There appear to be two major types of rice cooker. One is the simple on/off cooker that is available in most oriental groceries in the $20 to $50 range. Then at the opposite end of the spectrum are the 'fuzzy logic' programmable jobs which can handle different types of rice and grains ($100-250). I have a large simple Zojirushi on/off model. At the time I bought it, these fancy-schmancy fuzzy logic models weren't available. I generally only use it when I'm cooking large quantities of rice for company. For just me and the DW, I use a saucepan. Whatever model you get, IMHO it's worth getting one with a nonstick pot. If you do a LOT of rice and grains these new ones are probably worth it for the convenience alone. You don't have to pay attention to it once you load the ingredients. FWIW, here's my foolproof and simple way to cook American long grain rice. All you need is a saucepan with a steamer insert. (You know, the pot with holes in the bottom that fits snugly into the saucepan like the one in the link.) This will produce fluffy and separate grains, not sticky sushi-type rice. Whatever volume of rice you're gonna cook, bring to a boil 3 to 4 times that volume of water. I generally cook 1 1/2 cups of rice at a time, so that means 6 cups of water. You can add salt and some butter to the water if you want. Once boiling, add the rice, stirring to keep it from clumping. Once it returns to the boil, lower the heat to a slow boil and cook for about 9 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then drain the partially cooked rice into the steamer insert and rinse the rice with hot tap water till the water draining out the bottom has cleared somewhat. Rinse the bottom saucepan out and put about an inch of hot tap water back in the bottom of the pot. Put the saucepan on the stove, the steamer insert containing the rice on top of the saucepan, and cover. Bring back to a boil, then reduce the heat to a low boil and set your timer for 10 minutes. When done, the rice will be fluffy and not at all sticky. Basic formula: boil for 9 minutes, rinse, steam for 10. The link is to a picture of the type of steamer insert I mean. It's not one of those collapsible jobs. By the way, there's no reason to spend good money on a pot to cook rice by this technique--all you're doing is boiling water, so using an All Clad pot is overkill. For many years I made perfect rice with a cheapo Revere ware pot. Here is a link that might be useful: steamer insert

Thank you Nancy....I've been wondering what I would choose and decided on one of the kitchen's most used vegetables....ta da....The ONION! Especially when it's not just something hidden in the mix, but is rather a star element of the recipe.....your best onion soup, onion quiche, onion gravy, baked whole, on pizza, onion rings or whatever you choose. I'll start the ball rolling with this delicious Leek and Onion Quiche. Ingredients: 1 slice of streaky bacon finely chopped (I used 3 slices ) 400 grams (14 oz) onions halved and sliced (approx 2 large onions) 200 grams (7 oz) leeks sliced in circles 150 grams (1 cup) plain flour 1 TBS baking powder 3 TBS vegetable oil 2 TBS milk 3 TBS plain yoghurt (without sugar) (I used quark) 60 grams (3 rounded TBS) cottage cheese or cream cheese (I used cottage) 1 egg salt & pepper water 1 pyrex pie plate... measuring 19 cm (7.5 inches) across bottom ..... if it has sloping sides, top rim to rim 24.5 cm (9.3/4 inches) Preparation: 1. Preheat oven to 180 - 190° C (approx 365° F) 2. Put the flour and the baking powder in a mixing bowl and stir. Leave a well in the middle and add the cheese, one tablespoon of oil, one tablespoon of milk and a pinch of salt. 3. Mix well with a round bladed knife or your hands until you have a pastry which binds well together and is slightly sticky. You may need to add a little water. Do so by the spoonful to make sure you don't add too much. 4. Place into a pie plate and spread well over the base and up the sides, patting with fingers and the back of a soup spoon. 5. Place in the fridge to rest. 6. Gently fry the vegetables and bacon in the remaining oil until soft and golden, then using a slotted spoon. 7. Beat the egg with the remaining spoonful of milk and the yoghurt (or quark) and making sure that it is spread evenly over the whole quiche. 8. Season and place in the oven for 40 minutes. Here it is sliced: Source: Recipe page of Island Connections English Newspaper, Tenerife 21.06.2008 SharonCb

Dr. Besser's advice really only works for surface arsenic. If the arsenic is the inorganic type drawn up from soil or groundwater contamination, rinsing will NOT work very well. In fact, Consumer Reports recommends cooking 1 cup of rice in 6 cups of water, and pouring off the excess! Rinsing very well, and cooking the rice in extra water and dumping the excess (which unfortunately puts it right back into the environment one way or another), removes at most, about 30% of the arsenic. Things that can help: Sulfur helps eliminate arsenic from the body, so eat foods high in sulfur, such as eggs, beans, legumes and garlic. Eat plenty of fiber every day. Garlic, pectin, selenium, L-Cysteine and L-Methionine, Vitamin C, and Superoxide dismutase (SOD) are all good detoxifiers. Be sure to read up on recommended allowances; some of these are mildly toxic in very large quantities. Have a hair analysis done if you suspect arsenic toxicity. Here is a link that might be useful: Boston NPR: 5 Things You Need To Know About Arsenic In Rice

shaun, I hope I didn't make you feel that I was criticizing your choice in instant rice. I'll admit, I'm picky. I don't like pizza, or red tomato based sauces, or blue cheese, or olives or white pasta or a zillion things that other people just love. I don't like beer or wine either and people look at me like I've grown an extra head when I say the best wine I ever tasted only got rated a "that doesn't completely suck". However, I will eat peanut butter and Miracle Whip sandwiches, so I'm sure not going to criticize anyone else for anything they like! Like others, though, I don't think instant rice saves much time, by the time I boil the water, stir in the rice, let it set for 5 minutes or whatever. It takes about 10 or 15 minutes to make instant rice and about 20 to make regular rice, so I can't say I'll make instant rice if I'm in a hurry, it only takes about 5 minutes more to make regular rice. Whatever I make, I usually make extra so I can have some for breakfast or use leftovers for rice pudding or fried rice. And I did find that I shouldn't just use arborio rice in chicken rice soup when I'm out of regular long grain. (grin) I did that last week and ended up with a big ole' pot of chicken flavored rice, no soup to it at all. The rice sucked up every bit of broth I had in the pot! Annie