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The best rice cookers can produce consistently great high-quality rice in a way that even those skilled with a saucepan couldn’t manage. Though a rice cooker may not be a staple kitchen gadget, for anyone who eats rice regularly – or wants to try cooking a wider range of Asian dishes – it’s an essential item.
Lots of people search for answers to this question. However, all the rice cookers we tested seemed safe after we used each one four times and followed the instructions. That depends on which rice cooker you're using. All should at least be able to cook white, basmati and brown/wholegrain rice; however, some can also cook other types, such as risotto or sushi rice. Useful indicator lights for when the rice cooker is cooking or on the keep-warm setting are a plus, and the more straightforward it is to switch on, the better. Most cheap rice cookers can only cook long-grain rice and even then only to a basic standard of quality. Basmati, the curry house staple we’re all familiar with, is a long-grain rice. Pricier rice cookers can handle other types – notably short-grain rice, the type used in risotto as well as Thai and Japanese dishes, and more unusual rice-based dishes using presets chosen from a control panel on the front of the rice cooker. What’s the best feature on a dedicated rice cooker? We assess how simple each rice cooker is to set up for the first time, how helpful the instructions are for assembling it, and the advice it gives on capacities and water-to-rice ratios. Advice on cooking times is also a plus.The keep-warm setting will impact the quality of your rice Although the drop in quality was slight with the best models we tested, we found that after being left for an hour on the keep-warm setting at least a slight drop in the quality of the rice was inevitable. The rice will likely be drier and need some fluffing before you serve it. One feature that every rice cooker has – as everyone will use it – is the “keep warm” feature. Once your rice has finished cooking, the rice cooker will keep it warm for you so you can top up your plate or have a hot dinner on standby for anyone coming home late. A rice cooker allows you to leave the rice cooking unattended and also keep your rice warm, meaning you can leave it covered for a little while without the worry it will go cold or need reheating. Created the perfect pot of rice and not sure how to serve it? See BBC Good Food's rice recipes to discover something new.
Some cheap rice cookers will turn off the heating element once the boiling point has been reached and maintained for a set period; others will cease boiling once the weight of the bowl’s contents has decreased past a certain point, due to the rice absorbing some water with the rest boiled away as excess steam. At this point, your rice should be ready to eat. Rice-to-water ratios vary As you'll find from reading the instructions, rice cookers have varying requirements for rice-to-water ratios. Several of the models we tested had different ratios for the same types of rice. Your cooking options in a rice cooker can really be expanded if you're able to set it to cook for specific times, though. There are plenty of recipes online on how to cook rice pudding in a rice cooker, for example, but you'll need to be able to program it to cook for a set time. If you can't, your rice cooker won't be smart enough to know that there's milk, sugar and other extra ingredients in there, so it won't be likely to cook for the right amount of time. If you're unsure about what to expect from using a rice cooker, we've listed some handy tips below that we discovered during our testing to help you cook your rice the way you like it:We cook supermarket own-brand white basmati rice and wholegrain rice in each rice cooker, always following the rice cooker's instructions on water-to-rice ratios (where given). It’s worth remembering that cooking times can vary – especially with the processor-controlled “fuzzy logic” models as these will adjust cooking times automatically as needed. Even so, our results should give you an idea of what to expect. Even if cooking times are long, this isn’t necessarily a disadvantage – some of the models with the longest cooking times also produced the best quality rice. Plus, that time can be used to cook the rest of your meal or attend to other household tasks. Where rice-to-water ratios are absent in the instructions, we default to using a 1:1 ratio for basmati rice and 1:2 ratio for wholegrain rice, as these are the most widely accepted ratios for these rice types that we could find. All of the rice we cook is rinsed thoroughly before cooking.
Some rice cookers can also be used to steam meat and vegetables. Those that can will come with a steamer tray that sits above where your rice and water sits during cooking. Plenty of rice cookers come with recipes for steamed meals you can enjoy with your rice. Other rice cookers can double up as pans or sauté pans. When using a rice cooker, take care to avoid steam vents and avoid touching any part of the cooking pot that might be exposed. The GABA setting is another unique cooking option that supposedly releases additional nutrients from brown rice by germinating the grain. We couldn’t ascertain whether the rice was more nutrient-dense during testing, but its texture was noticeably softer and it certainly had a slightly different taste. There’s also a porridge setting, which can be used to make congee and a crust setting for Persian Tahdig. You can also steam, bake cakes and slow cook in the Bamboo Induction, making it a truly multifunctional cooker.
Our pick of the best rice cookers will help you whip up consistently perfect rice without the hassle or effort
Portions and cups are not the same Rice cookers always measure rice in cups, as it's a more straightforward way to work out rice-to-water ratios (eg one cup of white rice usually needs one cup of water). But cups are often much bigger than portions – one cup is 150-180g of rice, and Bupa recommends that 75g of rice is one portion.
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