The Rice Cooker: An Essential Small Appliance

Rice cookers have been hugely popular in many parts of Asia for quite a while, however it hasn't been until more recently that they've gained such a large fan base here in the west.  Many people have grown to love their rice cookers and those that have ever tried one never want to go back to cooking their rice in a pot on the stove.  And if you've never cooked rice in your life then just go get a rice cooker and you'll never have to learn how to cook rice.

Due to many varying reasons, rice is becoming ever more popular in the west, but cooking rice can be time consuming and if you mess up you can easily ruin an entire meal.  Using a rice cooker is incredibly simple and makes cooking rice all but foolproof.

When you cook your rice in a rice cooker, not only is it easy, but it comes out perfect each and every time.  Once you start cooking with rice cookers you will save a lot of time and energy in the kitchen, allowing you to do more important stuff, like taking a nap.

What to look for when looking for your perfect rice cooker:

1) Cost of rice cookers

You can get the bare-bones rice cooker for $15-$30 or if rice is a big part of your diet you might want to consider a higher-priced cooker, some of these can easily reach to $150-$200 or even more.  Simple, inexpensive rice cookers usually have a non-stick inner pot, a glass lid and a start button.  As long as you measure your water properly it will cook your rice to near perfection.  However if you enjoy a variety of styles of rice then the basic cooker may not give you the quality that you'd like.

If you are willing to spend a little more you can usually get a rice cooker that can keep your rice warm after it's finished cooking and has a couple different settings.  Some of the settings for the middle-range rice cookers provide the ability to properly cook a few different types of rice, this allows those brown rice lovers to get a higher quality product.  Some of these also come with timers.  Timers work wonders for busy people or those that need their rice ready when they get up in the morning or get home in the evening.  Some of the better ones will allow you to set the time that you want the rice to be finished!

2) How much rice you're planning on cooking

Rice cookers come in many different sizes, from 1 cup to well over 10 cups.  Anything smaller than 3 cups isn't recommended as you shouldn't ever want to cook less than two cups at a time.  Cooking only one cup can make the rice come out a little dry or even slightly burned.

Normally, if you're single then I would recommend a 5 cup rice cooker, I personally don't like the 3 cup sizes as you never know when more rice my be necessary.  The 10 cup sizes are perfect for that larger family or the small family that cooks for two meals at a time.

3) Miscellaneous options

There are other options that should be paid attention to when you're looking around for a new rice cooker, some include:
A non-stick bowl (I would never buy a rice cooker without one)
A removable inner lid for sanitation reasons (this only applies to rice cookers with flip-top lids)
Ability to cook multiple types of rice properly
Measuring lines on the bowl itself (this allows for the proper amount of water even if the rice is wet or has been soaking)

If you enjoy rice, cook rice or plan on cooking rice regularly, then I would not recommend going without a rice cooker, it will rapidly become the centerpiece of your kitchen.