ISO Rice Cooker

[Chef Munky]

I'm in need of a rice cooker.

What is the best brand?
What size should I buy?

It definitely needs to be hassle free as much as possible.
This is for Mr.Munky. He will be using it.

Any help would be much appreciated.

Thank you,

Munky.

 

[Dawgluver]

Some folks here swear by the Instant Pot. It does everything but wash your windows, including cooking rice. I have a little Aroma rice cooker, but it hasn't washed any windows yet. Very inexpensive.

 

[Chef Munky]

We've tried the IP. Nobody liked it.
Mr. Munky can't lift the IP.
He's still only able to use one hand.

I was just looking at the Aromas on Amazon.
Going back to look at them again.
That Tiger brand was a little weird, to me anyways. A bread baker to? Well hey, that's new..

Thank you,

Munky.

 

[jennyema]

An Instapot is a pressure cooker, slow cooker and rice cooker and it makes great rice. It's about $100 but well worth it, IMO. I love mine

Every adult in my extended Korean-American family owns a Zojirushi rice cooker and they are pretty foolproof although I've used them, I don't own one.

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

I have had several brands over the last thirty years, but my favorite is also my current cooker, the Krups 5-Cup 4-in-1 Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Steamer, and Oatmeal Cooker. I had a 10 cup model for about 10 years before it died a slow, painful death, but I have never needed to make 10 cups of rice, so I opted for the 5 cup model when I needed a new cooker.

 

[Kaneohegirlinaz]

I agree with Dawg on this one.
I also have an Aroma Rice Cooker, very simple, straight forward and cheap & friendly. Go to Walmart Munky, less than $20
My previous Rice Cooker was a Panasonic, but this is Aroma just fine!

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Munky Badger, Do you have the counter space for a rice cooker to set out? If so, I would go for the small Zojirushi. More expensive than the Aromas, of course, but worth every penny. You can also cook steel cut oats in it.

 

[caseydog]

I agree with Dawg on this one.
I also have an Aroma Rice Cooker, very simple, straight forward and cheap & friendly. Go to Walmart Munky, less than $20
My previous Rice Cooker was a Panasonic, but this is Aroma just fine!

I have an Aroma rice cooker--the biggest one they make. Bad idea. Not the brand, but the size. I bought it for a big gumbo cook, and it was perfect for that. But, it is too big for me to use for anything less than a big cook.

To be honest, for home cooking, I get the same results from one of my All-Clad sauce pans, on a more realistic scale. Rice is really pretty easy to cook.

CD

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I have an Aroma rice cooker--the biggest one they make. Bad idea. Not the brand, but the size. I bought it for a big gumbo cook, and it was perfect for that. But, it is too big for me to use for anything less than a big cook.

To be honest, for home cooking, I get the same results from one of my All-Clad sauce pans, on a more realistic scale. Rice is really pretty easy to cook.

CD

Yes, rice is easy, however OP is interested in an appliance to make rice even easier for a handicapped (one useful hand) family member.

 

[tenspeed]

I did some research before I bought my Zoji TSC-10. The general consensus is that most rice cookers work just fine for white rice. Although basic rice cookers make decent brown rice, microprocessor controlled rice cookers make noticeably better brown rice. I even found a review by someone who owned both an Aroma and a Zoji and confirmed this. As we frequently eat brown rice, I splurged on the Zoji.

Brown rice in the Zoji is unlike anything I made on the stovetop. Much fluffier and more nutty tasting. The risotto milanese I make in the Zoji (on the porridge setting) is equal to what I've had in good Italian restaurants. I've sauteed mushrooms, onions, etc. in the Zoji before adding the rice for a flavorful side. Lundberg's wild rice blend with a bit of diced bacon and mushrooms is really tasty.

The porridge setting on the Zoji is a lower temperature, so you can make steel cut oats in milk (really good stuff).

The brown rice setting on the Zoji takes 2 hours, and it goes through various soak and cook cycles through the process. One of the articles I read stated that you simply cannot make brown rice as good on the stovetop.

I have no regrets about spending the extra money for the Zoji, and wish I would have bought one years ago while I was working. It has a carrying handle, which makes it easier to put in the cupboard when not in use. Mr. Munky will appreciate this. Unless you are cooking for a really large group, I wouldn't get the larger capacity rice cooker, as it wouldn't work well for smaller quantities of rice.

Our daughter has an Aroma, and all they make is white rice, so it works well for them.

Although and Instant Pot has a rice setting, what do you do if you make something in the IP that you want to serve over rice?

 

[GotGarlic]

Although and Instant Pot has a rice setting, what do you do if you make something in the IP that you want to serve over rice?

You can do what they call "pot in pot" cooking - stack two vessels on top of each other inside the pot and cook two different dishes at the same time.

Or, do like I do and make rice in the microwave. Put 1 part rice to 2 parts water or broth, salt, butter or oil, and seasonings in a microwave-safe dish with a lid. Cover loosely (allow it to vent a bit), cook on high for 7 minutes, stir, and cook for 8 more minutes. Done perfectly every time.

 

[CraigC]

Yes, rice is easy, however OP is interested in an appliance to make rice even easier for a handicapped (one useful hand) family member.

Why do you need two hands to cook rice in a sauce pan? I can see using a cooker for large quantities, but for one cup of rice, I don't see why you need a rice cooker, even one handed. We had a rice cooker once and found, that for our needs, it was overkill and took up precious counter and storage space.

