Rice Cooker?

[Justin087]

I saw a "Electric Rice Cooker" advertised for 19.99 in home depots ad, and i was wondering what these are? How fast do they cook rice, and how do they cook it? 99 percent of what i eat is rice, and i use minute rice right now, but its 4.49 a box so if i could save a few bucks by getting a rice cooker and regular rice, that would be awesome.. i usually only have about 30 minutes or so to cook stuff early in the day before work though.

[CarlaB]

I love my rice cooker .... cooks it perfect every time!

For a single serving, I don't know how long it takes ... I cook for 8 every time, so it takes a while. But for one, 30 minutes would probably be long enough ... read the instructions before you buy, they should tell you how long it takes.

[Felidae]

I love my cheap rice cooker. It takes about 20 minutes to cook rice. I buy a huge Costco size bag of rice and it sure saves cash that way.

[tarnalberry]

I love my rice cooker, and it produces perfect rice every time, but it's pricey. (It's a Zojirushi fuzzy-logic rice cooker.) Cheap ones will work fine too, and they may take half an hour (depending on what kind of rice you're using and how much you're cooking at once), but they are much more reliable and easy than stove top cooking, which, while still quite fine, is slightly more likely to lead to scorched bottoms if you're not careful about it.

[Tim-n-VA]

Rice cookers have a sensor and turn off when the water has boiled out. They don't necessarily cook rice quicker than a pot on a stove but because they turn off they are not supposed to scorch the rice.

I bought a mid-range Rival rice cooker and found it does great as long as you unplug it when it stops cooking. If you let it sit with the "keep warm" cycle, it is just as likely to scorch the rice as stove top.

I use the stove top for all of the brown rice varieties and only use the rice cooker for the white rice.

Bottom line for me is that both will work fine if you follow the directions and remove them from heat at the right time.

[Michi8]

  Tim-n-VA said:

Rice cookers have a sensor and turn off when the water has boiled out. They don't necessarily cook rice quicker than a pot on a stove but because they turn off they are not supposed to scorch the rice.

I bought a mid-range Rival rice cooker and found it does great as long as you unplug it when it stops cooking. If you let it sit with the "keep warm" cycle, it is just as likely to scorch the rice as stove top.

I use the stove top for all of the brown rice varieties and only use the rice cooker for the white rice.

Bottom line for me is that both will work fine if you follow the directions and remove them from heat at the right time.

I am putting my vote in for the basic Sanyo rice cooker. It's cheap, but works really well. I have never had scorched rice from it...even when I use the keep warm feature. I've been using it for probably 14 years, and it's still going strong. It comes with an instruction booklet that recommends different amounts of water for different types of rice...also has a few recipes.

Michelle

[Felidae]

  Tim-n-VA said:

I use the stove top for all of the brown rice varieties and only use the rice cooker for the white rice.

I cooked brown rice in my cheapo rice cooker, not knowing if it would work or not. The brown rice cooked up beautifully.

[Guest Lucy]

Love love love my rice cooker. I have a cheap OLD OLD one, it works great.

[michellehunt]

I have it on my shopping list minute rice is for the birds, A real rice cooked in a nice gluten-free broth (not all are gluten free) is the best thing ever..........

[miles2go]

  Justin087 said:

I saw a "Electric Rice Cooker" advertised for 19.99 in home depots ad, and i was wondering what these are? How fast do they cook rice, and how do they cook it? 99 percent of what i eat is rice, and i use minute rice right now, but its 4.49 a box so if i could save a few bucks by getting a rice cooker and regular rice, that would be awesome.. i usually only have about 30 minutes or so to cook stuff early in the day before work though.

Ya' know, I have been torturing myself lately with the rice cooker question and the answer that I have (just for today) is that stovetop has never led me astray and that rice that's overcooked and with a crust is called kateh and is quite yummy although rice that's been smoked by negligience can be remedied by purchasing a timer.

That said, does anyone use a crockpot/slowcooker for rice or grains, or overnight porridge for breakfast?

[melie]

I got my rice cooker at Costco, under $20, it works like a charm. Perfect rice every time.

Melie

[missy'smom]

My husband is Japanese so I'm a little biased and like our Panasonic that we've had for over a decade. If your looking for a Japanese brand rice cooker, buy at an asian market. Especially in the major cities, they are cheaper there than from American stores. The Japanese ones come in different sizes and have different settings for quick cook and types of rice. We buy 20 lb. bags of medium quality rice for around $10 if I remember correctly.

[brendygirl]

I got a MICROWAVE rice cooker for a gift. Works great! Takes 13 minutes. All my Asian friends use rice cookers, too!

[dragonmom]

I feel like an antique, I cook on stove top 20 minutes perfect every time....2parts water 1 part rice and my alltime favorite butter.

[nikki8]

I have Pampered Chef's microwave rice cooker and I love it. It cooks white rice perfectly. I haven't tried brown rice in it, but I'm planning on trying it this week.