How to make your rice cooker hop, skip and jump!

HI,

When I am in exercise class, my mind often wonders off while the body does the motions. This can be a bit embarassing when people are suddenly moving in my direction catching me unaware as I repeat a motion they abandoned sometime before. Earth to Cathy, are you still with us?

Today my mind was wondering how my cheapo rice cooker works. Since reading a snippet 'how to get more from your appliances' last fall, my cheapo rice cooker has expanded to making me oatmeal, grits and cream of rice/wheat. I was wondering if risotto could be made in it with me occasionally adding more liquid. I wasn't quite sure what caused the rice cooker to turn off: was it time or temperature dependent? IF time dependent, if I lowered the temperature by introducing more liquid, was I resetting the timer? I did a search when I got home to learn:

How stuff works wrote:At sea level, the boiling temperature for water is 212 degrees F or 100 degrees C. As soon as all of the liquid water has evaporated (or, in the case of the rice cooker, as soon as all of the water is absorbed by the rice), the temperature inside the container immediately rises. The appliance has a thermostat that can detect when the temperature rises above 212 degrees F in the container, and it turns itself off.

This makes quite a difference in how I approach this odd appliance I never thought I would like. I'm going to experiment making risotto to see if it will indeed work to my satisfaction. Using the rice cooker, then occasionally stirring and adding more liquid is far less labor intensive than the classic method. Since I am chief, cook and bottle washer, I do prefer checking in on something occasionally than offering intensive care.

Now back to exercise class where a wall of women are fast approaching!

Regards,

I've made a version of risotto in my rice cooker for years. While it is far easier than on the stove it may lack in the texture department.

I place a mixture of EVOO and butter along with a handful of finely chopped onions and give it a few stirs once I hear the H2O in the butter start to sputter. a few min later I add the rice and toss a few times. Now, I add some wine and stir (so far, the top has been off) once the wine is absorbed I add the almost boiling stock / H2O mixture in full and cover the rice cooker. When I think about it I give it a stir and check to see if I need to add any stock or if the rice is done enough...
when it is done to my taste, I add some cream and cheese and plate the dish... depending on the kind I'm making I will have added any flavor i.e. mushrooms etc.... toward the beginning

I'm sure this is breaking many many rules but I'm fine with this version for any tues. night dinner YMMV

I'm sure this is breaking many many rules but I'm fine with this version for any tues. night dinner YMMV

Thank you, this is precisely the information I was hoping people could offer. Quick and dirty with a good enough result for an evening meal without having to go the full nine-yards.

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote: Quick and dirty with a good enough result

You been talking to my wife?

So, does that mean they sell special rice cookers for high-altitudes? Or do they just not work there?

That's fascinating.

sweetsalty wrote:So, does that mean they sell special rice cookers for high-altitudes? Or do they just not work there?

That's fascinating.

My rice cooker works fine at 7000'. Boiling point is around 198F, but if it works as described above, the temp would likewise rise after all of the water has boiled off. Perhaps it is measuring temperature deltas? No idea, but it works perfectly for all kinds of rice including sticky, black, brown, etc.

I am not so much a fan of "quick and dirty" but it seems to me you could do a simplified version of paella in the rice cooker. Could work.

Bill/SFNM

This is a very important topic for those people (like my dorm-dwelling daughter) who have no stove and yet who like to cook for their friends. A hot plate is just not a good idea from a fire-safety perspective, but generally, microwaves and hot pots and rice cookers with their enclosed heating elements are OK. Seems like polenta could work well in a rice cooker as well. Thanks for mentioning this, Cathy. I think I will head out to H-Mart and pick up a nice rice cooker for a graduation present.

Zojirushi actually makes a rice cooker with a risotto function. I've tried it and while the rice is good, it's not risotto, with its characteristically creamy texture. I love my rice cooker - and other kitchen gear - I think you get far better risotto using just a saucepan, with easier clean-up.

Josephine, if you're in the market for a really nice rice cooker, I saw an $800 Tiger model at the Housewares show this year, but you'll have to order it from Japan.
http://www.chow.com/stories/10501

Thanks, Louisa, but I think $800 exceeds my budget for this gift. Of course, it's nice to have the best available appliances. I think I could buy a year's worth of rice for a less expensive cooker with that kind of budget, though.

