The last Rice Cooker thread is 9 years old and closed. Time for me to ask what Rice Cooker is everyone using at the moment and would recommend?

I’ve seen Tesco do a budget one for £20ish (I’ve been burnt by buy cheap buy twice before), I did also look in a currys store at their kitcehn section but none on display.

We’re currently using a Ninja Foodi which is expensive (especially if it’s just going to be used to make rice) but does better rice than the rice cooker did, with less mess.

I’d assume a cheaper pressure cooker would do the same job?

9 mins in this.

I was looking for a small rice cooker just for one or two portions and couldn’t find many in the shops apart from a Muji one that was about 100 quid, so I just got a cheap Chinese one from Amazon. Has worked fine so far – the Chinese seem to know about cooking rice. My sister got one from Lakeland that also has a porridge setting, but takes an hour to cook porridge. WTF?

Isn’t porridge what the microwave is for?

We’re currently using a Ninja Foodi which is expensive (especially if it’s just going to be used to make rice) but does better rice than the rice cooker did, with less mess.

yeah I was gonna say in typical STW fashion recommend something that RRPs for £300 when the OP wants to spend £20 😂 But I picked up the 15-in-1 Ninja for £250 just before Chrimbo, got to say it’s the best culinary gadget-thing I’ve ever bought – although it’s huge it’s replaced multiple other gadgets so takes up less space overall and we actually use it more than the main oven now when not doing large meals (it’s also extremely handy for extra oven space or doing a side-dish when you are cooking for loads).

Ours is a Ninja 9-1 but not a current model, still don’t understand why we bought one over an air fryer, rice is dead easy to make. It also works as a slow cooker, and has lasted well, so can’t really complain… other than to moan about the lack of air fryer in our household!

still don’t understand why we bought one over an air fryer,

just depends what sort of meals you cook? If it were just an air-fryer it wouldn’t see much use in our house tbh! If you’re doing chips or nuggets every night though then yes a dedicated air-fryer will be a lot better (the Ninja multi has quite a small air-frying volume in comparison)

This Russell Hobbs has been doing fine for us, rice 3-4 days week for quite a few years: https://uk.russellhobbs.com/rice-cooker-steamer-19750

They really don’t need to be fancy, there’s not much to them. I’d go smaller if it’s just for 1-2 people, ours is a good size for 4-6 portions.

We have an instant pot (and just got a new one that’s also an air fryer) but usually if we’re having rice we’re also having something made in the instant pot so easier to have separate things.

Microwaves aren’t just for porridge…

Rince rice thoroughly (this is a given, we all should do this), then put in a pan filled with approx the same depth again of water (ie, if the rice is 2cm deep, fill so the rice is covered with another 2cm over the top of water). Bring to a boil with a lid on and, when the steam starts to slow (showing that the water has mostly boiled off), take off the heat and leave to stand for 10 mins then serve.

I find that covering with a few teatowels keeps it hot for ages (as in up to an hour or so) so it can be made a bit in advance of whatever else you are cooking it with.

I have been doing it like this for years and years and it is so simple.

Saucepan. As johndoh says a tea towel will keep it warm and it will also absorb any remaining moisture in the rice if you stick it in the plate warming oven.

Rince rice thoroughly (this is a given, we all should do this)

Never do that, and it’s never been a problem.

Never do that, and it’s never been a problem.

It’s not a problem – it just removes excess starch so the grains separate properly. It won’t kill you if you don’t, it just makes better rice if you do.

Genuine question: what does a rice cooker do that a pan doesn’t?

It’s taken me bloody ages – like, years – to get rice right but I’ve sussed it now. Rinse / soak the dried rice until the water runs clear; add to a pan with about 2.5 times the volume of water to rice; add a bit of salt and whatever spices you want; bring to the boil then drop the heat to a gentle simmer; stir, then lid it; knock off the heat when the water’s almost all absorbed and leave for a few minutes more to steam quietly to itself.

Genuine question: what does a rice cooker do that a pan doesn’t?

It’s taken me bloody ages – like, years – to get rice right

answered your own question haven’t you?!! It’s for the culinarily challenged – or people who have kids to keep an eye on etc where a pan might boil over/boil off too much. You just press the button and you get perfect rice.

… ie, pretty much what johndoh just posted whilst I was writing that. I use measuring cups though, rather than doing it by eye in the pan. 1/3 cup of rice and almost a full cup of water per person is about right.

Never do that, and it’s never been a problem.

It makes it less likely that you’ll accidentally make rice pudding. Not rinsing it is what makes ‘sticky rice’ sticky (which of course is absolutely fine if that’s what you’re aiming for).

@simon_g thank you for the link, looking now. Really dumb question for you or others who own a rice cooker, I assume it will cook long grain, basmati and jasmine rice all fine? its not limited to just long grain/plain white rice?

Genuine question: what does a rice cooker do that a pan doesn’t?

I’m hoping it will make rice dishes easier to cook when jugglging a busy house or getting back from something and needing to eat but also unload or shower.

