Rice cooker, to buy, or not to buy?

chrisfreelander54

Are rice cookers worth having?

The reason I ask is we use boil in the bag rice as we cant seem to get it right using rice straight in the pan, its either sloppy or burn to the pasn.

Are these fool proof?

Chris

Nanamia

Yep mine definitely is The most important thing to remember is to thoroughly rinse your rice first. I put mine in a sieve that sits in a colander that sits in a pan under the cold tap for 3/4 mins. (Sounds way more complicated than it is!) I tend to use jasmine Thai rice but that probably just personal preference hth

suki1964

Waste of money and space IMHO

Learn to cook rice in a pan, it's so easy

In work I do the ten minute boil in a big pan of water ( which I hate ) but at home I use the absorption method

For every mug of rice you need two mugs if water. One mug will give reasonable size portions for 4. And I mean a good sized mug

Rinse the rice as long as you can Place in saucepan. Add the water and a sprinkle of salt. Bring to the boil and put on lid and turn to the lowest temp you can achieve Once all the water is absorbed lift lid, cover with a clean tea towel and the lid and leave another 5 mins off the heat

Clean, dry and fluffy rice

I often have the rice cooked and sat in the pan with the tea towel whilst I get the rest of the meal ready. If it's too cold (rarely). I fluff into a bowl( fork) and nuke

positivelypurple

We have a rice cooker and we use it 3/4 times a week so it is definitely worthwhile for us. I think the answer to the question of any kitchen gadget be fig useful is how much use will you get out of it. It is about convenience for me and ours wasn't very expensive. The bread maker on the other hand...really should get that out and dust it off.

Maryanneslapcabbage

1 part rice to 2 parts water. Boil water in the kettle. Put everything in a saucepan with a tight fitting lid. Salt or no salt,up to you. Bring back to the boil and then let it simmer till the water has been absorbed. Turn the heat off, then just leave it alone for about 15 minutes. After that,fluff it up a bit with a fork.

The result is perfectly cooked and separated grains of rice.

I think the mistake people make when making rice is that they stir it while it's cooking and that releases the starch in the rice which makes it stodgy.

krlyr

I use this method for cooking rice, it almost always comes out perfect (and on the occasions it's not perfect, it's not bad!)
http://chinesefood.about.com/od/resourceschinesecooking/tp/Steaming-Rice-How-To-Steam-Rice-On-The-Stovetop.htm

I tend to cook more than needed for one meal, and freeze extra. There's no issue with freezing rice but you need to cool it down and re-heat it quickly - it's the sitting around at 'warm' temperature that allows the toxins that cause food poisoning to come about. The rice I'm not dishing up for dinner, I spread onto a baking tray to increase surface area and speed up cooling. It's frozen and put into microwave safe tubs (I've bulk bought some of the takeaway style ones) and when needed, re-heated straight from frozen to piping hot. I tend to microwave it with the tub lid on, just slightly ajar to let some steam escape, but this seems to help keep it moist enough. Another tip I've read is to microwave in a bowl, but cover the bowl with a damp sheet of kitchen roll.

angeltreats

I am perfectly well capable of cooking perfect rice in a pan and have been doing so for years, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE my rice cooker and use it all the time. It is absolutely foolproof and the best thing is that you can just ignore it. No need to time it or watch it and you can keep it warm for ages in case you want to go back for seconds or the main dish isn't ready as quickly as you expected. Even my husband (who is frightened of all things cooking related) can manage it. Mine was only about a tenner and worth every penny.

For what it's worth, here's how I cook rice on the hob:

Rinse the rice, put in a pan, put your index finger to just touch the top of the rice, cover up to the first knuckle with water. (Apparently this is a really old, traditional way of measuring!) Bring the water to the boil, then immediately cover tightly with a lid, turn the head down to its lowest and time for ten minutes. After ten minutes, turn the heat OFF, leave the lid on and time for another ten minutes. At this point the rice will be ready but you can leave it steaming for a bit if you don't need it straight away. Fluff it up a bit with a fork before serving.

lostinrates

I cook rice on the hob adaquately and am gadget phobic but have always had a yearning or a rice cooker. Its only when I start looking and realise I wouldn't know which to choose I give up. But I would like one.....

rubytwilight

not an essential piece of equipment but i love my rice cooker. Also used it to make veggie soups and stews. Only cost £9 and I use it three to four times per week :j

imho

Just bring the rice to boil then put lid on and switch cooker off and wait 12 mins its cooked with out having it cooker on.

Browntoa

I'm doubly lazy , have a rice cooker and use boil in the bag rice as its the exact amount I need and no need to rinse the rice first