Hi,

Last night I was hungry with no real desire to cook extensively or go out. While college students default meal may be cereal, I wasn't far behind. I was out of regular grits, then used cream of wheat instead. I thought I would add some butter, cheddar cheese, salt and pepper for a grits-like experience. So I proceed to load the rice cooker with cream of wheat, water and salt.

I got the rice cooker chugging, when I spied a few golf ball sized beets in the refrigerator. Remembering the pleasant meal of beet risotto last week, I thought I could replicate the experience in the rice cooker. Since this was a late in the game brainstorm, I finely minced the beet, some garlic cloves and a small onion, then dropped it into the cooking cream of wheat. If I had this grand thought a little earlier, then I would have attempted to saute the onions and garlic first.

The risotto last week had crumbled goat cheese, while I used feta. For my cream of wheat imitating grits now risotto, I added the last of the sheep cheese from Bobak's. While the vegetables were a bit crunchy, this was really good eating, if not a bit unorthodox, for a light meal with many twists and turns.

Your rice cooker: it not just for rice any more. Maybe I could interest George Forman in this concept?

Regards,

C2, you obviously get the Hi-Tech Innovation award of the week. Maybe the season. That's a mighty improbable list o' ingredients to somehow come out tasty.

Bien Fait!

Geo

The rice cooker I bought from Cooking.com is scheduled to arrive next week. Cathy2, you make me wish I chose express shipping instead of super saver. Sounds like a wonderful meal!

Just saw this thread...I made grits this morning and didn't even think to use the rice cooker! Great idea!

Also very impressed with your method of making it savory. I ended up pouring vats of sugar on mine after briefly contemplating parmesan cheese. Next time, I'll use the cheese.

just saw this and thought it would be of interest to this thread. Zojirushi, Japan's premiere rice cooker manufacturer, has released its first cookbook, RICE COOKER CREATIONS -- 40 Simple Recipes by Zojirushi. Available now, the cook book demystifies the rice cooker and reveals exciting new ways to cook complete meals, from soups to main courses and desserts. RICE COOKER CREATIONS features 72 pages of recipes including oatmeal, saffron risotto with herbed scampi, beef stew, pasta salad, and salmon with vegetables. The book's introductory pages describe the Zojirushi rice cookers, numerous rice varietals, and how to properly cook rice in the cooker. The book prominently frames the rice cooker as a resourceful kitchen appliance that enables and enhances the cooking experience. The rice cooker, as used within the multitude of recipes in the book, helps to create a wide and diverse palette of flavors and dishes that are nutrition-focused and delectable.

The latest generation of rice cookers include sophisticated chipsets allowing the units to employ "fuzzy logic" in making cooking decisions. These units can selectively adjust heat, power and cooking time depending on what's actually happening to the rice as it cooks, changing what it's doing based on the type of rice being used and the desired result. These units can handle a wide variety of rice types with aplomb and can also do a number of different things including rissto, congee and porridge better than a conventional cooker. These can be found for $100-$200 depending on size and features.

LTH,

Odd as it may sound, I've never used a rice cooker for brown rice. My loss, as our ancient 2-button, non-fuzzy logic Hitachi rice cooker produced the fluffiest most delectable brown rice in memory. Pared with a quick stir fry of grape tomato, asparagus and shrimp our healthy keep to the New Years resolution dinner was a no fuss snap.

I've never had much luck with a crock pot, it may be an innate prejudice on my part, though, after my brown rice success, I may start experimenting with the rice cooker.

Enjoy,
Gary

I love my rice cooker and after having used it now for a couple of years, can't imagine how I ever lived without it. It's super convenient and handles many varieties of rice with remarkably consistent results.

If you're in the market, they have a nice selection of machines at Mitsuwa Marketplace in Arlington Heights, although if you already know what you want, you can order them on-line with ease.

Zojirushi now makes a fuzzy logic, induction machine that's supposed to be amazing. We have the fuzzy logic model that pre-dates the induction model, which I ordered via Amazon. No sales tax and free delivery was, as always, a welcome combination.

