Rice Cookers

[Kikujiro]

Well, I'm beginning to be convinced that the Zojirushi Neuro Fuzzy I have my heart set on isn't sold in the UK. Does anyone know differently? I was wondering if they just don't make a 220V version but then surely they sell them in HK and/or China?

[Kikujiro]

Today I spoke to the UK importers for Zojirushi. They don't do Neuro Fuzzies. They were considering it a couple of years ago but decided demand for the basic models was high enough

Edited February 24, 2003 by Kikujiro (log)

[g.johnson]

How on earth is fuzzy logic applied to rice cooking?

[Miss J]

Folks, I've mastered the knuckle method.

Basically, you put the rice in the pot and wash it in a few changes of cold water until you've managed to get rid of most of the starch. Then you put your finger on the surface of the (damp, drained) rice in the bottom of the pot, and add more cold water until it reaches your first knuckle.

As crazy at is sounds, this seems to work for any amount of rice. I've cooked one, two and three cups of raw rice (all using the same pot), and it seems to come out perfectly each time. I'm trying not to overanalyse, just in case I jinx it.

Edited February 24, 2003 by Miss J (log)

[Kikujiro]

But does the knuckle method intelligently fluff and warm leftover rice while you're in the shower? Huh? Does it?

[Kikujiro]

Also, what if you are using a pot of 1" diameter, or 1 mile?

[Miss J]

But does the knuckle method intelligently fluff and warm leftover rice while you're in the shower? Huh? Does it?

Alas, it does not. I'm afraid that my knuckle-method rice must be fried with those little wind-dried Chinese sausages and a handful of soaked dried shrimp. Which isn't such a hardship, really.

[torakris]

pssst, pssst, Kikujiro,

How much are you willing to pay for that little neuro fuzzy?

Bet I could get my hands one, eeaaasy!

[carrie]

We just purchased a rice cooker, it's not very fancy, a Krups. Wondering if anyone has ever experimented with cooking anything other than rice in these things?

[CooksQuest]

Wondering if anyone has ever experimented with cooking anything other than rice in these things?

I use the National/Panasonic brand. It is one of the best appliances I own. I use it for regular white rice, Nishiki Japanese rice, Indian basmati rice, brown rice, and wild rice.

I love making Paella the traditional way. But, sometimes you need a break.

Here is my recipe for Easy as Hell Paella:

Paella (serves 2-3)

2 cups rice (regular Carolina or Basmati)

1 chorizo sausage

1 chicken cutlet

6-10 shrimp

10-15 green olives (no pits)

5-10 threads saffron1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp fresh garlic

1/2 cup clam juice or chicken stock

kosher salt to taste

fresh pepper to taste

1) Fill rice cooker with rice and water to the

appropriate level for two cups

2) add chorizo to rice cooker (do *not* stir)

3) add garlic

4) add olives to rice cooker (do *not* stir)

5) add salt and pepper and saffron to rice

cooker

6) press "Quick Cook"

7) when it says 9 minutes left, cook up chicken in

separate pan. Cook shrimp.

8) remove cooked chicken and cooked shrimp from pan

9) add clam juice or stock to pan to deglaze.

10) rice cooker should be ready by now

11) add juice from pan to cooked rice to make a little

wet.

12) add chicken and shrimp to rice cooker

13) Stir and let flavors blend a little bit (5

minutes)

Serve!

The cooker knows when it's done, because it measures temperature. Water boils at around 212F. When the temperature rises past this point, the cooker knows that all of the water has boiled off.

So even if you add a ton of ingredients, you don't need any extra water. If you are using 2 cups of rice, you will only need to fill to the 2 cup mark. Just don't stir, so that the water and rice are in better contact.

[Kikujiro]

pssst, pssst, Kikujiro,

How much are you willing to pay for that little neuro fuzzy?

Bet I could get my hands one, eeaaasy!

Ah, but 220V?

[torakris]

pssst, pssst, Kikujiro,

How much are you willing to pay for that little neuro fuzzy?

Bet I could get my hands one, eeaaasy!

Ah, but 220V?

Looking for this?

http://www.rakuten.co.jp/masanios/431675/4.../433696/433728/

[nemuchan]

Can we also all agree that it's virtually unheard-of to set foot in an Asian household and not see a rice cooker?

I can agree. In my experience, nearly all Japanese households use rice cookers (okay, I haven't visited nearly all Japanese households ) Several posters have already mentioned that an important aspect is convenience. Put the rice on in the morning and serve whenever.

