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If you're looking for a rice cooker

MariposaTraicionera

15 years ago

Be wary of the brand "Breville." I am on to the second rice cooker by Breville (they exchanged it at BB&B), and this one died after six weeks of use. So within a one year period, I have had two die on me. The manager told me he has been getting returns and complaints.

I'm now looking at Zojirushi which I should have bought from the beginning.

Hope this info helps someone.

Mari

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Comments (14)

lucypwd
15 years ago
I can't say enough good things about my Zojirushi. Perfect every time with easy clean up!
jennibg
15 years ago
got mine 4 $28 @ costco. had it 4 years, works great.
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I'd second Bruce's post above. I have a Zojirushi and rarely use it; I prefer rice fluffy and separate rather than sticky, and I haven't been able to produce non-sticky rice in a rice cooker. My technique is very similar to Bruce's. All you need is a saucepan that has a tight fitting steamer insert top. Boil the rice in the bottom of the saucepan for 8-10 minutes in a volume of water at least 3 to 4 times more than the volume of rice. (you can add a little salt and/or butter to the water if you want.) After it boils for 8-10 minutes, strain it into the steamer insert at the sink; run hot water through the rice until it runs clear to remove excess starch. Put about an inch of water in the now-empty bottom of the saucepan, put it on to boil, place the steamer insert with the boiled rice on top, cover the whole shebang. When it comes to a vigorous boil cut down the heat to medium and start timing; ten minutes later the rice will be perfectly fluffy and separate. Basically boil for 8-10, drain & rinse, steam for 10. This works well with long grain American rice. It also works with basmati, although you won't get the exquisitely separate grains you'll find in Indian cookery.
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Chipshot, in our model, if you use regular rice you are supposed to measure with the clear cup, wash it, put it in the pot then adjust the water. For rinse-free rice you are supposed to measure with the green cup, put it in the pot, adjust the water and press the "prewashed" option before selecting the cycle. I believe when you prewash regular rice you are only removing starch and bran. But I'm not so sure with converted (parboiled) rice that the nutrients won't be washed away -- apparently the process is to heat the rice in a partial vacuum and then inject either water and/or steam, then dry the rice and remove the husk, thus driving most the nutrients into the rice and preserving them, but they are water soluble. I'm with you when it comes to white rice, I figure the actual food (except for starch) will have to come from the other dishes... as a matter of fact, for the longest time I worried that in America we were getting excess vitamins and minerals, everything seems to have "(7/9/11/15) essential vitamins and minerals" -- but lately, lots of news have been popping all over the place about people who have deficiencies that are unthinkable in a first world country (like the B complex of vitamins) and I discounted them as "they only happen to other people", until friends of mine were diagnosed with mild scurvy and/or Vitamin D deficiency; so many things are low/no fat, or are processed in such a way that more than just fat/sugar/salt gets removed and the doctors have not caught up yet, they still think that if you have a balanced diet you'll get all the nutrients you need; but who gets a balanced diet, I ask -- I had to pester the managers in my local supermarkets 'cuz every single yogurt they sold was "fat free", which simply doesn't work for baking, for example, not to mention that now one thinks one is eating actual yogurt but one is actually missing several of the key ingredients and nutrients. More news recently are popping up about how one of the vitamins in the B complex (niacin? I'm not sure) controls cholesterol better than the medicines given to people who have high cholesterol. The number of friends who are on those pills is a little disquieting and I figure I won't poke fun anymore, there'll always be other foods that are nutritious on my table, but I don't see why I should remove any nutrition from things I know people will eat no matter what diet they may be (rice, for example) even if they eat less of the rest of the dishes. Anyway, I just made some parboiled/converted rice today, used the clear cup and regular cycle and didn't wash the rice, and it came out OK, even if a tad harder than when I cook it on the stove, but still perfectly edible, so I won't worry too much about it, I may try the other cup/cycle options but it's perfectly acceptable as it is. I'll try the other white rices with and without washing and several options etc and see if there's any difference. If anything, it seems that the computer is compensating quite well for the differences and it might very well be that your model is advanced enough that it compensates fully for everything and you don't need to worry about it. My impression is that "mixed rice" might be like when you have a regular rice mixed in with some wild rice, for example, but it might very well be that it means rice with beans or peas instead. Lots of fun trying the different things, that's for sure. I have not had anything yet get the inner lid dirty (except for steam), but I continue to remove it and clean it every cycle. Maybe it only happens when one uses more rice/cereal and water? And I'm still a little surprised by the number of kitchen stuff (this rice cooker included) that is imported from areas that seem to care way more than we do about saving energy and resources but then manufacture things that are not dishwasher safe or, even if they are ostensibly made with materials that are traditionally dishwasher safe, tell us to wash the things by hand. All things being equal, using the dishwasher saves not only time, but also water and energy, and I vastly prefer to put things in the dishwasher -- so far, the only thing I don't care for in this rice cooker is the hand washing, everything else has been working better than I expected.
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MariposaTraicionera
Original Author
15 years ago
Lucy, what size did you go with and when did you buy yours? Is it made in Japan?