=R=

Mitsuwa Marketplace
100 E. Algonquin Rd.
Arlington Heights, IL 60005
847 956-6699

HI,

Thanks for the feedback on your brown rice experience. Until I learned how the rice cooker worked (see OP), I thought I wanted a fuzzy logic rice cooker to cook brown rice or anything else beyond white rice. Now my cheap rice cooker is making grits, oatmeal and soon some brown rice. I'm really pleased to learn there is more this little appliance can do.

When I got my first rice cooker, it was an extra from a friend's household. I took it conditionally, because frankly it wasn't anything I felt I ever needed. I soon learned I could start rice for lunch, then walk away without fear of overboiling or burning. Later I thanked her very much for the handy appliance I never knew I wanted.

Regards,

It's a great machine. Ours died and we haven't replaced it, but I'm thinking about it. I'd just dump whatever I was making in it, and it would cook - Spanish rice, middle-eastern pilaf, bbq lentils and rice, spelt, kamut, whatever. Just dump it in and forget about it! Ours was just a plain old one, no fancy settings or anything.

For a completely different kind of starch:

http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Rice-Cooker-Bread

Hi,

Today I borrowed an idea from Leek, I made Jambalaya in my rice cooker. I had recently purchased a Zatarain's Jambalaya mix (marked down to $1.14 at Super Target) that only needed meat and water to cook. I threw the Jambalaya mix and 2.5 cups water into my rice cooker to get it started. While it was heating up, I sliced a pound of hot links I had smoked and added it to the rice cooker. I sauted a medium onion, several cloves of garlic and green pepper, then stirred it into the Jambalaya. In less than 30 minutes, lunch was served.

It was a pleasant way to use leftover hot links, didn't require a lot of time and a thoroughly decent lunch.

Regards,

I made quinoa in my rice cooker the other night and it turned out pretty good! I put in a cup of quinoa, 1.5 cups of water, a knob of butter, some salt and a tablespoon of minced shallot. When it clicked over from the cooking cycle to the warming cycle, I grated in a carrot and sprinkled in a healthy dose of curry powder. I scattered on some sunflower seeds just before serving.

I keep a cheap rice cooker at work, partially to freak out my coworkers, but also to occasionally make lunch that is hot, filling and I can't forget and burn the joint down. I've found that Vigo seasoned rice (left side) does well, also. I can keep a couple packets in my desk drawer for months and use a takeout single serving butter that can always be found in the fridge at work.

The NY Times has an article about the growing popularity of rice cookers, and their ability to do far more than just steam rice. It almost makes me regret donating mine to the Brown Elephant several years ago!

chgoeditor wrote:The NY Times has an article about the growing popularity of rice cookers, and their ability to do far more than just steam rice. It almost makes me regret donating mine to the Brown Elephant several years ago!

Very nice!

We were discussing making quinoa in the rice cooker just last week. It turned out great.

=R=

I read that article and came straight here to ask: Can anyone recommend a quality rice cooker in a decent price range?

Anything Zojirushi I can emphatically recommend. The price varies depending on which bells and whistles you want. I like the Neuro-Fuzzy ones, but there are simpler versions out there that cost less.

What's your price range? Decent is $50 or less for some folks, and $150 for others

HI,

I have the cheapest rice cooker one could imagine: I turn it on, it runs its cycle, then goes to warm. There is no off-switch, the default position is warm.

Last night I dumped a box of Zatarain's rice and beans plus 3.5 cups of water and a shot of olive oil. This pretty much filled my rice cooker to its maximum capacity. It hummed away while I took a walk over to visit a neighbor. Worked like a charm.

When I was given a rice cooker some years ago. I took it conditionally: if I found it useful I would keep it. If not, then I wanted the option to return it. I not only found it useful, I bought another one when it died. I can make stovetop rice, but it needs watching and the rice cooker does not.

Regards,

ews wrote:I read that article and came straight here to ask: Can anyone recommend a quality rice cooker in a decent price range?

I have a Sanyo ECJ-E35S, which is available at the Super H for about $90. It has a few added bells and whistles that I consider essential, especially the timer. Happily the bells and whistles are not literal-- it does NOT BEEP when it is done. I love that.

Cheers, Jen

JenM wrote:Happily the bells and whistles are not literal-- it does NOT BEEP when it is done. I love that.
Cheers, Jen

I love my Zojirushi but I hate the tune it plays when it starts and finishes. I can't figure out how to make it stop.