I've been pondering getting a rice cooker since I do tend to make quite a bit of rice...and I know that one does not NEED a rice cooker to do this but I'm thinking it might make it more convenient and with more consistant results.
Does anyone here use one? If so, what kind do you use and do you like it?
I've been looking at many kinds ranging from ones as simple as an on/off switch to ones with fuzzy logic systems. I'd like one that will work with white rice to brown rice.
Any suggestions are welcome.
Thanks.
Posted by katharina (Member # 827) on :
I have one, and I use it to steam vegetables as well. I doubt it's the best, but it was in the grocery store for less the $20, so we had a winner.
Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
I have one, I love it! I would never do rice again without it!
I'm a horrible cook -- I could never cook rice correctly until I got a rice cooker from an Asian friend of mine as a gift. Makes it so easy -- even my kids use it all the time.
Farmgirl
(I don't know the make/model of mine because I'm at work at it is at home. But I will look later and let you know)
[ April 26, 2004, 02:46 PM: Message edited by: Farmgirl ]
Posted by Zevlag (Member # 1405) on :
Rice cookers are awesome. An absolute must have. Just about any rice cooker works. Even the cheap ones usually have very nice results.
Posted by Telperion the Silver (Member # 6074) on :
Gods that sounds yummy...
Posted by Cor (Member # 4295) on :
Icarus has one...perfect rice every time. I don't know the brand, though. I'll try to remember to ask him when I get home tonight.
Posted by Traveler (Member # 3615) on :
Cool.. Thanks all. The brand I'm leaning towards right now is Zojirushi. I haven't narrowed down to a specific model yet. The geek in me wants the fuzzy logic type...but I'm trying to be good and limit my inner-geek's influence.
Posted by Shigosei (Member # 3831) on :
You can cook rice without a rice cooker? Seriously though, we always use a rice cooker at my house. Dump the rice and water in, push the button, and wait. It's so simple, even I can cook it!
Posted by jexx (Member # 3450) on :
I love my rice cooker!
Mine is the simple on/off switch kind--was about fourteen dollars--and I don't usually make anything but plain white rice in it. Occasionally, I go a little nuts and make Spanish Rice, but I have to judge the fluid/solid ratio by eye and sometimes it's not quite right. The cooker came with a cookbook, but I can't find it.
I LOVE my rice cooker!
Posted by Ayelar (Member # 183) on :
Lol, do I ever have opinions about rice cookers!!
I got this rice cooker off of Amazon (for 2/3rds of the asking price, btw), and I couldn't be happier. Here's my epinions.com review.
quote:I've been trying to eat better lately, and I've found that rice is a very filling and nutritious food for how many calories it has. And it's so versatile! I started with a few pounds of white Basmati rice, which I loved, and would cook in a small sauce pan. It would boil over and be a pain to clean, but it worked pretty well.
When my fiance finally convinced me that brown rice would be better for me, I bought a bag of brown Basmati and tried cooking it in the same sauce pan. Ugh, what a pain! Brown rice apparently takes at least twice as long to cook as white rice, and I didn't want to stand over the stove for an hour watching to make sure it didn't make a mess. I inevitably ended up taking the rice out too soon, which meant it was crunchy and gross.
So, I started shopping around for a rice cooker. I'd had one as a kid, one of those cheapo ones with the aluminum pot and the glass lid. I knew I didn't want one of those, because rice always burnt to the bottom, and it was horrible to clean. Plus they still boil over and make a mess!
I finally decided on the Sanyo 3.5 cup fuzzy logic rice cooker, and I just love it. Here's why:
• The pot is REALLY THICK. This isn't some cheap piece of tin, this is a serious chunk of metal. It distributes heat really well, which means no burnt rice on the bottom. Important when you're only cooking a cup of rice, you don't want to waste half of it. • The pot is non-stick, and a really high-quality non-stick. Every grain just falls right out of the pot, no work needed. I love it! • No mess! It's got an inner lid and an outer lid, and no way is anything ever going to come out of the cooker unless I want it to. Any mess stays neatly within the cooker. • Excellent controls, very easy to follow the directions. I had no trouble at all figuring out how to use it the first time. • It looks really cool. And if I ever want to carry a rice cooker around with me, it has a built-in handle and retractable cord. • Timer-delayed cooking is just so cool. You can toss some water and some rice in the pot in the morning, tell it when you want it to be ready, and it does the rest! Just last night, I set it before I went to bed, and woke up to a perfect pot of rice to bring to work for lunch. And the house smells so good while it's cooking!
