Used a rice cooker for the first time last night

Arnold was never happy with how I cooked rice and he was even worse at it than I was (he always used a rice cooker). We ordered a Zojirushi and after using it for the first time last night I’ll never go back. Best and easiest rice I’ve ever made.

This is what happens when you date an Asian - you learn how to cook good rice no matter how long it takes :slight_smile:

Agreed. We had a basic generic brand one for a while and while good (mainly convenient) nothing as compared to the Zojirushi. Even on the “fast” cycle it is better than any others but when left to cook normally (slow) never had rice with that texture or flavors before. I should note that the quick cook is really not that fast, maybe 30-40 mins and our is 10-15 years old and works like new.

Growing up and in college all I had was the rice cooker that had a little peddle you pushed down to start it up. When I went home and my mom had one of these fancy ones I had no clue how to cook the rice. One time I thought I started the machine and came back a hour later realizing I did nothing!

Zojirushi makes a fine rice cooker. Lots of bells and whistles on their high end models. We have one, but only use it when we need to make lots of rice. We use an old school pedal rice cooker that Fu described above for everyday rice. The key to making great rice is first buying the correct type of rice for the proposed usage and then the correct rice/water ratio. Some ppl soak the rice for awhile, my mom does this, I’m too lazy and usually in too much of a hurry.

Yes, the texture was amazing. I can’t get over the work:reward ratio with this machine.

Growing up I probably ate rice about 2-3 times a year. Until recently it wasn’t something that even even occurred to me when I was cooking.

We just have a 3 cup model. But I am overjoyed with the quality and ease of use.


But here’s a question for everyone - how long can the rice sit in Keep Warm mode before flavor and /or texture degrade?

Good question. My mom leaves it in keep warm mode for days. I never do that. I make rice for immediate consumption and whatever I have left goes into the fridge to be made into fried rice by my wife at a later point.

Note to self. Find a rice cooker for Saturday. I’m a bad Asian. No rice cooker at home :angry:

FWIW, rice cookers (I only have had the “paddle” type, too) cook grits and quinoa really well, too…

I’ve never been a big fan of rice vis a vis other starches (pretty boring without lots of help), but always had terrible results before getting a rice cooker.

we pretty much only cook whole grains so how do the “smart” rice cookers do with brown rice? And, other whole grains like faro?

Don’t worry. Your secret is safe with us. :wink:

They do brown rice well. They typically have a setting for brown rice

I cook brown rice and quinoa in mine all the time and they turn out perfectly.

How hard is it to cook rice? 2 cups of rice in the pot. 3 cups of water. Add some salt and butter. Let it reach a boil. Turn down the heat and put the lid. Let it simmer til you see no water (I have a glass lid) and don’t open the pot. Turn the heat off. Let it sit 15 mins. Fluff, add more butter. Eat.

  1. rice cooker doesn’t need sodium or butter… (not sure a pot does too probably more for taste?)

  2. in your method you have to be there to watch the rice cook… vs rice cooker = set, forget, move on to making other things.

  3. Even with all that attention, most times a Zoji will simply out perform a pot.


    We use a paddle type for rice most days… the rice quality makes a huge difference too… we do have a 6 cup Zoji that we use if we need more than 2 cups at a time… takes longer, but the result is exceptional.

Yes, the butter and salt are for taste. And I get the need to be watching. But so many other food threads or discussions about how to make coffee are so labor intensive, with all the attention to detail that so many folks here have (I won’t call it obsessive compulsive), that it just strikes me as funny using rice cookers.

I’ve never used one, so maybe I would be a convert if I had one, but we have so many tools and gadgets that it also is a space issue. And since we probably make rice 2-3 times a week, I guess I’m on auto pilot cooking it along with whatever else is on the stove top. N

I have the aroma one from Costco-cheaper than the zor…, and it works great. Also, allows us to set it up in the morning on delay and get home from work with the rice done. Which I love.

I’m willing to do the obsessive compulsive time consuming thing on occasion if it results in a better product. But if I can get better results with less work then sign me up.

I’ll admit I took some convincing as I didn’t see why I needed a new device when a pot would work just as well. But at least at my level of rice cooking skill it doesn’t.

It’s the same reason I haven’t cooked cheesecake in years ever since I discovered that by spending a lot of time and effort it only cost a little more in ingredients than the equally good cheesecake I could get at the Italian bakery a few blocks away.

I love the convenience of using a rice cooker, but given time I prefer using a pot. Reason being is my family loves to make the rice that is stuck on the pot crispy. We add a little salt or furikake on top and instant treat. As a kid another way we would use the crispy rice is while still in the pot is to add hot water. I can’t remember the taste, but growing up I loved it. And if we had any fermented bean curd to add to it…. Yummy.

I love that crisp rice on the bottom. A Filipino neighbor said that in his house it was called “tu-tong” (sp?). IAlso, when we were in college, my Korean ex’s parents would send her a bag of the crisp rice that she could add water to for a snack.