Rice Cooker Recipes

[XERTYX]

After a quick search I found an old thread with some info on using rice cookers. It was very informative as far as how they work. It had a few ideas for things you could make other than rice in them and I've seen some van dweller videos of people doing just that. I even saw a guy cooking ribs in one while driving.

My sister bought a couple of 300 watt rice cookers on closeout. They are 300 watt models with the steam tray optional insert. I bought one off of her for the price she paid. $4-6 I think. It's been a few months.

This morning I plugged it in and chopped up some store brand kielbasa and half an onion and browned them in some olive oil and a touch of salt and spices in the pot. Then I added some water and a packet of red beans and rice.

It took about 30 minutes all in all but i think i could have been more efficient if i removed the sausages and put the rice in with just the onions then added them back later.

The only thing is i have shore power right now and i dont have a killawatt meter so i dont know if it was drawing 300 watts continually. If anyone has a meter and a rice cooker maybe post your findings next time you use yours?

I'm thinking of making some pasta in it tomorrow. Probably mac & cheese. And I have plenty of rice to experiment with. I'm trying to save money this month and I just bought a 5lb bag of rice, 7.5lb of pinto beans, 4lb of flour, and a bag of taters.

I havent replaced my propane stove yet, the propane grill wastes a lot of fuel, and I'm getting tired of building a fire for cooking everyday. Also it's been raining a lot.

So I'm gonna be trying to do a few things with this rice cooker. What do y'all like to make in them? Rice? Pasta? Or something you'd never think could be made in one?

 

[Dingfelder]

Steamed veggies with a steaming tray works out great, but you can also just throw random veggies in with the rice and set for the normal rice time. This goes for most anything you could throw in. Be aware that if you want flavors to permeate, you have to stir throughly to get it all mixed into, say, a rice or quinoa recipe.

Rice is very resilient, so one interesting thing to do is steam eggs on top of already-done rice. Just crack them in after the rice is done and you've heard that beep.

Also, I like to brown onions in my rice cooker or toast spices and then add the rice. The flavor permeates the rice and other ingredients that may be added.

 

[maki2]

You can cook oatmeal in them and soups made with vegetables and broth. Don't use veggies that take a long time to cook such as carrots and turnips, beets, hard squash etc unless you grate them or cut them into very small pieces.

Pinto beans take a long time to cook as do any of the large beans. Instead choose some of the dried pea varieties such as lentils or split peas as they cook in a much shorter length of time.

 

[XERTYX]

I hadnt thought about toasting spices in it. That's a great idea. I've always wanted to try and make jeera rice. I love that. It's an indian rice dish with toasted cumin seed (jeera)

I didnt think presoaked pintos would work in it. I'll probably use the Dutch oven over the fire to make my pintos. Tomorrow I'm planning on making some chicken wings in it. But idk how well that will work. I'm planning to make some buffalo sauce and cook the wings in the sauce.

In that other thread I read that the thermostat is designed to switch off above 212° because if the temp goes over 212 then all the water must have been boiled away or absorbed. If its 212 or below it assumes there is still water in. So maybe chicken wings may not work unless I boil them in it.

That's another thing I've thought of. Boil the wings and save the water for rice and then just baste the fully cooked wings and cook them again on the grill or maybe on my griddle. I've only used my griddle on a stove top but ive been toying with the idea of building a brick platform and using it over deadfall wood. That way I could save my charcoal and good smoking wood for meat on my smoker grill.

 

[maki2]

There are lots of companies making accessories specifically for the Instapots. Just use the keywords "Instapot accessories"

To cook things without them being directly in the water you put water in the bottom of the pot and then place things such as chicken wings on an elevated rack. Some of those racks are wire grids, some are platforms with holes drilled in them. There are also some that are made of a grid of silicone.

There are quite a few Instapot Buffalo Chicken Wing videos on youtube. Pretty much anything you might want to cook you will likely see someone has already done it in a youtube Instapot video.

 

[XERTYX]

I tried an experiment. I tried cooking 3 frozen wings in the rice cooker. I melted some butter, sugar, and hot sauce and threw in the wings and a splash of water. I cooked the wings for about 35 minutes until the sauce didnt seem to be boiling anymore and just seemed like it was very reduced and sticky. I left them in the pot with the lid on for about 15 minutes. The heat retention was impressive for an aluminum vessel.

They looked pretty good and tasted good but inside the flat in between the bones it had a twinge of pink so I only ate the 1 wing. Tomorrow I'll cook the other 2 thru on the grill with breakfast.

I think if I had more sauce or water or if they were thawed it would have turned out better.

 

[B and C]

Thawing before cooking is always a good idea. Even a hamburger patty can look done on the outside but be raw in the center.