Better half and I had an old Sanyo, the type with the spring-loaded on-off switch and aluminium bowl. Could get burnt bits at the bottom if you left rice in it for over twelve hours or so. Still used it almost every day for years, though.

Two years ago got a Panasonic with the then-latest Induction Heating technology. I think this is an even more recent trend than neuro-fuzzy and might be worth searching for. Results are flawless.

Although ... Got the Panasonic in Japan. Due to the fact that a suitably heavy duty voltage transformer (I'm in the UK) seemed rather pricey in Japan and because such a device was bulky and heavy, I thought I was being clever by getting a cheap building site type transformer back here (the type used for power tool safety). After much gnashing of teeth, bizarre behaviour by rice cooker, emails to Panasonic and experiments by me it transpired that the cooker did not _quite_ like the 110V from the transformer and really, really needed almost exactly 100V. Now using big old scrounged variac.

[saycheese]

When my old rice cooker expired recently, I bought a 10-cup National fuzzy logic rice cooker. (It's in the Williams-Sonoma catalogue for $199, but I got it a lot cheaper at my local Korean market). However, now that I've been using it for a while, I think I would opt for a more basic model. The new one has a "keep warm" feature that keeps the rice warm for up to 12 hours after it is cooked. That works well if you plan to eat the rice fairly soon, but we tend to turn the rice cooker on at night when we go to bed, or in the morning when we leave for work, and then reheat rice as needed in the microwave. The retained steam tends to make the rice soggy around the edges. I think you're supposed to fluff the rice and shape it into a mound in the center of the pot, if you're going to leave it in the keep warm function, but we're not around to do that. This model also has different settings for brown rice, sushi rice, etc., which we don't use because we like plain old white Japanese-style rice. So, if I need to buy another rice cooker, I would just get a plain non-stick one that turns off automatically when the rice is done.

[indiagirl]

i cant abide by the rice cooker bottom crust waste although jinmyo's idea of using it as a crispy side is intriguing

i use a black and decker rice steamer. perfect divine rice, every time. only down side is it takes 45 minutes. it's only the two of us so i average a cup or two at a a time which is all the black and decker can hold. works for me and it only cost 20 dollars or something

Steamer on Amazon

larger quantities, i do it the old fashioned way expect in a paella (or any wide flat bottomed) pan to prevent the bottom burn phenom

in india almost everyone uses pressure cookers with little stackable inserts - one for lentils, one for rice. the rice is always a wee bit too squishy for me. like the steamed or old fashioned way better.

[Kikujiro]

Looking for this?

http://www.rakuten.co.jp/masanios/431675/4.../433696/433728/

Cripes. That's cheaper than Amazon ...

[Kikujiro]

nemuchan: Welcome?

[nemuchan]

nemuchan: Welcome?

Thank you. Yes.

[torakris]

Can we also all agree that it's virtually unheard-of to set foot in an Asian household and not see a rice cooker?

I can agree. In my experience, nearly all Japanese households use rice cookers (okay, I haven't visited nearly all Japanese households ) Several posters have already mentioned that an important aspect is convenience. Put the rice on in the morning and serve whenever.

Better half and I had an old Sanyo, the type with the spring-loaded on-off switch and aluminium bowl. Could get burnt bits at the bottom if you left rice in it for over twelve hours or so. Still used it almost every day for years, though.

Two years ago got a Panasonic with the then-latest Induction Heating technology. I think this is an even more recent trend than neuro-fuzzy and might be worth searching for. Results are flawless.

Although ... Got the Panasonic in Japan. Due to the fact that a suitably heavy duty voltage transformer (I'm in the UK) seemed rather pricey in Japan and because such a device was bulky and heavy, I thought I was being clever by getting a cheap building site type transformer back here (the type used for power tool safety). After much gnashing of teeth, bizarre behaviour by rice cooker, emails to Panasonic and experiments by me it transpired that the cooker did not _quite_ like the 110V from the transformer and really, really needed almost exactly 100V. Now using big old scrounged variac.

IH is the "newest" technology feature on rice cookers and the good ones are running about $500, the one I am currently lusting after can cook the rice in 13 minutes!

Living in Japan and having visited many houses, I have never seen one with out a rice cooker and most housewives I know would buy a rice cooker before a microwave!

I actually don't use the keep warm feature on mine for more than an hour or two because i find it gives the rice a slightly off flavor. Leftovers are refrigerated and then heated in the mcrowave. I find this tastes more liking freshly made rice than the stuff that has been sitting in a rice cooker for 8 hours.

My rice cooker is a couple years old, so the newer models may have improved this.