And best of all, it has different settings for different kinds of rice! White rice, brown rice, rice mixed with other things, and stuff like risotto all cook differently, and it has a setting for each. I get the impression that a lot of other rice cookers expect you to only use white rice. Yawn.
My only warning to future owners would be: You need to remove the thin inner lid from the upper lid once rice is done. Starchy steam escapes into the space between the lids, so it has to be washed off each time, or however often you're willing to clean it. Just takes a second, and I don't mind it.
All-in-all, it's a great addition to my well-stocked kitchen. It really takes the hassle out of cooking rice, and produces excellent, reliable results each time.
Posted by Traveler (Member # 3615) on :
Ahhh...great! I'm definately looking for something that will allow me to select the type of rice I'm cooking. I frequently make basmati, sushi, and other types of rice.
Do you find that your 3.5 Cup size is large enough for you? I've been looking at a 5 Cup model but the 10 Cup one isn't all that much more. I'm tempted to get the larger even though I'm sure I'll never make a 10 Cup batch of rice.
Thanks for the info! -Matt
Posted by Ayelar (Member # 183) on :
It's perfectly sized for what I use it for, almost entirely one or two-person dinners and the very rare 4 person meal (which was a strech with the brown rice, which requires more water than the white rice). If you're cooking for more than 3 people regularly, I'd go with the 5 cup cooker.
Also, where this one really shines is in the set-it-in-the-morning department. It still takes a long time to cook brown rice (it insists on soaking it first), so if you're looking to start it when you get home and eat soon, it can be frustrating. But ooooh, tossing the rice in in the morning and coming home to it done at the time I told it to be done... that's just cool. Posted by Zalmoxis (Member # 2327) on :
Wow! That's a sweet machine ayelar. i'm totally envious.
However, if you don't mind a little bit of rice sticking to the bottom and don't require the 'keep-it-warm-for-an-entire-day" feature, then the $25-40 rice cookers work just fine -- and can handle brown rice.
No matter how much you spend, thought, I agree that a rice cooker is worth it. And you can actually use most of them [although I don't] for cooking that goes beyond steaming rice and vegetables. You can do stews, jambalaya, etc.
I wish I hadn't clicked on that link, though. Now I want the deluxe model like what alr has.
My favorite use for a rice cooker: making rice that's suitable for use in making sushi at home. If I had to make short-grain rice on the stove, it would come out either too wet or too mushy for sushi use.
Posted by Ayelar (Member # 183) on :
Heh, a lot of thought went into buying that rice cooker.
Of course, if you think it's cool, you should see my toaster oven. And my blender!
Sure, I can't pay rent, but at least my food is always prepared with maximum efficiency and style. They'll keep me warm when I'm living on the streets.
[ April 26, 2004, 03:54 PM: Message edited by: Ayelar ]
Posted by Traveler (Member # 3615) on :
Hmmm...looks like my inner-geek is right and I should go with the bells and whistles! Thanks for the advice. Now to find that perfect 5 Cup fuzzy logic machine with timer function......
...as you can see, I'm having a rather slow day at the office.
[ April 26, 2004, 03:55 PM: Message edited by: Traveler ]
Posted by Ayelar (Member # 183) on :
I've heard good things about Zojirushi.... If you get a chance to look at any of these in a brick-and-mortar store, it's really good to be able to check out the thickness and quality of the cooking pot. I think that's really where your money is well spent... if you can find a cheapo no-features rice cooker that's got a really sweet cooking surface, you'd be set. Posted by Traveler (Member # 3615) on :
I've tracked down one in a store. I'll go check it out tonight. I'm thinking though that I'll eventually order one online since the prices are generally so much better - sometimes up to 40-50% cheaper.
Posted by Ayelar (Member # 183) on :
Yeah, I buy all of my appliances through Amazon now... including a 5-foot-tall fridge for storing beer! That was an experience.
