Chinese food documentary booms hand-made iron pans industry

Chinese blacksmith Feng Quanyong hammers an iron wok to produce a nonstick surface at his studio in Zhangqiu, Jinan city, east China´s Shandong province, 15 January 2018. [Photo: IC]

A popular documentary about Chinese food culture has given rise to the surge in purchases of traditional hand-made iron woks in China.

The third season of 'A Bite of China' features a workshop where woks are made by hand in the Zhangqiu district of the city of Jinan in Shandong province. The television series has brought the disappearing craft back in the public eye.

For more on this story, here's CRI's Li Yi.

83-year-old Wang Lifang is a blacksmith in Zhangqiu, a district famous for iron work since the Han Dynasty about 2,200 years ago. Wang has spent almost all his life here making handmade woks.

He said that it takes 12 different steps to make a Zhangqiu iron wok, which needs to be hammered 36,000 times until it is as clear as a mirror.

"Exactly 36,000 times. The iron wok can't be made by being hammered by one less time. If you don't treat it seriously, you will not get a good-looking wok," said Wang.

Wang's story and his experience of making handmade iron woks was featured in the newest season of A Bite of China, a food culture documentary with an audience in China of hundreds of millions of viewers.

It takes 12 different steps to make a Zhangqiu iron wok. [Photo: IC]

Liu Zimu is head of the iron wok factory featured in the documentary. He said all 2,000 woks in his workshop were sold only 10 minutes after the episode was broadcast.

"We were told that so many visitors came to our shop and pushed on the door to see if the shop was open during the Spring Festival holiday that the door was slightly broken. So we came to check if everything is okay. Visitors have been swarming into the shop since we opened the door," said Liu.

Liu Zimu's workshop has received hundreds of thousands of orders for handmade iron woks in less than 10 days since the broadcast of A Bite of China, with sales from online shop increasing by 6,000 times.

The handmade wok industry has long been threatened by the development of modern machines and has seen a shortage of qualified craftsmen.

Almost all the wok making workshops were closed about 20 years ago.

Craftsmen hammer out iron woks on Wednesday in Zhangqiu district, Jinan, Shandong province. The woks, which have boomed in popularity since they were featured on the TV show A Bite of China last month, are made using 12 steps. [Photo: China Daily]

The burst in popularity for handmade iron woks stoked by A Bite of China has shored up confidence for the industry but also has aroused concerns.

Liu Zimu said it will take the workshop two years to fulfill all the orders since there are only about 50 craftsmen working and it takes a lot of time to make an iron wok.

"I hope that people do not buy woks blindly, so that people who truly understand the charm of the creations of our craftsmen and in need of them can get access to the wok," said Liu.

The craftsmanship of blacksmiths has been listed as part of Shandong's intangible cultural heritage.