Most people miss the most important aspect of buying a rice cooker: You! When buying an automatic rice cooker it is important to consider what type of cook you are. Are you always in a rush when you are cooking? Do you tend to entertain guests and cook in large batches? Are you an advanced cook who wants a rice cooker with advanced features? Thinking about these things will help you select a rice cooker that is well suited to your cooking style and cooking needs. At the end of this article we will break it all down for you and help you pick the rice cooker best suited to your style. But first, take a look and educate yourself about the different types of rice cookers.
Types of Automatic Rice Cookers
- On/Off Rice Cookers – The least expensive rice cooker although it is perfectly capable of cooking a good batch of rice. Just add rice and water, and it will turn off once the rice is cooked. These tend to lack many of the features seen in a higher priced cooker, such as non-stick rice pans, and indicator lights. They work well as a basic, small rice cooker.
- Cook and Keep-Warm Cookers – This type of rice cooker has a feature that will automatically switch into a ‘keep warm’ mode once the rice is cooked. It becomes handy if you eat dinner at different times, or want to cook a batch ahead of time. Many have built in steamers and other helpful features.
- Fuzzy Logic Rice Cookers – Now we are talking advanced rice cookers here. These are programmable rice cookers that let you select different rice textures regular, soft, firm or modes that make cooking rice for soup, porridge and sushi a simple task.
- Induction Heating Rice Cookers – A top of the line rice cooker will often have an induction heating system. This technology allows for even heating of the rice resulting in perfectly cooked rice. These cookers will have temperature sensing methods that are more accurate and heat distribution will be even throughout the entire rice pan, not just radiating from below. The level of heat can be adjusted accurately and instantaneously and the program can correct for measuring errors automatically by making adjustments to the cooking time and temperature.
Main Features
- Capacity / Rice Pan Size The rice pan size determines how much rice can be cooking in a single batch. Buying too large of a rice cooker can be a problem if you do not use the rice cooker to its full rated capacity, because the rice will be undercooked.
- Rice Pan – The rice pan contains the rice and you should look for features such as a non-stick coating to aid in the cleaning process. Measuring markings can help measure the correct amount of water but you should always measure the rice using a measuring cup. Most rice pans are aluminum, but some prefer stainless steel pans for cooking.
- Lid – Look for a clear lid if possible. A clear lid allows for monitoring of the rice during cooking. Look for a steam release hole. Lids without one will leak steam out around the edges of the lid, making a mess.
- Steamer Tray – Some rice cookers come with a built in steamer tray for steaming vegetables. This can be handy feature, but the rice cooker may not cook the rice well due to the added time required to cook both the rice and the vegetables.
- Construction – Some prefer durable stainless steel construction in the higher end models. Inexpensive models will usually be made of an aluminum or plastic shell.
If you are looking for more than just a basic automatic rice cooker, then features will be important to you. Many of these features can be found on ‘cook and stay warm’ cookers and fuzzy logic rice cookers.
Convenient Features
- Indicator Light - A light that changes color to indicate the cooking status or cooking mode.
- Preset Timer – If you wish to prep your rice cooker at night and have fresh fluffy rice for breakfast in the morning, a preset timer can be set to cook your rice before you wake up. It can be useful if you wish to have the cooker turn on at some other time.
- Quick Cook – This is a time saver that is found in some high end models. This mode skips the soak time and goes straight to cook mode.
- Digital Display – A digital display can be found on fuzzy logic or high end models to help you navigate the menus, and readily access all of the features.
Safety Features
- Fuse Protector – A fuse protector will turn the rice cooker off in the event of an electrical malfunction. This prevent a fire and is a must if you will be leaving the rice cooker unattended for any period of time.
- Auto Cord Reel – A spring loaded reel retracts the cord out of the way when the rice cooker is out of use. A must if you have children who might grab the hanging cord and knock the rice cooker off of a counter.
Rice Cooker Suggestions for
Do you know what type of cook you are? Look through this list and see if you find a match!
The “Occasional Cook”
For the ‘occasional cook’ a small rice cooker will do the trick. We recommend a smaller on/off rice cooker.
The “Cook in a Hurry”
The “Cook in a Hurry” is someone who is always in a rush to get things done. Worrying about the rice is the last thing this person needs. For you, we suggest ‘cook and keep warm’ rice cooker models with easy to use features that make cooking quick and easy such as: nonstick rice pans, a preset timer, an indicator light.
The “Entertaining Cook”
The “Entertaining Cook” is always cooking up a storm for those out of town guests or friends. You need a more advanced rice cooker with a larger capacity. We suggest a 10 or 20cup ‘cook and stay warm’ or fuzzy logic rice cooker.
The “Perfectionist”
For the perfectionist, only the perfect, fluffy rice will do. Although cooking a perfect batch of rice is not difficult to do even with less than the best, a top of the line fuzzy logic induction heating rice cooker will make it easy to cook a perfect batch of brown or long grain white rice every time.
