As the title says. I have an older black and decker rice cooker. It’s been working ok but it always burns the bottom. Does anybody here have a brand they recommend?
Tiger or Zojirushi. They will last forever!
Seconding Zojirushi. Never looking back.
Best decision I made when moving.
Zojirushi is the universal answer, just like kitchen aid for stand mixers, but I will say I quite like my Joseph Joseph microwave rice cooker, since I dont have to take a thing out and plug it in, and I can just stick the whole thing in the fridge once I make rice. Zojirushi is almost undoubtedly much nicer though, especially if you want a traditional rice maker
Thanks for the responses. The zojirushi looks amazing except for the price tag. Lol. I’ll keep looking around for sales. I have an instant pot also, always saw the rice cooker setting just never tried it.
Try the instant pot first before you spend any money. use 1:1.1 rice to water ratio (adjust water up or down to your taste), push down on the lid to force it to seal early, and use the 12 minute program. When it’s done let pressure release naturally. We make instant pot rice multiple times a week, mostly Japanese rice but also jasmine and plain rice. All cooked the same way.
Another vote for trying the instant pot first. I use the pot in pot method with mine, I think the indirect heat is possibly better since there’s no way for it to burn on the bottom. You can also cook in the outer pot while making rice, if the timing works out. For that you just need a pressure proof container that fits inside. I have a tiny cake pan that works great, as well as a 3qt insert that fits inside my 6qt pot. The rice+water goes inside that, and the outer pot has water and a trivet/rack to hold up the inner pot. I cook rice for 5 minutes of pressure then 10 minutes of natural release. Lots of things can be cooked with the pot in pot method, I’ve done rice, beans, and chicken all at the same time.
Definitely try what you have first. I’ve had good experience with my knockoff Instant Pot.
Every recommendation list ever puts Zojirushi at the top. Probably that’s your best bet.
I have one, best rice cooker I’ve ever owned
I have one too, and it’s good. I always liked them because of the cute elephant and because a friend had one and liked it.
Zojirushi and Tiger make great rice cookers, I’ve had a few.
That said I’ve replaced my zojirushi with an instant pot. And you can do a whole bunch of other things with an instant pot. The instant pots rice program is just as good as a dedicated rice cooker.
My instant pot always takes sooo long to pressurize! It feels like the rice cooks forever by the time the pressure is ready. Did you have this issue at all when starting?
Total cooking time for rice in the instant pot isn’t much different from my zojirushi. You can speed up the instant pot though by pressing down on the lid when steam is coming out to force it to seal early. This little pressure increase will cause that pressure nub to pop up and seal so pressure will more quickly increase.
Ohhh I’ll have to try that! Sometimes the little nub won’t pop up for so long I feel like the rice has to be done cooking just from the heat alone.
The other key tip for instant pot rice is to let the pressure release naturally. The rice needs time to absorb all that water after the cooking cycle completes.
I lost my rice cooker years ago when it does and switched to the instant pot for versatility. I’ve come to the point where I do pot-in-pot rice, and it comes out perfectly every time. A couple cups of water and a trivet, then a bowl with the 1:1 water:rice plus a tab of butter on the rice setting. Takes a bit but no complaints in my household.
We also use the IP for rice. I’m Korean, and my wife is Indian, so we go through a LOT of rice. It works well.
I also use an instant pot for cooking rice. It works great, but I have to set the time manually because the pre-set rice setting overcooks my rice.
I use the mini-instant pot, the regular one is just way too big unless you’re trying to feed a family of five.
It is nice to reduce the number of kitchen appliances I “need”. Instead of a pressure cooker and a rice cooker, I just have a pressure cooker and use it to cook rice.
Edit: I should also add that apparently instant pot went bankrupt, so you might not be able to find one or replacement parts ever again? Maybe?
I have a Zojirushi, it’s fantastic. But I’m betting at this point, just look for any rice cooker with Fuzzy Logic/Micom and decent reviews.
If you live in the US, Costco has pretty solid deals on quality rice cookers which are solid. Also prime day is coming up and I got my zojirushi a while ago for under $100
I haven’t tried many brands but I love my Zojirushi. The rice always comes out perfect. You can use the Zojirushi for other things too.
Ive used an instapot—it’s pretty cool because the actual cook time for rice is 1 minute. But, it will take some time to get up to temp and pressure.
Edit: Apparently the Zojirushi pots are really durable. Considering I really fucked up my rice last night I’m not sure I should be trusted. I tend to make the same amount of rice always and this time I changed the quantity and my cooking method blew up.
I went shopping for a rice cooker a while ago and came up empty handed. Zojirushi or whatever the import model is from Japan are often recommended but not what I wanted since despite the cost you still have replaceable parts to take care of.
Stainless steel inserts are hard to find. I looked at other types of cookers as well.
In the end I felt like buying a cheap model from amazon ($30) and replacing the inner every couple years was the way to go. They work fine. Replacement inserts costs as much as a new unit and was harder to find so it seemed like they are basically disposable items.
I didn’t buy one because it seemed wasteful and now I just use a normal thin-bottomed pot. If I were to look again I’d consider buying a cheap one and experimenting with different bowls, but honestly going back to making rice with a pot was a lot easier than I remembered.
This is crazy talk. I’ve had my zojirushi rice cooker for over 10 years. As long as you wash the pot and lid properly and don’t scratch it with metal utensils it should last forever. Replacement parts are available but the need should be rare unless you are a Neanderthal.
If your experience is you frequently need to replace parts for your rice cooker, then you’re buying the wrong rice cooker.
Good to hear. I’ve edited my comment. Every other rice cooker I’ve seen has had peeling problems so I just assumed it was a thing for all of them. My parents specifically bought the most expensive one at the store a few years ago but it’s still crap.
I like rice. I might try and find a used one.
I’ve had my Zojirushi for like 12 years now and I have only had to replace the rice paddle because I lost it.
The nonstick pot is doing alright? I don’t like it when they flake.
It’s almost like new. As long as you don’t use metal utensils with it and wash it by hand, it will not flake. It’s also very easy to wash because of the nonstick coating, so hand washing is no hassle.
It’s probably the best single purchase I have ever made, as someone who regularly eats rice.
My Cuckoo is going on 5 years of at least weekly service. I love it. Perfect rice every time no matter the type of rice. I only get a crispy bottom +not burnt) if I add butter or leave the keep warm on on a half empty pot.
I love our Cuckoo. It’s also about 10yrs old and in nearly daily use.
We have a ninja foodie. It does rice, until recently our household did the instant rice. We will never go back, though the thing we have isn’t optimal. First I’ve heard of a Zojirushi, gonna look into that for sure.
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