Breville is made in China and I swear that's the problem!
lucypwd
15 years ago
made in Japan - NHVBC 18 I got this size because I wanted to be able to cook large quantities of white, brown, and mixed rice. In truth it is bigger than necessary but it cooks small quantities (2scoops) - equally well. The best thing is how well it holds the rice without the quality of the rice changing. It can hold it for hours on warm. It wasn't cheap.I had always made rice on top of the stove but I noticed that my asian friends all used rice cookers. They insisted that a rice cooker was indispensible. After having one for a year or so I can agree that they were right. We eat rice much more often now. In the morning I set it up with the timer to be ready at dinner time but if we are delayed no worries; it holds the rice until we arrive. The only thing I don't like is that it doesn't display how much longer the rice will take until the last few minutes of cooking. Obviously this doesn't matter if you have it set to be done at a specific time, only if you dump the rice in and turn it on.
pbrisjar
15 years ago
Best bet is to go to a good Asian grocery store and get what they have.
backinthesaddle
15 years ago
I recently got a rice cooker and it's been a lifesaver during the remodel! Did you know you can cook many other things in it?

In the morning, I make oatmeal or scrambled eggs before the kids get up and it's fabulous for sauteing things for small meals or Mac&Cheese. Mine is a cheapie from Target but I plan to get a better rice cooker once the kitchen is finished, just for rice, because we hardly get a chance to use it for that. :)
3katz4me
15 years ago
I love Zojirushi - I got mine at an Asian grocery store many years ago before they were more readily available as they seem to be now. And here's a plug for them. I just did a really dumb thing with mine. I poured rice in without the pot. Rice slid through a little opening in the bottom and now I have it trapped between the plastic outer housing and the inner part. I emailed them and they got right back to me with info on servicing the unit - gave me a phone number with an actual extension for their US facility in California. I called and got a real live person right away!! He was so nice - very helpful - said they would take it apart and clean it out at no charge. I just have to pay to ship it out there. I love that kind of service!! I think I've had it for about ten years and my only need for service is self inflicted.....
oppsie
15 years ago
zojirushi all the way. We've been super happy with our NS-ZCC18 for two or three years now. It's great.
MariposaTraicionera
Original Author
15 years ago
That's truly amazing Gibby. There is no real customer service for Breville. I have written to them by email, telephoned and never gotten a reply!

I will definitely order a Zojirushi. I was looking at one of them online and the lid does not seem to be removable. Is this true? We cook rice a lot and though I do a good job on the stove, I prefer to be able to plug in and forget about it.
rmkitchen
15 years ago
We've had our Zojirushi Fuzzy Logic rice cooker for ... hmm, I'm not sure. Maybe a decade? Either ten or nine years ago, either way, a long time for a small appliance. We purchased it in Japan (where we're from) for ~US$200 back then, and it's moved with us to Australia, to the UK and to the US. We don't use it every day but it does get a workout at least a few times a week. I find it relatively easy to clean, and it's never broken, we've never had a problem with it. At the time it felt expensive, but if I were to amortize it it would have cost us nothing!
mmme
15 years ago
My super-basic rice cooker (don't even know the brand) cost me probably $15 about 20 yrs ago. It only has an on/off button, no other features. But it works!

I like the sounds of a rice cooker with a timer, so if this one EVER dies, maybe I'll spring for the Zojirushi. But you really can't argue with an cheapo appliance that's still going strong after 20 yrs.
chefkev
15 years ago
Thanks for posting this - I've been wanting one for a long time but didn't know which one to get.
mygar
15 years ago
I have a Wolfgang Puck and I love it. I use it many times a week.
yoyoma
15 years ago
I love the Zojirushi 'Neuro Fuzzy' rice cooker, have had it for several years now and it still works great. Have only used it for sticky rice. Set it in the morning for dinnertime.

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