Yes, you just change water ratio – all the rice cooker is doing is bringing it to boil then when it dries out (and the temp rises) it knocks it down to keep warm.

And that’s the main benefit @Cougar – wash rice, bung in the right amount of water then leave it till you’re ready to eat. Same goes for the instant pot really, once it’s going there’s no need to fiddle with it and the food will keep warm for as long as you need. I can stick dinner on then go and pick up the kids so it’s ready when we get home.

Gotta wonder how people that find cooking rice in a pan challenging ever manage to cook anything to go with the rice….

Do you people have egg boilers and teasmades for those other tricky culinary challenges?

I have a tiny one from VonShef that does 1 or 2 portions at a time. Wouldn’t work for a family but takes up very little space.

As to why, it’s just convenient if you want to eat rice a lot. Why have a toaster or a kettle?

For those people dissing rice cookers – some input from a nation that eats a lot more rice than you

And that’s the main benefit @Cougar – wash rice, bung in the right amount of water then leave it till you’re ready to eat.

That’s exactly what I do with a pan. Just need to keep half an eye on it to switch off the heat when it’s done. Shutting off and keeping warm sounds useful.

Gotta wonder how people that find cooking rice in a pan challenging
exactly, how on earth can it be difficult, have you all struggled to cook potatoes and pasta as well?
Risotto is slightly more tricky as you have to have the right amount of water to rice ratio, and time it with the other ingredients as well.
boiling rice in a pan you can just drain off the excess water when it’s ready.

boiling rice in a pan you can just drain off the excess water when it’s ready.

Clearly you find cooking rice challenging then – there shouldn’t be excess water to drain off if it’s cooked in a pan properly 😉

boiling rice in a pan you can just drain off the excess water when it’s ready.

Wet mush, lovely.

It’s not hard to do in a pan, but it does need your attention else you’ll burn it when it dries out.

As said, you can also make your toast under a grill, or boil water for your tea in a saucepan so why own a dedicated gadget for those jobs? Anyone I know who cooks rice more than once a week has a rice cooker and it’s because they make rice really well every time with a minimum of faff.

Do you people have egg boilers

Yes, it’s brilliant. Rice is just water:rice at 2:1 ratio (1/3 cup of rice per portion), cover pan with lid and simmer until water is absorbed. Remove and allow to finish for a few minutes before serving. No rinsing required. Washing the rice before simmering is also possible. This is basically what a rice cooker is doing.

Anyone I know who cooks rice more than once a week has a rice cooker

We have rice two or three times a week most weeks (I buy big 10kg bags as mentioned in the sketch above) and always in a pan. If it’s just me eating (if I have worked late) I often use the microwave pouches, but if it’s me and my wife or the whole family eating then it’s the pan every time (whether it be plain boiled rice or seasoned).

I looked at a rice cooker a couple of years ago but decided I didn’t cook enough rice to warrant one, ended up getting one of these instead https://www.johnlewis.com/joseph-joseph-m-cuisine-microwave-rice-cooker/p2152410

Not really any easier than just using a saucepan but IMO a bit less hassle, effectively times itself and doesn’t use space on the hob I might need for other stuff I’m cooking

Do I get a ban for confessing to using a pan and boil in the bag rice. At least when we are cooking from scratch and not just doing a packet of Aldi 60 second microwave rice

Although I will confess to cooking a batch of rice and then freezing it because I’m lazy on a week night (and have a freezer full of frozen curries and chilies).

how on earth can it be difficult, have you all struggled to cook potatoes and pasta as well?
Risotto is slightly more tricky as you have to have the right amount of water to rice ratio, and time it with the other ingredients as well.
boiling rice in a pan you can just drain off the excess water when it’s ready.

The culinary equivalent of saying you don’t understand the point of rear suspension because the stabilizers stop it moving anyway.

For those people dissing rice cookers – some input from a nation that eats a lot more rice than you

Thanks for that, he’s really funny. I’ll check out more of his work.

I’ve lived in Japan and have a stepmother who knows a little bit about cooking rice (she is a trained sushi chef).

Rice cooker every time here.

As above, Mrs Davy90 hails from SE Asia, we have two rice cookers, both fairly cheap from Amazon, one little one which just about feeds the four of us when brim full and one big one which I’ve never seen full.

Do these really do anything more than a saucepan?

How did they cook rice in olden days before rice cookers!?

Do these really do anything more than a saucepan?

Does a toaster do anything more than a grill?

I use to live next door to Chinese students and every year we would get new students and every one of them had a rice cooker. If you eat a lot of rice they are worth getting.

Do these really do anything more than a saucepan?

Does a toaster do anything more than a grill?

Does a hob do anything more than just making a fire under your pan 😉 ?

We’ve got a reishunger, on the recommendation of many folks, and it’s great! Handy basket inside for steaming veg over the rice too which makes it even more convenient. Mid-price, about £45 I think, and while I thought Mrs E was buying yet another pointless gadget to clutter the kitchen (see George foreman grill, ice cream maker, popcorn maker etc. for past examples…) I’m a concert.