Explore the Many Uses of Rice Cookers

Rice cookers are beloved kitchen appliances, best known for perfectly cooking rice with the simple press of a button. But did you know that humble rice cookers are actually extremely versatile tools that can be used for far more than just rice?

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore the many surprising uses of rice cookers and how they can make cooking easier, more convenient, and more delicious. From no-fuss breakfasts to hands-off stews and steamed veggies, let’s uncover the versatility of the rice cooker!

Making Hot Breakfasts

Starting your day off right is crucial, and rice cookers make nutritious hot breakfasts an absolute breeze. The “keep warm” function keeps your breakfast piping hot and perfect for serving, even if you hit the snooze button a few too many times!

Hot Cereal

Hot cereal is comfort food at its finest, and rice cookers perfectly cook steel cut oats, buckwheat groats, amaranth, quinoa, and other whole grains to creamy perfection.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup steel-cut oats
• 4 cups water or milk
• Pinch of salt
• Desired toppings like honey, berries, nuts

Instructions:

1. Add the oats, liquid, and salt to the inner pot of your rice cooker. Give it a quick stir.
2. Close the lid and switch on the cooker, ensuring it’s set to the “Porridge” setting if your model has it.
3. When the cooker switches to the keep warm setting, your oats are ready! Give them a final stir before serving.

With zero effort, you’ll have the creamiest, most comforting bowl of oatmeal ready when you wake up. The rice cooker does all the work while you get that precious extra bit of sleep!

Quinoa Breakfast Bowls

Protein-packed quinoa makes a wonderfully nutritious hot breakfast when cooked in the rice cooker. Top it off with your favorite mix-ins like fruit, nuts, honey, and milk or yogurt.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 cups water or broth
• Pinch of salt
• Milk, yogurt, fruit, nuts, honey, etc to taste

Instructions:

1. Rinse the quinoa well to remove any bitter coating. Add it to the pot along with the liquid and salt.
2. Close the lid and ensure the cooker is set to “White Rice” or a similar short grain setting.
3. When the cooker switches to keep warm, your quinoa is perfectly cooked. Give it a fluff with a fork.
4. Transfer to bowls and customize with your favorite toppings!

With very little active effort, you’ll have the heartiest, most protein-packed hot breakfast ready for busy mornings.

Steaming Vegetables

While rice cookers obviously excel at cooking rice, their steaming capabilities also make them perfect for preparing all kinds of vegetables!

Using a steamer basket inserted over boiling water, rice cookers can gently and evenly steam vegetables without any risk of over or undercooking. The “keep warm” function will even keep them hot and ready for serving long after they’re done.

Almost any vegetable cooks up wonderfully steamed in a rice cooker. Some favorites include:

• Broccoli
• Carrots
• Cauliflower
• Green beans
• Asparagus
• Potatoes
• Sweet potatoes
• Beets
• Artichokes
• Spinach
• Corn on the cob

Instructions:

1. Pour 2 cups of water into the inner pot of your rice cooker and insert the steamer basket.
2. Chop your vegetables into bitesized pieces and add them to the basket. Keep an eye on more delicate veggies like leafy greens.
3. Close the lid, ensuring the rice cooker is either off or set to plain steam if your model has that option.
4. Steam until the vegetables are cooked through, testing frequently with a fork. Timing varies greatly depending on the veggie.
5. Using oven mitts to protect from steam, carefully remove the steamer basket. Drain any excess moisture before serving.

Rice cooker steaming helps vegetables retain nutrients that might leach out from other cooking methods. With zero effort, you can cook up the perfect veggie side all in one pot!

Cooking Beans and Lentils

Perfectly cooked beans and lentils are easy with a rice cooker. The appliance perfectly hydrates them and gently brings them to tender perfection. No more mushy or underdone legumes!

Rice cookers are especially handy for cooking tougher, longer cooking beans like chickpeas and kidney beans. Simply add them in the inner pot with water in a 1 bean : 3 water ratio, set, and walk away!

Here are cooking times for some common beans and legumes:

Food	Cook Time
Lentils	20-30 minutes
Split Peas	20-25 minutes
Black Beans	1 – 1.5 hours
Pinto Beans	1 – 1.5 hours
Garbanzo Beans	2+ hours

Check frequently toward the end, as bean cooking times can vary. Perfectly cooked beans should be fork-tender but still hold their shape nicely. Fluff with a fork and drain any excess liquid before serving or adding to recipes.