 

[tenspeed]

You can do what they call "pot in pot" cooking - stack two vessels on top of each other inside the pot and cook two different dishes at the same time.

Or, do like I do and make rice in the microwave. Put 1 part rice to 2 parts water or broth, salt, butter or oil, and seasonings in a microwave-safe dish with a lid. Cover loosely (allow it to vent a bit), cook on high for 7 minutes, stir, and cook for 8 more minutes. Done perfectly every time.

I've never made rice in a pressure cooker, but according to Beth Hensperger's cookbook, long grain white rice is cooked on high for 4 minutes, then allow the pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes. Long grain brown rice is cooked on high for 20 minutes, then allow the pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes. If the main dish calls for different cooking times, you will end up with either over or under cooked rice with the pot in pot method.

I'm assuming that your microwave method is for white rice, as brown rice requires a different cooking time.

 

[Dawgluver]

I use my little Aroma for brown rice and steel-cut oats. Works just fine. For such an inexpensive machine, it's quite intuitive. Except it doesn't wash windows.

 

[GotGarlic]

I've never made rice in a pressure cooker, but according to Beth Hensperger's cookbook, long grain white rice is cooked on high for 4 minutes, then allow the pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes. Long grain brown rice is cooked on high for 20 minutes, then allow the pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes. If the main dish calls for different cooking times, you will end up with either over or under cooked rice with the pot in pot method.

I'm assuming that your microwave method is for white rice, as brown rice requires a different cooking time.

Not necessarily and yes. I have seen IP recipes where you stop the cooking to add ingredients, so you could do that to add rice at the appropriate time. Or just make it in a pot on the stovetop, like people have been doing for thousands of years, or in the microwave as I described.

I don't make brown rice but I'm sure it would be easy enough to figure out how long to cook it in the microwave.

I just don't think another appliance is necessary. Not in my kitchen anyway. As always, YMMV.

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

To be honest, for home cooking, I get the same results from one of my All-Clad sauce pans, on a more realistic scale. Rice is really pretty easy to cook. CD

The advantage of a rice cooker is that you put the rice and water in the pot, push the ON button, and you can go create the rest of your meal, knowing that the rice will come out perfect and the cooker will keep it at serving temperature until you are ready to serve it. Like Ron Popiel says "Set it and forget it!"

This morning for instance, I am making my world-famouis Huevos Rancheros Especial with frijoles Mexicana and Mexican yellow rice for Sunday Brunch. I will put all the Mexican rice ingredients into my rice cooker and turn it on. While the rice is cooking I will make my own fresh chorizo and sauté it, heat the tortillas, warm up the beans, and cook the eggs, knowing that I can plate perfect Mexican yellow rice when everything else comes together.

 

[medtran49]

My method of cooking is literally a set it and forget it type thing. Just bring the proper amount of water to boil in a regular saucepan, add salt and rice, stir, bring back to a boil, cover and turn the burner off, then proceed with the rest of your meal. You can even move it off the stove if you need the burner. Turns out perfect every time, never burns, never undercooked.

I saw the method in 1 of the Dinner Impossible shows with Robert Irvine. He had to make a HUGE amount of rice for a crowd but needed the stovetops for other things. So, he had them clean out coolers, poured boiling salted water in, dumped in the rice, stirred, closed the coolers and let them sit until service time. Rice came out perfect even in the huge batches in coolers.

As a bonus, it's energy saving too!

 

[Chef Munky]

Why do you need two hands to cook rice in a sauce pan? I can see using a cooker for large quantities, but for one cup of rice, I don't see why you need a rice cooker, even one handed. We had a rice cooker once and found, that for our needs, it was overkill and took up precious counter and storage space.

Craig why didn't you ask me the original OP that question?
The answer is simple. Safety.
A rice cooker doesn't require an open flame to use.It's securely on the counter. No worries about stirring rice into a pot of boiling water off the stove onto yourself.

When you live with a stroke patient you do what you have to do to give them back the confidence they once had on many levels back.It's one step at a time.He loves rice.We have it several times a week.He just can't do it independently on the stove top anymore. With everyone's different schedules a rice cooker is what's needed here.

Does that answer your question?

Munky.

 

[Chef Munky]

Munky Badger, Do you have the counter space for a rice cooker to set out? If so, I would go for the small Zojirushi. More expensive than the Aromas, of course, but worth every penny. You can also cook steel cut oats in it.

Yes I do have the space.
This is the one I've picked out. For my army of men it should be perfect.

https://www.amazon.com/Zojirushi-NS...=1494179684&sr=1-12&keywords=rice+cooker&th=1

Thank you

Munky.

 

[tenspeed]

Yes I do have the space.
This is the one I've picked out. For my army of men it should be perfect.

https://www.amazon.com/Zojirushi-NS...=1494179684&sr=1-12&keywords=rice+cooker&th=1

Thank you

Munky.

For making rice for an army of rice lovers a couple of times a week that is a good choice.

If you are rice rinsers, which is recommended for brown rice, consider picking up one of these. The drain holes are sized so that the rice grains don't stick in them, like they do in my fine colander. It's a little thing, but it should make life easier for one handed operation.

https://www.amazon.com/Inomata-Japanese-Washing-Bottom-Drainers/dp/B004QZAAS2/