Is It Worth Getting a Rice Cooker?

A rice cooker is becoming more and more important in today’s households. With our busy schedules and demanding lifestyles, we may not have the luxury of time to cook rice the traditional way — that is boiling the grains in a pot and waiting hours before we can eat! 

It’s also not financially practical to eat out every day, nor is it ideal for our health. There’s still nothing that can replace the benefits of cooking your own meals, especially when we’re talking about health and savings. 

For the sake of our health and convenience, a rice cooker is definitely a valuable investment to make. Having the best rice cookers allows us to cook our healthy meals like slow cooker red beans and rice quickly and conveniently, without worrying about spending too much time in the kitchen and running late for school or work. 

Most electric rice steamers now have very simple operations that allow you to just pop the ingredients in and wait a few minutes before your food is ready. Compared to a traditional cooker, this saves you so much time, money, and energy, eliminating the feeling that cooking is such a hassle. 

And it might not be appealing for you to have big, bulky, or expensive rice cookers on your small countertop. Especially if you are living alone and don’t necessarily need to cook big meals every day, buying a rice cooker may not be something you want to do. 

But it’s a good thing that there are now small cookers that are perfect for solo dwellers, busy individuals, and small households. So no matter what your preferences or needs are, you’re sure to find the best miniature rice cooker for you.

What Size Rice Cooker is Best: Why Buy a Mini Rice Cooker?

With a vast number of quality cooker models that come in different shapes, sizes, and features, there are advantages to having a small rice cooker in your kitchen.

Budget-friendly

A small cooker tends to be easier on the wallet compared to its bigger counterparts. But even for their cheap prices, they are still capable of performing the essential functions involved in cooking rice. 

Most small rice cookers on this list have the same functions that a bigger cooker would have — that means you get all the best features for almost half the price. Plus, most also come with a measuring cup and rice paddle.

Easy to use

Small cookers don’t have all the bells and whistles you would normally find in a bigger and bulkier cooker. Most have simple buttons and one-touch operations that enable you to cook rice quickly and without fuss. 

Plus, because of their size, removable glass lid, and often stainless steel builds, they’re incredibly easy to clean. That means a small cooker is perfect for busy individuals and those who don’t have the luxury of time to spend preparing their rice-based meals.

Rice cooks in the perfect amount

Families that compose more than 4 or 5 people, of course, would need a bigger cooker like those that the Hamilton Beach brand has to offer. But for students living in dorm rooms, solo dwellers, couples, and smaller households, having a huge, bulky, kitchen appliance isn’t the best choice. 

Nor do they want a high-maintenance cooker with features they can’t maximize. Having a small rice cooker will make it easier to section your meals and yield just the right amount of rice you need. 

There are many other rice cookers that can cook rice for solo dwellers. Using their own measuring cup, the size of a 1-cup rice cooker or 3-cup rice cooker makes it easy to clean and store.

What to Look For When Buying a Mini Rice Steamer

There are a lot of things to consider when buying the best rice makers. You need to know your preferences when it comes to cooking functions and features so that you can purchase the best one that suits your needs. 

For starters, here are the features you should be looking for:

Capacity and Cooked Rice Serving

Conventional mini rice cookers would have a cup capacity of 3 cups of uncooked grains and 6 cups of cooked rice. This amount is enough to feed at most 4 to 5 people. There are small cookers, though, that have a larger cup capacity of 4 cups to 6 cups despite their small size. 

There are also those that can accommodate only up to 1.5 cups of uncooked rice (3 cups of ready-to-eat rice). A student living alone and a family of four will have different needs that would require different cooker capacities. 

So you need to know, first and foremost, the amount of rice you aim to yield in a single cooking cycle. A serving for one person would typically require 1-2 cups of rice. Our advice is that you buy a smaller rice cooker that can yield up to 6 cups of cooked rice (3 cup capacity uncooked) since you can always reduce your serving size by measuring the grains in a rice measuring cup.

User-Friendliness in Cooking Rice

Since small rice cookers are ideal for small households and busy individuals, you don’t want an appliance that has complicated functions and numerous buttons. Hence, one important factor to consider is the rice cooker’s user-friendliness. 

Most rice cookers can be operated with a single switch, while others have digital displays and fool-proof navigations. Some models are also easy to clean thanks to a stainless steel nonstick pot, a tempered glass lid, and builds. 

Figure out which one best suits you, while keeping in mind how simple the cooker is for daily use. Many of these picks are ultra-simple, and you won’t need to flip through the table of contents in a lengthy manual.

Versatility

Most rice cookers today don’t stick to just cooking rice. There are those that double as a food steamer, warmer, etc. 

Even small rice cookers can be versatile, able to perform different cooking styles, and accommodate different rice varieties, whether making sushi rice, brown, white, or sticky rice. Plenty also has a detachable steam tray that comes with the cooker itself.

Do you want to be able to cook quinoa, pasta, oatmeal, veggies, and meat in your small cooker? If you do, then you need a highly-versatile one. But if you’re only after cooking rice for your daily meals, a simple model will do. 

You also need to consider if you’re after cooking only long-grain white rice, or if you want to try out other varieties such as brown, sushi, basmati rice, or mixed rice.
Also note that there are small models that have good features like synchro-cooking, keep warm, delay timer, induction heating, etc. So consider if these are functions that you need.

How to Cook Rice in a Small Rice Cooker

While these appliances may be small, you can’t underestimate what they can cook! Aside from making evenly-cooked, fluffy rice, you’ll find that plenty of newer models have the ability to make different dishes, such as fish, and meat, and even come with a steam tray to steam vegetables.

One of our featured models, the Instant Lux Mini, has preset programs that include: soup/broth, meat/stew, sauté, porridge, steam, pressure cook, keep warm — and even functions as a slow cooker. With these options, there’s no shortage of recipes you can try out with your small appliance! Some of the food you can cook in the Instant Lux are:

• Rice (White, brown, jasmine, sushi, and other varieties)
• Chicken (Whole, shredded, etc.)
• Beef
• Potatoes
• Beans
• Yogurt
• Quinoa
• Eggs

Cooking rice has never been easier with a small, handy cooker on your kitchen countertop. Just follow these simple steps:

1. Take some rice grains, the quantity of which will depend on how many cups you want to cook. 
2. Toss the dry rice grains either in the inner pan or in a rice washer. 
3. Put some water in the pan until the grains are completely submerged. 
4. Take handfuls of rice grains and begin rinsing rice by rubbing the grains together. 
5. Drain the dirty water and repeat the cleaning process until the water is no longer cloudy. 
6. Measure the right amount of water and add it to the pan of rinsed rice. How much water you should put in will depend on the type of rice you’re cooking. For most varieties, the ratio is 1 to 1 — 1 cup of water per 1 cup of rice. 
7. Put the pan in the grain cooker and press start. Let it cook according to the instructions. 
8. The cycle should end in a matter of minutes and you’ll be all set to enjoy your perfectly tender grains and tasty, fluffy rice!