Poaching Fruit

Fruit poaching is traditionally done on the stovetop, but rice cookers make the process even more effortless. Simply add your fruit of choice to a steamer basket over simmering acidic liquid to yield sweet, tender fruit.

Almost any fruit takes well to poaching, though classics like pears, apples, peaches, and apricots are especially delicious. You can also poach tougher fruits like pineapple to yield tender, juicy results.

Instructions:

1. Fill the rice cooker pot with 2-3 cups of apple juice, white wine, fruity vinegar or flavored tea. Insert the steamer basket.
2. Chop firm fruit like apples into pieces and add to the basket. More delicate fruit like berries can be left whole.
3. Close the lid, ensuring your cooker is off/unplugged and simply steaming.
4. Poach until fruit is fork tender, anywhere from 5-20 minutes depending on the fruit.
5. Serve fruit warm, at room temp, or chilled! It’s delicious on yogurt, oatmeal, tarts, salads and more.

The gentle steam of a rice cooker yields the ultimate tender yet still intact fruit with lots of gorgeous flavors from the poaching liquid.

Baking Cakes

With the right accessories, rice cookers can become mini cake-baking ovens! Special rice cooker-safe baking pans evenly conduct and distribute heat to bake light, fluffy cakes.

From simple mug cakes to layered tres leches, the options are nearly endless. Just make your favorite cake batter, pour it into a cooker-safe pan, and let the rice cooker handle the rest.

Instructions:

1. Prepare your favorite cake mix or batter and set aside.
2. Lightly grease a cake pan designed to fit rice cookers. Set the empty pan into the rice cooker to preheat it for 5-10 minutes.
3. Carefully remove the hot pan using oven mitts. Pour in the prepared batter.
4. Place the filled cake pan back in the rice cooker pot. Add 1 cup water around the pan to create steam.
5. Close lid, ensuring your cooker is off/steaming. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, 15-60 mins.
6. Let cool 5 minutes before removing the pan and cake using mitts. Allow it to fully cool before frosting and slicing.

With the right pan, rice cookers bake fluffy, delicious cakes with no need to turn on the oven!

Slow Cooking Soups and Stews

Set it and forget it! Rice cookers make fabulous small-batch slow cookers thanks to their ability to simmer foods for hours on end without burning.

Simply throw stew ingredients like veggies and pre-browned meat into the inner pot, add broth, and flip it on. Hours later you’ll have fork tender meat and vegetables in a rich, flavorful broth ready to enjoy.

Nearly any soup or stew takes wonderfully to rice cooker slow cooking. Try out classics like:

• Beef stew
• Chicken noodle soup
• Lentil or bean soup
• Chili
• Potato leek soup
• Vegetable barley soup
• Curries like chickpea masala

Instructions:

1. Prepare your ingredients – chop veggies, brown meats, toast spices, etc.
2. Add everything to the rice cooker pot along with broth/tomatoes to cover. Add a bay leaf or two.
3. Close lid, ensuring cooker is off or on plain steam/keep warm setting.
4. Cook 3-8 hours depending on ingredients and desired tenderness.
5. Give a taste and season with salt and pepper as needed before serving.

The rice cooker creates fabulously flavorful soups and stews with zero effort required. Perfect to prep in the morning and come home to a hot, home cooked meal at night!

Cooking Risotto

Creamy, cheesy risotto is irresistible, but notoriously high maintenance on the stovetop with all the stirring required. Rice cookers come to the rescue!

Thanks to perfectly timed, gradual heating, rice cookers yield rich, creamy risotto with zero stirring required. The rice grains release starch slowly and absorb liquids perfectly without clumping or becoming mushy.

Try out classic risotto recipes or get creative with ingredients like:

• Mushroom risotto
• Butternut squash risotto
• Shrimp and asparagus risotto
• Beet and goat cheese risotto
• Chicken and sun-dried tomato risotto

Instructions:

1. Prepare your ingredients – dice veggies, cook meat, toast rice grains, etc.
2. Add rice plus veggies, cheese, herbs, etc to the pot. Ladle in broth a cup at a time, stirring initially.
3. Close the lid and walk away! No need to stir.
4. When liquid is absorbed and rice is al dente, it’s done. Stir in butter or oil before serving.

Perfectly creamy risotto minus all the effort? Sign me up! Rice cookers flawlessly make the notoriously high-maintenance dish into a total cinch.

Reheating Leftovers

No one likes tough, dry leftover meat or veggies. Rice cookers will bring new life to yesterday’s meals with perfect gentle, even reheating every time.

