A Very Helpful Rice Cooker

Not only does this rice cooker make rice, but you can also make oatmeal and steam vegetables with it. I bought this rice cooker on the recommendation of one of my sisters, who uses it almost every day.

I have found that when I make the maximum servings of rice, it will spill over and make a huge mess on my counter. I have found that adding a tablespoon of butter to the cooker helps eliminate spill over. I also rub a little butter around the rim of the cooker before putting the lid on it. The easiest solution I have found is to also place a sheet of aluminum foil under it while cooking to catch spills. Makes clean up that much easier.

The cooker is very easy to operate. Fill it according to instructions. It comes with a cup for measuring your dry rice or oatmeal. You use an ordinary liquid measuring cup to measure your liquids, but there are also markings inside the rice insert. Place the lid on it, the vent hole on lid should be at the back of the unit. Plug it in and press down on switch in front and it will operate on its own. It automatically switches to warm when the rice is cooked.

The rice cooks perfectly. It isn't as difficult to clean as some have stated. The brushed stainless steel finish is pretty, and there isn't a lot to get in the way of easy cleanup. The cord is retractable, too, so it is out of the way when not in use. When I do cook with this, I usually only pull out just the amount of cord I need to reach the outlet.

I've used it to cook oatmeal, too.

Even though I know how to cook rice on the stovetop, and even though this rice cooker spills over when used at full capacity, I will continue to use this rice cooker in lieu of cooking on stovetop. It is very convenient to put rice or oatmeal on to cook and be able to walk away and forget about it. If I cooked it on the stovetop, I'd have to stand there and monitor it. If you think rice doesn't spill over on the stove, then you haven't watched me cook :)

Update 7/2007: I find myself using this rice cooker a lot and it still looks as pretty as the day I bought it. It is stored very conveniently in a lower cupboard and retrieved easily when needed. I can get my rice on to cook in just a few minutes and forget about it. When the rice is finished cooking, the cooker automatically sets itself to 'warm' mode.

Included:

Rice Cooker & vented lid
Cup for measuring dry rice/oatmeal
Rice paddle
Steamer insert
Instructions/recipes