Which Rice Cooker Should I Buy to Cook In?
I loved Julia Moskin's story in yesterday's New York Times about "rice cooker cooking," but c'mon, Julia—after you tell us that older rice cooker models are easier to cook in because their controls are easier to override, shouldn't you have told us which rice cooker we should buy? Serious eaters want to know. Can anybody help me out here?
Related
Rice Cooker FAQ
Rice Cooker Cooking: More Than Just Rice
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28 Comments:
I don't have a cheap rice cooker to compare to, but I do a lot of rice cooker cooking in my Zojirushi.
It also makes really good rice, much better than most rice cookers.
I think I'd rather have a really good rice cooker that's slightly sub-par for non-rice cooking, than the opposite.
kaszeta at 3:26PM on 10/02/08
I waited a long time before purchasing the rice cooker pictured above. Now that I have it, I'm sorry I waited. It cooks rice and steel cut oats to perfection, and is easy to use and clean. Don't hesitate to buy it.
deejaycee at 3:28PM on 10/02/08
I love my Zojirushi with "neurofuzzy logic".
seadkdc at 3:47PM on 10/02/08
I have an Aroma rice cooker that I got for around $25 (see the one below). It works great and in addition to rice, I've used it to make porridge, soup, and to steam food. I haven't taken the plunge into Zojirushi land yet.
http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/602-8663396-7913423?ASIN=B000HKFE8G&AFID=Froogle&LNM=B000HKFE8G|Aroma_8Cup_CoolTouch_Rice_Cooker&ci_src=14110944&ci_sku=B000HKFE8G&ref=tgt_adv_XSG10001
mimisbear at 3:51PM on 10/02/08
I too have the Zojirushi that is pictured above and it is marvellous. It does take an exceedingly long time to make brown rice but it is perfect, and stays warm for a long time without drying out.
The manual seems to be quite hesitant about endorsing doing any fancy cooking in it, but it certainly has handled some simple stuff I've done, like using stock instead of water, adding herbs and some diced vegetables. But I am not sure it would do the steaming that some of this week's Times recipes proposed.
danlevy at 3:54PM on 10/02/08
Stay away from American brand rice cookers (black & decker et al.) - they are far inferior to the Asian brands. My boyfriend had one and the rice always stuck to the bowl and it did a bad job of keeping the rice warm.
Zojirushi is the brand most often sold in New York's asian markets. Everyone in my family has a Zojirushi. I've been told Panasonic also makes a good cooker.
My mother has used this one:
http://www.amazon.com/Zojirushi-NSRNC-18A-Automatic-Cooker-Imprint/dp/B00005YXC1/ref=pd_sim_k_1
for years to cook all sorts of things...you just have to get used to the floral pattern. She even took it on vacation to Disneyworld and Paris. Don't try to seperate a korean mother and her rice cooker.
jboylee at 4:03PM on 10/02/08
My family has always bought Zojirushi rice cookers. My parents sent each of us kids off to college with a small 2-3 cup capacity rice cooker and then when we all got married, they presented us with family sized rice cookers. My parents are into the mixed grains instead of just white rice and love all the different programs on their cooker.
I believe the one in the picture runs about $200 for the 5 cup capacity and $300 for the 8 cup capacity. I wouldn't buy the small 3 cup capacity for $150, seems too small. Also, if the convenience of having rice everyday is not necessary in your household, I doubt if the investment for a high-end rice cooker is worthwhile. "Regular" rice cookers can be purchased inexpensively at Target or similar stores.
wookie at 4:06PM on 10/02/08
Rice is too easy to get a cooker. 2 parts water to 1 part rice. Stir it together and get it to a low boil. When it's halfway done (eyeball it), remove it from the heat, cover it, and leave it alone. 10 minutes later, it's perfect.
Saves me the money for a cooker every time.
BTW, Sony's first product was a simple rice cooker that never consistently worked right.
LunaPierCook at 4:07PM on 10/02/08
I also have a 5-cup Zojirushi, and it makes rice and rice-type food to perfection (including short and long grain white rice, brown rice, and sweet rice). As for non-rice cooking, I've only ever steamed carrots and the like while cooking the rice, which worked really well, and doesn't require any additional liquid. A lot of the Japanese rice cooker recipes I've seen are based off of using the Fuzzylogic-style cookers with a base of "mixed rice" - rice and small-cut veggies and meat, all of which cook at the same time, and with which I've had great results.
devlyn at 4:10PM on 10/02/08
For cooking, the cheaper the model the better. I have a nasty old National non-coated aluminum tank that has cooked many odd things including steaming raw corned beef.
But if you care about rice most of all, get a new Zojirushi with fuzzy logic, and forget cooking other things in it. Our Zojirushi produces dramatically better rice than the old simple models.
peekpoke at 4:33PM on 10/02/08
LunaPierCook,
2 parts water to 1 part rice is most definitely not the right ratio for all kinds of rice (do you only eat one variety?). Not to mention the proper ratio changes with the amount of rice. 2:1 might work fine for 1 cup, but it might be 3.75:2 for two cups.
There is one sure fire way to prepare almost any rice. Cook in WAY more water than you need until just tender. Drain off the water. Finish cooking in an oven on a sheet pan. It's decidedly not easier than a rice cooker.
arbeck at 4:36PM on 10/02/08
I feel like I need to explain the thinking about Asian households' needs for a rice cooker. It's not that we don't know how to cook rice; on the contrary, my mother taught me how to cook rice on the stove using a normal pot, a traditional stone/clay rice pot, and in a pressure cooker...all with out a measuring cup. The value of the rice cooker in a Korean household is that the rice is ready when we are ready to eat, not vice versa. The rice is always hot. Pull the banchan out of the fridge, boil the jigae, set the table, scoop the rice, and eat. The whole process of vigorously washing the rice, cooking it, and waiting for the "tchim" to take are all by-passed because we did that earlier in the day or we programmed the rice cooker to start 30 minutes before we got home.