Simply load up the pot with your leftovers, add a splash of water or broth, close the lid, and turn it on. In just minutes, the cooker will evenly rehydrate and reheat your food without overcooking it. Meals will taste just as delicious on day two!

Instructions:

1. Add leftovers like meat slices, casseroles, cooked grains, roasted veggies etc to pot. Pour a few tbsp liquid over top.
2. Close lid, ensuring cooker is off/steaming.
3. Heat 10-15 minutes until hot and softened. Check frequently and add moisture if needed.
4. Stir or fluff before serving.

Rice cookers are the perfect solution for breathing new life into leftover meals. Even finicky leftovers will reheat evenly for a delicious homemade meal in minutes flat!

Sanitizing Containers

Thanks to boiling temps, rice cookers work wonders for sanitizing baby bottles, reusable food containers, silicone molds, and similar kitchen items prone to bacteria buildup in hard-to-reach spots.

Simply submerge items in water with a splash of vinegar and turn on the cooker to bring to a rigorous boil for 5-10 minutes. The bubbling movement combined with high heat eliminates mold, mildew, and bacteria far better than handwashing alone.

Be sure to fully cool containers before handling to avoid burns. Then simply air dry as usual before use.

Making Yogurt

Homemade yogurt is delicious, nutritious, and surprisingly easy to make in a rice cooker with no special machinery required. Simply combine milk and a yogurt starter culture and allow the rice cooker to maintain the perfect incubation temp for you.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups milk – whole milk, 2% milk, almond milk, etc
• 4 tbsp existing plain yogurt with active cultures

Instructions:

1. Combine milk and yogurt starter in a glass bowl or pitcher. Whisk gently to incorporate.
2. Pour mixture into pots of your rice cooker. Add a few cups hot water to outer pot.
3. Close lid. Wrap entire cooker in a thick towel and set aside 8-12 hours undisturbed.
4. Yogurt should be set with a custard-like consistency when fully incubated.
5. For Greek style, strain through cheesecloth lined strainer for a thicker texture.
6. Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate up to 2 weeks!

With this easy method, your rice cooker becomes a yogurt making dynamo for endless batches of tangy, creamy homemade yogurt!

Proofing Dough

With perfect steady heat distribution, rice cookers create an ideal environment for proofing yeast doughs before baking. Simply place dough in a lightly oiled bowl and proof until doubled.

Proof doughs for:

• Breads
• Pizza
• Pretzels
• Sweet rolls
• Bagels
• English muffins

Instructions:

1. Prepare dough per recipe instructions. Place in large oiled bowl, lightly covering top.
2. Pour 2 cups hot water into outer rice cooker pot and place dough bowl inside.
3. Close lid and allow dough to proof until approximately doubled in size, 1-2 hours.
4. Check frequently toward end. Carefully remove once adequately proofed.
5. Punch down dough to release air and proceed with recipes as planned!

Rice cookers take the headache and uncertainty out of dough proofing for perfect loaves every time.

Cleaning the Rice Cooker

One of the best features of a rice cooker is how wonderfully easy they are to clean! A quick scrub with a soapy sponge removes any stuck on residue with minimal effort required.

For an even deeper clean, rice cookers can self clean with the help of kitchen staples you likely already have on hand!

Instructions:

1. Fill inner pot with water and add:
   • 2 tbsp baking soda
   • 1 tbsp distilled white vinegar
   • Lemon wedges or slices
2. Close lid and turn on cooker, allowing mixture to boil vigorously for 5-10 minutes.
3. Turn off and carefully remove inner pot using mitts. Discard liquid and wipe away any remaining residue with a paper towel or soft cloth.
4. For stubborn stains, allow pot to soak overnight in mixture after boiling. Scour gently in the morning for a like-new finish!

The rice cooker basically cleans itself both inside and out. A gentle periodic scrub keeps it looking like new for years of continued use!

Conclusion

As you can see, rice cookers are far more than one trick ponies. They are extremely versatile tools worthy of prime real estate on kitchen counters!

From no-fuss meals to time-consuming chores like proofing dough and making yogurt, rice cookers simplify cooking and streamline prep work. They cook foods gently and evenly with zero effort for delicious results every time.

So the next time you go to make rice, look at your cooker with fresh eyes. This humble little appliance can revolutionize home cooking far beyond just perfectly fluffy rice! Put it through its paces with steaming, slow cooking, and more. We guarantee you’ll discover even more uses than included here!