What is the best rice cooker? I would like to be able to cook brown rice as well as white in it.?

Question

Can you cook/steam other things in rice cookers as well? I've recently become a vegetarian for health reasons.

Answer 1

We just bought our first rice cooker a couple months ago... Love it... Only paid $14.00 for one to get used to the idea before buying a nicer one...

Yes you can steam vegetables in them as well....

Don't know which are best but our $14.00 one cooks both brown and white rice (and jasmine and basmati)... the only thing it says not to cook in it is instant rice...

Answer 2

We have a very cheap and simple rice cooker at home. It came with its own vegetable steamer, and we have used it to cook vegetables with no problems. The rice cooker we have has only two settings: cook and warm (to keep the rice warm after cooking). With larger amounts of rice it doesn't seem to be able to cook as much of the water out as I would like. With smaller amounts of rice I like the rice just fine, but if I leave it on the warm setting too long, the bottom of the rice will get toasted and stuck to the pot.

For my next rice cooker, I'd like to get a fancier one with more settings, especially a better warm setting. Some rice cookers will even work on a timer, so you can wake up in the morning to freshly cooked rice porridge.

I don't think it matters what kind of rice you cook in the rice cooker.

Answer 3

The best rice cookers are firstly based upon your budget. I recently purchased a rice cooker for a little over a $100. The higher ends have computer chips in them that allow the user to tell the machine what type of rice they are cooking (sushi, brown, white, sweet, ect) and keep the rice warm for an extended period of time and your rice is likely to cook more evenly (no burnt spots) compared to the on/off models. In addition, the higher end models generally have a timer in them that allow you to have your rice ready when you get home from work or have Asian porridge done in the morning. When I bought my rice cooker, I chose Sanyo over Zojirushi because Sanyo’s bowl (in which the rice was cook) was the thickest on the American market. The bowl’s thickness, design, and material helps allows the rice to heat evenly while cooking and it is a good idea to research the design and make of the bowl. Also, Sanyo has a steamer built in and you can use it as a slow cooker and cook rice with beans, meat, and so forth in the machine at the same time while Zojirushi did not have this feature. Other things to look for are what types of rice programs it has, detachable lids for easier cleaning, warranty, replacement parts, and of course your budget. The link for Zojirushi is http://www.zojirushi.com/ourproducts/ricecookers/ricecookers.html and Sonya is http://www.sanyo.com/appliances/small%5Fappliances/ . Both of the companies are sold at: http://www.cooking.com/products/shprodli.asp?DeptNo=3000&ClassNo=0326 and http://www.amazon.com/. Hope this helped.

Answer 4

If you're looking for the best rice cooker, I would tend towards the Japanese brands like Zojirushi, Sanyo or Panasonic. They tend to be more reliable than the Chinese knock-offs. Most of these rice cookers can steam other things.

The key to making good rice is making sure your rice/water ratio is correct. I use the first line of my middle finger as a test for rice/water ratio. In other words, I fill the pot with the desired amount of rice and then add water until the water level is about at the level where it touches my first joint on the middle finger.

You can make adjustments as necessary.

HTH!

Answer 5

Any rice cooker can do the job. Brown rice just need more water. Depends on the type of brown rice, it may requires as much as twice the amount of water to cook properly.

Answer 6

I use a vegetable steamer and my rice turns out perfect every time. They are rather inexpensive. It also makes the best broccoli

Answer 7

uhhh, I just use a pot with a lid.... Works well for both brown and white rice.

Answer 8

Use an ordinary pot, much bigger than you need.