steel pans. I do it on the stovetop (you need gas for this- electric/induction won't work well) with a neutral oil and "cook" either scallions, potato skins, ginger, etc along with a good amount of kosher salt. Keeping cooking until the oil is smoking (this is important- you have to go past the smoke point for whatever oil you are using) and the pan will start to darken. It is important to get the seasoning well up the sides of the pan. Once finished, let the pan cool before rinsing with water. Then dry it completely over a burner, wipe it down (inside and out) with a few drops of a neutral oil before storage. Next- like cast iron, don't clean with soap. This will remove your seasoning. Simply rinse with water (over heat if you need to), and gently scrape any sticky bits with a wooden/teflon utensil. Wipe out with a paper towel, dry completely over heat, and wipe with a few drops of oil while warm. Do this and your seasoning will deepen and darken over time and be truly non-stick (as long as you cook with some oil/fat, of course). Knocking this item due to rusting or the fact the protective coating wasn't removed just shows lack of education on carbon steel products. Which are awesome. Trust me. If the wok doesn't come with adequate instructions, that doesn't help matters at all, but I'll note that none of my carbon steel pans ever had usable instructions, either. YouTube is your friend.