It's true some households would not benefit from a rice cooker. In my parents house it gets used daily and when the whole family is together, it gets fired three times a day. In my own home, I pull out the rice cooker when my parents are visiting or if I'm planning a huge Korean feast, otherwise, I use a 1 qt sauce pan.
wookie at 4:50PM on 10/02/08
@arbeck, I never said it was anything other than simple white rice. I'm fully aware of differences.
Contrary to your post, I do know what I'm doing and have for some time. Your lecture was unecessary.
LunaPierCook at 4:53PM on 10/02/08
Use just like a crockpot, keep your Rotel dip warm for football season!
myko913 at 4:58PM on 10/02/08
@arbeck, I never said it was anything other than simple white rice. I'm fully aware of differences.
Contrary to your post, I do know what I'm doing and have for some time. Your lecture was unecessary.
LunaPierCook at 4:58PM on 10/02/08
No clue why that posted more than once. MovableType done be goofy sometimes ...
LunaPierCook at 5:01PM on 10/02/08
In college I used my cheap-ass rice cooker to boil water for pasta. It works! Well, it works very slowly, but it works...
I've had a Zojirushi and a Sanyo bookmarked on Amazon for awhile but haven't managed to decide and buy yet. Fine Cooking had a rating awhile back:
http://www.taunton.com/finecooking/articles/high-tech-rice-cookers.aspx
mschlock at 5:04PM on 10/02/08
Need to reinforce wookie's point. Traditional Asian families eat rice every day, usually three times a day. Growing up, my mother would make a huge 10 cup pot so that we kids could have rice all day long - whenever we were hungry. She'd fire up the rice cooker for a fresh batch each night for dinner. If Asian's had to make a pot of rice everytime they ate (or had to steam it in a tray in the oven!) they'd never get anything done. Think of the rice cooker as the Asian equivalent of the sliced loaves of bread sold in supermarkets. It provides easy sustanance whenever you need it.
Honestly, if you're goal is to cook with your rice cooker - and not to actually use it frequently to make rice - I'm not sure, it's worth the cost. A pot on a stove will accomplish the same thing. However, if you already have one - experiment away!
jboylee at 5:22PM on 10/02/08
Go to Costco, get the one that's $30. I LOVE it. It holds a ton for big nights, never lets me down when I cook just one cup of rice and always does it perfectly. Now, I have to say...mine is the 2007 model, and it's only got two buttons (cook now, and cook later). The current model has a plethora of buttons...but I'm sure you could just use the White Rice mode and override that. :-)
Teahlo at 6:23PM on 10/02/08
Just in case anyone wanted to read
http://www.cooksillustrated.com/testing.asp?testingid=661
RI Swampyankee at 7:10PM on 10/02/08
I really love my rice cooker of 12 years because it is a bread machine. It's a Home Baker Plus made by Hitachi. It actually has bread machine settings, rice cooker setting, and jam setting. It is my favorite appliance.
Cassaendra at 7:18PM on 10/02/08
If I had a choice, I would go for Japanese makes - Panasonic, Zojirushi. If not, makes such as Aroma shd be good too for simple meals. I have gone with reasonably cheap brands (eg. local brands, in-house or maybe OEM brands) and have not failed in those. But I am talking about older models with Cook and Warm function. Not sure about fuzzy logic and digital ones though.
tigerfish at 9:13PM on 10/02/08
I would go for either a Zojirushi (Japan) or a Cuckoo (Korea) model. The Cuckoo ones tend to be more expensive but they cook mixed grains much faster than the Zojirushi ones and use more pressure.
Also it depends what you're looking for in a rice cooker. I have a Zojirushi simply because I didn't want to pay $100 more and waiting 30 minutes more is not a big deal for me; the model I have cooks all different types of grains without me having to soak them. Some rice cookers are really simple - and they're considerably less expensive but you will have to soak the beans and grains in advance before you can mix them with white rice or as is.
PattyCho at 9:22PM on 10/02/08
Buy a cheap asian brand. (Like we did with the one we use every 10 days or so - bought it 9 years ago.) A Rice Cooker is one of those things, like british tea kettles, that are above earthly reproach.
kyounger at 9:53AM on 10/03/08
I have the Cuisinart 4-cup rice cooker, and I absolutely love it. My mom has the 8-cup one and loves hers as well. It comes with a steamer so you can cook veggies at the same time too. It's very simple to use, and the rice never sticks.
Megs915 at 12:43PM on 10/03/08
I would suggest having a look at this post too: http://www.justhungry.com/answering-some-rice-cooker-questions
anonymoose at 2:36PM on 10/03/08
ditto for Megs915: the Cuisinart 4 cup was a hostess gift and left it in the box until the one day i tried it out....now i put up rice each and every day without a thought....does stick sometimes but not enough to purchase a Zojirushi for big bucks....i cannot believe that rice can be this easy.....
blondee47 at 3:35PM on 10/03/08
We're looking at getting this one:
http://www.amazon.com/Sanyo-ECJ-HC100S-10-Cup-Micro-Computerized-Cooker/dp/B000X8TEVU/ref=cm_cr_pr_pb_t
Because it gets fantastic ratings and because it does a better job at combining rice cooker and slow cooker.
seanSF at 4:32PM on 10/03/08