How To Choose A Rice Cooker

There is a small appliance that is growing in popularity in America. This small appliance is the rice cooker. This little appliance can do much more than just cook rice. It is at home both in the kitchen and in the dormitory room.

Of course rice cookers make perfect rice, but they can also be used for cooking hot cereals, deserts, stews and soups. They can also steam vegetables to perfection, even while cooking rice.

The top rice cookers come from the country where they originated, Japan. You will find several less expensive rice cookers from other places, but the Japanese make the best rice cookers by far.

Rice cookers come in several sizes, some cooking over fourteen cups of rice at one time. You should choose the cooker that corresponds to the amount of rice you normally would cook. Large cookers can be used to cook smaller amounts, but they work best when three quarters to all the way full. Be careful not to overfill a rice cooker.

You should also know that the Japanese cup is only six ounces and the American cup is eight ounces. This may mean that you will need to make some adjustments for recipes. Just remember that if you are using rice cooker cups, they are only three-quarters of the American cup.

The Japanese home prefers a five cup rice cooker.

If you want easy clean up from your rice cooker, choose the one with a non-stick pan. This non-stick pan is great for rice. Rice just does not stick to it and slides out leaving a clean pan. A quick rinse and you are ready to cook again.

There are several types of rice cookers available. Choose the one that meets your needs and budget.

On/off models cook the rice and then turn off automatically. There may not be an indicator light but these inexpensive models are very versatile and do a great job at cooking rice.

Keep warm models cook the rice and then after it is done maintain the rice so that it is warm when you are ready to use it. Just be sure that you unplug the rice cooker when you are finished with it since there is no off position.

Some of the rice cookers also offer fuzzy logic. This means that they have differing settings for soups or rice texture. Some even have a setting for sushi rice.

Some of the newest models of rice cookers offer induction heating. They make perfect rice every time and compensate for variations in water or rice measurements and for different types of rice.

If you want a rice cooker that is also a steamer, be sure to look for the plastic steamer tray. This tray allows you to make perfectly steamed vegetables very quickly.

Do not forget that a rice cooker is perfect for a college student who is living in the dorm. They can cook their own meals in a small rice cooker and avoid the expense of the college cafeteria as well as all the unhealthy fast food. Be sure that they are stocked up on rice, canned soups and top raman for quick meals.