They're currently offering $20 back on anything $99 and up, which is pretty sweet. I got that one with a $20 gift certificate, plus a $10 back promotion they were having at the time. Well worth it, but I was still nervous about spending so much on something with such a limited purpose at the time. Now that I use it for 2 or 3 dinners out of 7 every week, I know it was a good choice. Posted by BYuCnslr (Member # 1857) on :
Being Chinese, it's a well known fact that it's sacraligious to not have a rice cooker ( ), with that in mind at home we have a 15 year old Zojirushi which works beautifully (we use it every day). Same thing at my mother's house, except it's much newer (probably 3). For my dorm room I have a Panasonic SR-SH15PS which I apsolutely adore, especially the point where the extention cord (which is 3 feet long) retracts into the cooker, I always have rice sitting around for when I get hungry, and of course it has the standard features of the cook switch with the auto switch, measurings on the side for amount of water used per cup. My favorite part about this cooker is that's it's amazingly light, seemingly they've made as much of it with aluminum and plastic as possible, but it's still quite strong (with me falling onto it a few times). Choosing any rice cooker, I suggest going with Japanese brands over any else, they tend to just keep working.
As a note: Zojirushi has always liked to use heavy strong cooking pots that you can pretty much hit with a car.
Another note: size, mine is an 8 cup rice cooker, and usually I make 3 cups at a time, with most larger rice cookers, if you make less than 3 cups, the rice will overcook and be brown at the bottom (assuming that you're cooking white rice), now, it's still edible, just usually you don't want it brown and smushed, amazingly with mine...it doesn't do that, I think most of the new ones have somehow fixed that problem (or made it better), but it depends on how much rice you eat, I usually need to make a new batch of rice every 4 meals or so, of course I tend to share food with people as well, but see how much you eat for now, and get one that'll make enough in one batch for you to eat for 2-3 days, but of course you don't want to make too much because cooked rice doesn't like being out for more than 5 days or so. Satyagraha
[ April 26, 2004, 04:25 PM: Message edited by: BYuCnslr ]
Posted by Suneun (Member # 3247) on :
I have a related question...
does anyone keep the rice in the cooker after it's cooked? without the added warming-feature? how long?
My mom keeps rice in the rice cooker for at least a day or so. I do it sometimes, but I'm always paranoid I'm going to make myself sick (B. cereus, anyone?)... I hate refrigerated rice, though...
Posted by BYuCnslr (Member # 1857) on :
At home dad and I have gotten lazy and made enough rice for about 5 days and keep it plugged in the whole time, here I don't keep it plugged in for more than 2 days (because otherwise the bottom starts browning...and I'm very picky about rice). With refridgerated rice, what I do is I have a hot water pot so I let the rice soak in the hot water (sec near boiling), and that brings it back to life...of course that's if you like rice in hot water...which I assume most people won't. Satyagraha
[ April 26, 2004, 04:29 PM: Message edited by: BYuCnslr ]
Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
That's a pretty expensive one (at the link), Traveler!
..but it's your money...
Farmgirl
Posted by dkw (Member # 3264) on :
I have to admit to being very confused by the concept of a rice cooker. Rice is one of the easiest things in the world to cook (and yes, I cook various kinds – white, brown, basmati, arborio, etc.) Why do you need a special appliance for this?
Posted by Jeni (Member # 1454) on :
I do believe Bernard is the only college student in America with a rice cooker in his dorm room.
Posted by katharina (Member # 827) on :
I burn things. I love the rice cooker.
Posted by jexx (Member # 3450) on :
I know, dana, it seemed weird to me too at first. But then rice cookers went on sale at the P/X and hubby wanted one, so I bought the on/off switch one to shut him up.
And I love it.
I don't know why I love it so much.
I just do.
(PS to dana--did you get the package I sent?)
Posted by BYuCnslr (Member # 1857) on :
:: pat pat jeni :: lots of college students have rice cookers, there are at least four others in buschnell, although, nobody has one as nice as mine.... Satyagraha
Posted by jeniwren (Member # 2002) on :
Traveler, if you pay shipping, you're more than welcome to my rice cooker. It has only been used once or twice. I prefer making my rice on the stove.
Let me know if you want more info on it.
