The term 'pan in Chinese cookery' can be summarized as a cooking vessel used to stir-fry food. The three-letter crossword solution for this term is 'wok'. A wok is a round-bottomed cooking vessel originating from China, and is used in many East Asian cuisines. It is typically used for stir-frying, deep-frying, steaming, braising, poaching, and boiling. Woks come in various sizes and are made from different materials such as carbon steel, cast iron, and stainless steel.