Re: [CH] Rice Cooker
Charles Demas (demas@sunspot.tiac.net)
Mon, 22 Nov 1999 23:38:05 -0500 (EST)
On Mon, 22 Nov 1999, Doug Irvine wrote:
> Blake Olson wrote:
> >
> > I love rice and have looked at the cookers several times but the
> > concept always ends seeming silly.
> >
> > It's another electrical appliance
> > It won't make rice any better than a decent saucepan.
> > It's harder to clean.
> > You have to store it UNDER THE BED?????
> > it takes up room on the counter.
> >
> Blake, that is, more or less, exactly what I wrote earlier, and I have
> been cooking rice that way for over forty years, ever since I learned it
> from a Chinese gentleman! Who owned a Chinese restaurant, where he would
> ask me to ccok, on ocasion! As I said, I have a perfectly useless rice
> cooker, which sits on a shelf, gathering dust, while I cook rice the
> Chinese way, perfectly! Cheers, Doug in BC (and the leftover rice, a
> couple of days later is just fabulous for chow fan(flied lice)
Well, on alt.food.sushi the general opinion is that the rice cookers
available now make perfect rice every time, and that it allows the
rice cooking task to be given to the children to do since it cannot
be screwed up.
Also, some say that it allows more space on the stove for other
things. This is important if you have a small stove. Also, since
it doesn't need to be watched, you just throw in the stuff, and
that's it. I've on occasion forgotten a pot on the stove, and
had some rather crispy rice.
I'd point out that most oriental homes use rice cookers. For them, since
they cook rice so often, it's a much used appliance. I don't do rice that
often. I use a toaster oven for it. One part rice (usually basmati) and
2+ parts water, along with some dried (or fresh) onion, some salt, maybe
some crushed chipotles or other dried chiles, some other spices, maybe
some soy sauce, maybe some mushrooms, maybe a piece or two of chicken.
All that goes into a small aluminum pan (from takeout Chinese) and into
the toaster oven at 350 degrees F for about 1/2 hour. It's done when
the water gets fully absorbed by the rice.
So much for a simple chicken and rice dish. It takes all of 3 minutes
to prepare. BTW, if I don't use chicken, I throw in a bit of butter
and maybe a crushed boullion cube. Add what you like.
FWIW, I don't have a rice cooker, but I think it's a good appliance
if you're cooking rice often, or if you're cooking for more than one.
Another way to do this is in a casserole, using Lipton Onion soup mix,
a can of mushrooms, some butter, rice, and sufficient water.
Just stick it into the oven, covered I think. My sister did it that way.
My toaster oven method is my own approach. When I do a frozen fish dinner
entre (from a local place), I put 2.5 parts water in with the rice, and
put both things in the toaster oven for an hour. This is a cooking for
one type approach.
I really don't enjoy cooking for just myself, and this makes it very
easy.
Chuck Demas
Needham, Mass.
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