Posted by Traveler (Member # 3615) on :
Farmgirl, I know that one is expensive. I do have a habit of looking at the items with all the bells/whistles/high-tech features first. This often gets me in trouble with the wife.
I'm not comitted to buying that one...I was just pointing it out as the latest with the whole fuzzy logic thing.
I'm trying to practice restraint while researching this whole thing in order to determine what features people actually like and use.
Posted by dkw (Member # 3264) on :
Jexx, yes, thanks! It came today.
I’m normally a kitchen gadget person, so if there’s any advantage to these things at all, I probably want one. I’m just not seeing the advantage. Well, except the delay function on Ayelar’s. That would be cool. Hmmmm . . .
Posted by Traveler (Member # 3615) on :
Thanks Jeniwren! I may be interested. If you wouldn't mind posting the make/model.
Ayelar has me kind of sold on the timer function so I may have to go with a new model unless yours has that. Posted by skillery (Member # 6209) on :
My Zojirushi works great too. Got mine at an Uwajimaya store in the Pacific Northwest.
Posted by Zalmoxis (Member # 2327) on :
dkw:
Rice may be easy for you to cook. But in my experience not many people can do it correctly -- i.e. cook it so it doesn't end up dry or mushy or watery. My grandmother still cooks rice like you do -- even though she owns a rice cooker and has lived in Japan. And her rice is amazing. But she is the exception and not the rule [as she is in many things].
I think the major thing is the convenience -- there are no flames to adjust, no cooking times to monitor. And since you usually are making a meal that involves food prep in addition to the rice, it's nice to not have one more thing to worry about.
Plus since it's electric, it doesn't take up space on the stove.
Posted by Beren One Hand (Member # 3403) on :
I'll add my support for the Zojirushi. I have been using mine for two years and the rice comes out perfect every time.
Suneun, I usually keep it out without the warming feature for a day or two. After two days, nuke it. After three days... only for emergencies. After four days, well, that gets a little close to CDC territory.
Posted by Suneun (Member # 3247) on :
That's helpful, Beren. Do you think it differs on the humidity and overall temperature? I think the rice goes bad more quickly in the summer, but I haven't tested that idea vigorously...
I feel better about one-day-old rice, though after one day, I'd probably only use it for fried rice.
Posted by jeniwren (Member # 2002) on :
Traveler, it's a Hitachi ChimeOMatic (wow, that sounds cheesy)
It doesn't have a timer on it, but it does have warm and cook settings.
As I recall we've made white and balsalmic rice in it. But it's been years. I am pretty sure I have the manual around here somewhere. It was a gift from someone who *loved* their rice cooker, and so was sure I would love one too. Despite the fact that, at the time, my version of cooking involved using the telephone. I have a wafflemaker from the same people. If you don't take it, it'll go in my garage sale next month.
Posted by Ayelar (Member # 183) on :
Uh oh, jeni.... I've given this rice cooker as a "I love it, and you'll love it too!" gift just recently!
But she did say she wanted a rice cooker.... Posted by Beren One Hand (Member # 3403) on :
That's a good point Suneun. I live in air-conditioned Southern California, where temperature and humidity are set for optimal preservation of cooked rice and surgery-enhanced skin.
Posted by ak (Member # 90) on :
Here's how I cook rice. It comes out light and fluffy and perfect every time. Just thought I'd share, for those of you who don't want to use a rice cooker.
Put a big old pot of water on the stove on high. (My pot is 8 quarts.) Dump in some salt (maybe about a tablespoon or even two.) I love things salty. When it is boiling like mad, stir it until it's rotating rapidly and pour in 2 cups of long grain white rice. Continue stirring for a few minutes to keep the rice from sticking together or sticking to the bottom of the pot. When it starts bubbling up again, turn it down low enough to keep up a nice brisk bubbling without boiling over.
Set a timer for 15 minutes. Stir every 5 minutes until then. After 15 minutes, drain into a collander in the sink, rinse out the pot and put 1-2 inches of water in the bottom (5 cm) and put back on the stove on high. Place the collander full of rice over the boiling water, put a pot top on top of the rice. Steam rice for another 15 minutes (or 10), stirring every 5 minutes so the bottom rice doesn't get soggy.
Perfect fluffy rice every time.
