Compared to the traditional method of cooking rice in a pot on a stove; the biggest advantage of having a rice cooker is the fact that the rice will neither boil over nor burn and that the amount of water will be precisely dosed for rice.
If the rice is cooked in the saucepan on the stove, more water is used than rice. Not all of the water is boiled off during the boiling process, so the remaining water must be poured off before serving. During this process, minerals and vitamins contained in rice can be lost. Also during the cooking process, the rice must be stirred regularly to avoid sticking to the bottom of the saucepan and it is important to keep an eye on the cooking time so that the rice does not get mushy.
Rice varieties such as basmati rice, jasmine rice or natural and wild rice have a more intense taste if they are prepared in the rice cooker using the soaking method. Another important feature that rice cookers have is the automatic switch-off, which prevents the rice from burning after the cooking process.
PROS
- No burning and boiling over
- Aromatic rice
- Automatic switch-off
- “Keep warm” mode
- Cooking time does not have to be observed
- Quite often offers a timer function
- Steam cooking of vegetables, meat and fish is possible with many appliances
- Special functions and various programs for high-quality devices
CONS
- Space required for the electric rice cooker
- Socket required
- The power usage can sometimes be expensive