The feature I would never do without is the timer. I make lunches for my husabnd and since he leaves the house about 5:45 I would ahve to wake up at 4:30 to make fresh rice. Instead I prepare it the night before, set the timer for 5:30 and ahve freshly made rice very morning. This also is wonderful when I am going to be out all day and want fresh rice for dinner, I can program it to be ready at any time!

[Jinmyo]

How on earth is fuzzy logic applied to rice cooking?

What else would you do with it?

[bleachboy]

I want to buy a rice cooker for my wife for Christmas. She loves to make sushi at home, and I think she will love it.

Does anyone have any specific recommendations as to what brand/model of electric rice cooker works well? We would prefer a model with a small footprint, as our kitchen is not too big.

Finally, recommendations of online ordering sources are welcome.

[Katherine]

If you're in Japan, I can't tell you where to buy your rice cooker, but I can tell you that the most convenient ones are the ones with all the bells and whistles. Nonstick coating on the bowl insert, neuro fuzzy logic temperature controls, lots of choices on the menu, a timer...

It's also true that there is a significant cohort of rice lovers who despise rice cookers and all they stand for. Ignore them.

[Katherine]

Try starting at this website. They have good prices, and a big selection. You might find better prices if you shop around, but you can see what's available here. I've been lusting after the mochi maker for ages.

[browniebaker]

Hi, fellow Nashvillian! I live in the D.C. area now but grew up in Nashville and still return for the winter holidays with family.

I recommend the National (made by Panasonic) SR-GE18N, which I bought a couple of years ago and have used with excellent results at least once a week since. It has the "fuzzy logic," which automatically adjusts the cooking so that, if the amount of water you put in is slightly off, it does not matter; a timer; and six different settings: stcky rice, non-sticky rice, quick cook, porridge, steaming, and brown rice. The non-stick interior pan is terrific, and still shows no sign of wear. Cleanup is easy.

I use this rice cooker to cook not only Asian-style sticky rice but also non-sticky long-grain rice; Chinese eight-treasure rice using glutinous/sweet rice; steel-cut oatmeal; steamed vegetables, fish, and buns; rice porridge; and Southern-style dirty rice.

I don't remember the name of the store from which I ordered it on-line. All I know is that I did a Yahoo search with the key words and chose the store offering it at the lowest price and best terms. I think I paid something like $169 or $179, shipping included.

[prasantrin]

In terms of specific models, it might be best to ask on the Southeast board or on the general topics board since rice cookers in Japan will have different model numbers than in the US.

Generally speaking, I prefer the Japanese-made rice cookers to US made ones. I find them to last longer and they are more reliable (fewer crusty bottoms). I have a Tiger brand cooker than I bought in Japan 10 years ago and it still works very well. It has a non-stick pot, a warmer, and a very basic timer. Our National (the type that's white metal with black plastic trim, one button, and no other bells and whistles) is still in working order and it's more than 20 (possibly close to 30) years old.

When choosing a rice cooker, you have to consider what you might be using it for. National, Tiger, Panasonic, and other Japanese brands will be able to make rice for sushi and for everyday eating. I don't think any particular model or brand is better for that than the others. Basic models like the National I mentioned are good choices if all you want to do is cook rice and eat it right away. But if you cook rice in the morning and want to keep it warm for dinner, or if you want to use a timer so your rice will be ready when you get home, then you should consider that. Also consider how many people you'll be cooking rice for. If you generally only cook for a few people, then a 5-cup cooker will suit your needs, but if you cook for large parties, you'll need a larger one. I would suggest getting a non-stick pot for ease of cleaning, but those are just a perk, not a necessity.

All rice cookers, even the smallest ones, will take up a fair bit of room on your counter. If you're very protective of your counter space, and do not have much storage space, a rice cooker might not be a wise purchase for you. Ours is on our counter at all times and we have maybe only 3-4 feet of counter space. We use it everyday, though, so for us it's well worth the space it takes up.

America's Test Kitchen aka Cook's Illustrated did a test on rice cookers. You can find the results on-line but I think you must register for the site. They preferred the Zojirushi Neuro Fuzzy Rice Cooker and Warmer NS-JCC10 which is also one of the most expensive rice cookers one can buy, and comes fully loaded.

Uwajimaya has some rice cookers that you can purchase on-line. They're a (mostly) Japanese (mostly) grocery store in the Northwest US. Even sites like amazon have a variety of rice cookers. I'm not familiar enough with any site to recommend one over the other, though.

edited to fix a link

Edited November 21, 2003 by prasantrin (log)