I like to serve it very hot right off the stove with a pat of butter which the hot rice will melt, and salt. It's delicious.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
*fish-eyes at Beren*
Remind me again why you don't come to Shindae?
Posted by Megachirops (Member # 4325) on :
I can't stand rice cookers. Or rice.
Actually, I love my rice cooker. No stirring. No setting timers. No paying attention to it at all. And no need to synchronize it with the rest of the food you're cooking. And absolutely perfect, delicious rice every time. I have a twenty dollar cheapo aluminum one. I'd love a fancy one, but this was a gift from a friend when I was younger and poorer. If you don't have one, you don't know what you're missing!
(See? I'm not always negative!)
Posted by Beren One Hand (Member # 3403) on :
Because the SoCal gatherings are just not the same without Sandy's korean short ribs?
OK, the real boring reason is because work is killing me. You know how sometimes we are the only two people on Hatrack at 12:00? I'm still at work when I make those posts. Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
Ouch! Ok, good excuse. (I mean, not a GOOD one, but, oh, you know what I mean.)
I look forward to when work lets up enough to allow your attendance. Posted by Beren One Hand (Member # 3403) on :
Of course more pictures could make me feel better.... no pressure... Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
Did you see the ones from the last Shinda? Xavier took a bunch. I even managed not to look too dreadful. Posted by jeniwren (Member # 2002) on :
ak, that sounds good! My version doesn't have salt...with my rice, I put a chicken boullion cube with a dollop of butter in the boiling water. Then when I add the rice, I add a bay leaf. It makes such tasty rice, every time!
Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :
My husband broke our rice cooker and so we hardly ever have rice. Maybe that's why I don't look Asian anymore (according to Mr. Porteiro Head). When we were in Europe he plugged it in without a transformer. I just burned some rice for dinner today. Posted by jeniwren (Member # 2002) on :
pooka, if Traveler doesn't want my rice cooker, you're welcome to it. Posted by Megachirops (Member # 4325) on :
I use about a third as much salt, and it comes out with what to me is a pleasant, salty taste. I don't put butter on it when it's done, but I do put olive oil in before I cook it.
-o-
Man, that's a lot of salt!
-o-
(jeniwren, you do know that bullion is mostly salt, right?)
[ April 27, 2004, 12:22 AM: Message edited by: Megachirops ]
Posted by ak (Member # 90) on :
jeniwren, that DOES sound good! My recipe is the way my grandmother cooked it, which my mom and aunts also used. I can see that rice cooker rice would be less trouble, but I don't believe it can turn out as fluffy and perfect as mine. Posted by fallow (Member # 6268) on :
I have one that I use all the time, but like Katharina, mainly for steaming veggies.
Works great for that.
fallow
Posted by jeniwren (Member # 2002) on :
I do, Icarus...so if I'm not cooking much rice, I use half a cube, or cut the water with fat free chicken stock. It's a bit more flavorful than plain salt. The bay leaf is what really kicks in the flavor. My mother's secret ingredient. Posted by fallow (Member # 6268) on :
*glares at ak*
cough it up.
fallow
Posted by ak (Member # 90) on :
fallow, did you mean my grandmother's recipe? It's there about four posts above my last post.
Posted by fallow (Member # 6268) on :
yeah, I did. God I'm lazy.
can you repeat it, though? make it delicious.
fallow
Posted by Beren One Hand (Member # 3403) on :
"... I even managed not to look too dreadful."
You Bruins are so modest. Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
Heh. Once upon a time, I was young, and frequently had pictures taken of me come out ok. (There were also some stinkers, but the ratio wasn't bad.)
These days, I am older, tireder, and tend to not come out well in most pictures taken of me. OTOH, I hate being left out of pics and having people wonder where I was . . . so I live with it.
Posted by fallow (Member # 6268) on :
rivka,
hot enough for ya?
*shoves face into nearest fan*
fallow
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
NO!
*cooks in own skin*
Way, WAY too hot!
Posted by fallow (Member # 6268) on :
This is ridiculous. dunno about you, but my apt is the funnel-point for post-sundown heat release. I'm frying an egg on my coffee table right now!
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I just burned some rice for dinner today. ![[Blushing]](graemlins/blushing.gif)
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