Steaming is a method of cooking using steam. This is often done with a food steamer, a kitchen appliance made specifically to cook food with steam, but food can also be steamed in a wok. In the American southwest, steam pits used for cooking have been found dating back about 5,000 years. Steaming is considered a healthy cooking technique that can be used for many kinds of foods.
Traditional rice steamers in Laos
Two types of steaming vessels, metal and wood with bamboo
A simple hearth with a metal pan holding two wooden steaming vessels and a wooden lid used in Japan
A makeshift steaming vessel with lid removed; a frozen dish is placed on a metal frame in a single handled wok with water.
A wok is a deep round-bottomed cooking pan of Chinese origin. It is believed to be derived from the South Asian karahi. It is common in Greater China, and similar pans are found in parts of East, South and Southeast Asia, as well as being popular in other parts of the world.
A wok being used for stir frying
A wok (left) and karahi on a Western-style gas stove. Note that the karahi is sitting on an ordinary burner cover, while the round-bottomed wok is balanced on a wok-ring.
A stick-handled flat-bottomed "Peking pan". While the surface looks like Teflon, it is actually well-seasoned carbon steel
An oiled kawah being preheated on a makeshift gas stove
