Need advice - risotto in a rice cooker

[tenspeed]

I recently bought a Zoji fuzzy logic rice cooker, and decided to try making risotto. I followed Beth Hensperger's recipe.

The Magic of Rice Cooker Risotto | Food Gal

I set it on porridge, and the Zoji said it was going to take 65 minutes. I took a peek at 22 minutes - all of the water was absorbed, and it was beyond al dente. Looks like she meant either regular or porridge at 20 minutes, and not porridge at the full length of the porridge cycle.

Not sure if it would have been a little creamy if I had cooked it even less than 20 minutes, as there was no liquid at all left in the risotto. I'm wondering if adding some liquid at the end of the cooking cycle would give it the texture I was hoping for, or if it would come out like rice with extra water sloshing around. Has anyone tried this?

The stuff was tasty, it just wasn't quite what I was expecting.

 

[Cheryl J]

Hi tenspeed. I don't think it's possible to make a creamy risotto in a rice cooker. Risotto needs a high starch rice like Arborio, and the liquids need to be added a little bit at a time. It has to be gently stirred frequently, almost constantly, so the starches in the rice will release and result in a nice creamy risotto.

I think if you would have added more liquid at the end of the cooking time, it would have ended up as you said - just rice swimming in liquid. No bueno.

 

[GotGarlic]

I don't have a rice cooker, so I can't help you, but Cooks llustrated has a recipe for risotto baked, covered, in a large Dutch oven. They found that simmering the rice at a high temperature simulated the constant stirring needed for the traditional method.

http://bakerandbrewer.blogspot.com/2011/09/easy-baked-risotto.html

 

[Breathing Couch]

risotto is pasta, right? not suitable for a rice cooker.

 

[GotGarlic]

risotto is pasta, right? not suitable for a rice cooker.

No, risotto is a rice dish. Check out the link I posted.

 

[tenspeed]

risotto is pasta, right? not suitable for a rice cooker.

You are thinking of orzo.

 

[Silversage]

You can make beautiful risotto in a rice cooker. It comes out as creamy as it does in a saucepan. It only takes 20 minutes.

I read the link you provided and I think you mis-read it.

 

[tenspeed]

You can make beautiful risotto in a rice cooker. It comes out as creamy as it does in a saucepan. It only takes 20 minutes.

I read the link you provided and I think you mis-read it.

I think I did mis-read it, at least based on the results I got. I'll give it another shot, but I'll take a peek at 15 minutes this time.

 

[Addie]

risotto is pasta, right? not suitable for a rice cooker.

No. Risotto is a rice dish, rice is a grain. Not Pasta. Pasta is made from processed wheat.

 

[jennyema]

Hi tenspeed. I don't think it's possible to make a creamy risotto in a rice cooker. Risotto needs a high starch rice like Arborio, and the liquids need to be added a little bit at a time. It has to be gently stirred frequently, almost constantly, so the starches in the rice will release and result in a nice creamy risotto.

I think if you would have added more liquid at the end of the cooking time, it would have ended up as you said - just rice swimming in liquid. No bueno.

I'm with you. I've had risotto cooked in a rice cooker and it's nothing like risotto made on the stovetop with your spalutula coaxing the starch out of the rice.

 

[tenspeed]

I gave this another try last night. The posted recipe was a little ambiguous, but the cookbook contained a chart that clearly states “porridge – full cycle”, so I didn’t misinterpret the instructions. In order to control the cooking this time, I used the quick cycle, which is just heating without any soaking time.

I kept an eye on it, and when there was a little liquid left, I turned off the cooker. Rice was done. A few minutes later, pretty much all of the liquid disappeared, so I was back to the same results as I got the first time.

I’m giving up trying to make a creamy risotto in the rice cooker. Although not the texture I was shooting for, it’s still very tasty. This is another one of those “not worth the effort” attempts. In the future I’ll just let the rice cooker do its thing and just enjoy the finished product without the extra work.

 

[Addie]

I gave this another try last night. The posted recipe was a little ambiguous, but the cookbook contained a chart that clearly states “porridge – full cycle”, so I didn’t misinterpret the instructions. In order to control the cooking this time, I used the quick cycle, which is just heating without any soaking time.

I kept an eye on it, and when there was a little liquid left, I turned off the cooker. Rice was done. A few minutes later, pretty much all of the liquid disappeared, so I was back to the same results as I got the first time.

I’m giving up trying to make a creamy risotto in the rice cooker. Although not the texture I was shooting for, it’s still very tasty. This is another one of those “not worth the effort” attempts. In the future I’ll just let the rice cooker do its thing and just enjoy the finished product without the extra work.

Wise decision. We buy appliances to make our work easier.

 

[FoodieFanatic]

Ina, Barefoot Contessa, has a recipe for risotto made in the oven. I've tried it and it's not only simple but delicious. I use to make it on the stove, adding liquid, stirring, adding liquid, stirring...took forever, but it was delicious. Ina's method comes out the same and less effort, the oven does it all. You can find the recipe online.