I'd at some point love to do an A-B comparison of my cheap-ass rice cooker and a nice Zorijushi; ours has been absolutely fine at both white and brown rice and it's always fluffy and not scorched, and I'm genuinely curious about the marginal value of a better rice cooker. I mean, if I could notice a distinct difference, I'd buy a much nicer rice cooker, but I've been happily using this cheap-ass thing I got at Target I think when we lived in the DC area, and we moved here in 2005. From a cost-to-usage standpoint, it's got to be one of the best investments I've ever made, but I do wonder how much of a difference I'd notice.
And, yes, I know I could just make rice, but the push button convenience is worth it. It's the same reason I take my knives to be sharpened rather than doing it myself; at some point, spending a little for free time and convenience is worth it.
Worth pointing out also that I'm a fiend for less common grains, if there's a weird grain you've never tried, chances are I have a bag of it in my pantry.
The Zojirushi nails all of them, but I'm an outlier in rice cooker use case. Teff, amaranth, farro, millet, bulgur, freekeh, you name it.
I second Jonman's recommendation. One of the best kitchen gadgets I own - it nails it, every time. And very, very easy to clean up. Never any stick.
We have some other Japanese brand that does a great job with anything I've thrown at it. The InstantPot is also a very capable rice cooker, but I'm often cooking rice to go with whatever is in the InstantPot, so the rice cooker has stuck around.
To me the biggest difference with the Zoji is the keep warm function which works a lot better than traditional rice cookers or the Instant Pot. I also think it does better with short grain white rice in particular but I've not done a side by side test of this theory recently.
Worth pointing out also that I'm a fiend for less common grains, if there's a weird grain you've never tried, chances are I have a bag of it in my pantry.
The Zojirushi nails all of them, but I'm an outlier in rice cooker use case. Teff, amaranth, farro, millet, bulgur, freekeh, you name it.
I've got a couple different grinds of bulgur, quinoa, pearl/regular couscous, farro, freekeh, and probably ten kinds of rice, but I've never actually tried any other grains in the cooker. Hmmm . . . maybe that'll be an experiment for lunch tomorrow. Rice cooker farro, just for science, and if it blows chunks I have a point in the "ridiculously expensive rice cooker" column.
We had a Zoji for like 20 years, only got rid of it when our rice consumption dropped off. It's pretty much magic, although... Don't lose the special measuring cup lol
I've been doing a rice cooking method that is supposed to be the best at getting the arsenic out. I've lost the original article; just saved an image with the instructions.
4:1 ratio of water to rice. Boil the water, add the rice, boil for 5 minutes, then drain the water. Add a 2:1 ratio of water to the partially cooked rice and simmer until all the water is absorbed.
Well, you know where I stand. I had the lower end small Zojirushi for years which eventually had something fail on the electrical side. We bought the nicest Zojirushi you can get to replace it. No regrets! I would recommend the entry Zojirushi to anyone.
Remember, it sings to you as well. 
I've had a Zoji for years. Might even be decades by now. One button operation, always great rice, and the keep warm function mean I use it 2-3 times a week.
I've always done a 1:1 ration of rice-to-liquid. Does increasing that to 2:3 or even 1:2 make better rice?
I've always done a 1:1 ration of rice-to-liquid. Does increasing that to 2:3 or even 1:2 make better rice?
Better is always subjective with food, so there's one way to find out, dude, especially given that it's so easy to use!
We cook basmati rice pretty much exclusively.
Moggy wrote:I've always done a 1:1 ration of rice-to-liquid. Does increasing that to 2:3 or even 1:2 make better rice?
Better is always subjective with food, so there's one way to find out, dude, especially given that it's so easy to use!
Well yes. And I have done such comparisons in the past. And settled on 1:1 for my own reasons.
BUT
I thought seeing as I was amongst rice and rice cooker aficionados I would ask for opinions. I like 1:1 as the rice is cooked through and the cooker finishes sooner. Using liquid like stock makes for tastier rice, as well.
HOWEVER
It looks like I was mistaken about that.
When my dad was still alive, we used to have rice super wet and mushy. Almost porridge. Apparently, that is how folks like it up in Northern Korea where he was born and raised. After he passed, my mom started making more dry like you normally see everywhere.
Growing up Chinese-American we always had a rice cooker in the house, so all of my true kitchen disasters involve trying to cook rice on the stove.
This exactly.. I'm 50 and other than maybe when I lived in a dorm in college I can't remember a day at home where I didn't have a rice cooker handy... whether a fancier Japanese one, or old Datung Chinese ones where you had to pour a little water on the outside.
Stovetop methods, or Uncle Ben's instant rice, just seems so foreign to me if you just want plain white/brown rice.
HOWEVER
It looks like I was mistaken about that.
Well if you want my subjective opinion, yes, 1:1 is absolutely not enough water and it'll be better with 2:3 for white rice and 1:2 for brown.
How I cook rice:
Grab a pot with a lid
Rinse 2 cups of rice
Put rinsed cups of rice in pot
After this fill up with water until it reaches about half way up your index fingers first knuckle. Basically put your finger in until the tip of your finger touches the top of your rice. The water level should now reach to a little under your first knuckle.
Put lid on and turn the stove on to high.
Once it has started boiling and has boiled for about 20 seconds (no need to be exact) turn the heat to the lowest it can go without turning it off.
Walk away for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes take the lid off and fluff gently with a fork.
Leave for another 5.
Done.
One summer I made it my goal to learn to properly cook rice and just kept making it.
This is pretty much what I do except I turn the heat off after 10 minutes and let it coast to the end.
I'm in the market for a good air fryer. Recommendations?
ms. placed bravado and I got a cheap one a few months ago to see how we'd like it. Turns out we really like having an air fryer, but this particular one is so cheaply made that the paint around the rim of the basket is wearing away and the metal underneath is rusting.
I think America's Test Kitchen liked the Instant branded model IIRC. Their review will probably be on youtube. Look for their most recent one as more popular appliances they often re-reviewed every so often.
We've got a Breville Smart Oven that we're rather happy with. It's well made, and with a few extra air fry baskets it's got a large capacity. We got it because we ended up in the market for a new air fryer and a new toaster at the same time. If we only needed one or the other it would probably have been overkill.
We've got a Breville Smart Oven that we're rather happy with. It's well made, and with a few extra air fry baskets it's got a large capacity. We got it because we ended up in the market for a new air fryer and a new toaster at the same time. If we only needed one or the other it would probably have been overkill.
I recommend the Breville ovens, but we bought ours prior to the air fryer inclusion. They're expensive toaster ovens, but work great.
ATK in their Air Fryer recommendations recommends against the oven with shelves type of air fryer. Their logic is they're much more messy as stuff falls through the shelves to the bottom of the oven, making it harder to keep clean. I'll agree with that after buying one of that style a few years ago. But if you're fighting for counter or storage space, it's a compromise that still might be worth it.
We've used a pressurised rice cooker for years now. It works just as well for tenderising meats or root vegetables. It's a Chinese brand, Midea (they manufacture just about every home appliance and even air conditioners).
Rice cooking for me comes down to the first index finger joint - after washing your grains, fill the water to that depth and it usually works out. Some pots also have simple but effective scales inside so you can quickly gauge the correct water level based on how many cups of rice you used.
I've made it a mission of mine to cook more of the ethnic dishes my mother plated up in my youth; last week I made a beef stew (a Khmer take on Vietnamese Bo Kho) with the pressure cooker and it took hours off the time I recall my mother would simmer. I never learnt any dishes from her before I moved out and that has left my cooking repertoire less enriched.
Quintin_Stone wrote:Cooking rice in the microwave is simple but it tends to bubble over and the results aren't that great. I'm interested in recommendations for a rice cooker, one that's basic that cleans up easily. Something small that probably won't ever need to make more than 2 servings.
Ideas?
Get a Cuckoo. It's not cheap, but it takes all the guesswork out and is something you will use often.
We ended up getting a Cuckoo. And while it wasn't cheap, it was less than a lot of other rice cookers. So far we've enjoyed its glutenous rice.
My wife picked up some frozen T Bone steaks for a great price, so I figure we need to use them quickly. Did the first one in the sous vide, to see how it would come out. 130F for 2:45; it's a light pink all the way through, and pulls apart easily with fingers or a butter knife. Fantastic flavor with absolutely no prep - I cooked it in the vacuum sealed bag it came in.
If you're wondering whether you can trust a tasty cut to sous vide, the answer has been, and continues to be, a resounding "Yes!". Buttery, mildly salty, and beefy, with a lovely texture. Going to finish it for dinner with mashed potatoes and some mixed veg.
I rarely find reasons to cook a hunk of meat in a way other than sous vide; I'm essentially guaranteed perfect when I use the method, so why overcomplicate things?
OK, I'm gonna have to give using a sous vide another go. I borrowed a friends a while back and found everything I made to be... mediocre at best. But I continue to hear people raving about them, so I'll have to do some more reading on how to cook with it and give it another go!
I've shifted pretty heavily towards less meat and more plant-based, but, as a rule, I got by far the best results by (A) always seasoning the steak or chops with plenty of salt well in advance, like the night before, and letting them sit on a rack in the fridge overnight. When ready to cook, sous vide as appropriate, and always give extra time to let the meat dry out, so I'd pat dry and leave on a rack for a while. If it's wet, it's not going to sear well, so drying it off is a critical part of the process so you can get some browning. Then it's a super-hot cast iron for the sear.
I also find the sous vide fabulous for thawing meat; I buy big bags of frozen chicken breasts at Costco, and have reusable vacuum sealing bags. Toss a few chicken breasts in a big, seal up, throw in water, thaw at 70F for a while, thaws very quickly. It's incredibly handy just from that point of view.
Trachalio... Mediocre in what way? The element you are dissatisfied with in the final cook will guide you in changing the way you do it.
Too well done? Too rare? Too tough? Odd flavor? (Some traditional add-ons will go strange in longer sous-vide cooks and should be avoided.
There's always a range of temps that you need to zero in on over multiple cooks to find the temp/time combo you enjoy, for any given type of meat.
Mediocre in the sense that I didn't feel like the texture of the steak I made was any better than when I dry brine and grill it on the BBQ (or in a cast iron pan). It could be that, at the time that I tried it, I didn't have a vacuum sealer so I didn't have the steak in a bag that was completely air free (though it was pretty darn close). Maybe I just need to try it again with a few types of meat and see how it goes.
Yeah, if there's air in the bag it's going to be less effective as it'll obviously try to float and may not be fully immersed so it might not get the even cooking you're looking for. Also, if you're good on the grill or cast iron you may not really notice the difference; I tend to be a far more improvisational cook, and, while that's great for things like stir-fries, soups, and other more forgiving things, I regularly would make less than ideal meat because I never got the technique down. One of the huge advantages of sous viding is just the consistency you get; a steak at 123 degrees for an hour is coming out the same lovely rare every time, and it's really effortless to do so.
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