 

[maki2]

The definitive test is to check the actual temperature of the pieces of meat when you think it is ready to eat. Meat thermometers are affordable and they can often be found in the thrift stores as well as at the dollar stores.

 

[DannyB1954]

I have a small rice cooker that is marketed as being a cook everything device. Search Youtube for Perfect Cooker. here is one link,
It uses 400 watts, so you could cook with an inverter while you drive. Last night I used mine to cook a sweet potato.

 

[Dingfelder]

Big thumbs up re the thermometer idea. I have bought two of them, one for me and one for the family when I left. Very very helpful with meat.

Get an expandable steamer insert and you can cook stuff you don't want simply boiled, which loses all the flavor. Chicken, fish, more delicate veggies than the ones you have burbling in the chaos below, etc. I have cooked many delicious meals by putting the rice and or potatoes or other hard veggies below, and the more delicate ones on top in a steamer basket from the local grocery store. A pat of butter or two or some EV olive oil helps give you some healthy fats to balance out a meal and provide satiety.

Even with that/those extra fats, you can hardly keep weight on with such a diet, and you can eat like a pig to full satisfaction. Veggies are mostly water, so they fill you up but the non-starchy ones provide hardly any carbs to bloat you up, retain water, and get you fat. You can eat a LOT of veggies if you're steaming them and staying away from starches, and not gain a pound in the process. You'll probably lose some.

 

[XERTYX]

Yeah I should have thawed them first. When I got to the the touch of pink I was done with it. I dont do rare poultry. Beef or pork I dont mind a lil rareness. I wont even touch runny eggs.

I've been meaning to get an instant read thermometer. I just havent yet. I'm sure it would have been a whole different story if it were thawed. The outermost meat was falling away from the bone but inside the wing between the 2 bones it was slightly pink in the very middle. And that would have been the last place to thaw as these were ice glazed.

I have the steamer insert. I just havent used it yet. This was only my second time using it so I have more experiments to do. I'm thinking of boiling some eggs right about now. I woke up with a ravenous appetite.

 

[XERTYX]

Well I did try hard boiling eggs. In the other thread on rice cookers there was a mention of the way Julia Childs made hard boiled eggs.

Boil for 5 minutes. Allow to rest covered 15 minutes in the water. Put into cold or ice water and peel.

Based on the results of my first experiment I eliminated some variables and repeated the experiment. Both batches were 6 eggs. Both starting with cool water. Both boiled for 6 minutes and allowed to sit for 15 minutes. Both never removed the lid until after the rest period.

The first batch I took the eggs out of the fridge and they were ICE COLD. They felt like ice cubes. I added salt and covered with water up to the 3 cup water fill line. (That would be 6 cups volume as the rice is added first) It took 23~24 minutes to achieve a rapid boil.

The second batch I waited several hours and left the eggs out. They had warmed considerably and had more or less stopped sweating. I also omitted the salt (salt raises the temperature required to achieve a boil) and I only half covered the eggs up to the 1.5 cup water fill line.

The second batch took 13~14 minutes to achieve a rapid boil.

Both batches made perfectly hard boiled eggs with completely cooked yolks and neither had that green sulfury tint/smell around the yolk. 

I still dont have a killawatt meter but assuming the unit draws 300 watts continuous the batches would have consumed 150 and 100 watt hours each respectively. That's on shore power so inverter loss would add to that figure. Also that is a very large load, but assuming it's a sunny day and the batteries are charged and you have a decently sized bank and solar array I can see this as being a viable cooking method.

I have a small head of cabbage that needs to be used so I think I'll make some boiled cabbage for dinner in the rice cooker and report on how it performs.

 

[GypsyJan]

For quick comfort food, I toss Wendy's chili on top of the rice just before it is done, then wait a few moments and stir. I also have browned sausage patties, then heated up a store-bought (but thawed) quiched florentine for breakfast.

 

[XERTYX]

I havent made my cabbage yet. Maybe for breakfast. I ate 6 eggs minus the yolks today. My brothers dog and I make a good team. He hates egg whites and I dislike the yolks. The other six were made into egg salad. A lil pickle relish and mayo plus kosher salt, ground black pepper, paprika, and ground cayenne makes a good flavor.

After the cabbage I have a frozen pizza to cook.

I'll try making regular white rice also. I have visited chinese restaurants and bought white rice with some soy sauce packets before.

I cannot make rice on my own. I can make many things. But rice confounds me.

 

[XERTYX]

Well the cabbage turned out to be a bust. It was too far gone to be used. But I have found something super simple to make in it and cleanup is easy as could be.

I had a package of pasta roni olive oil and garlic vermicelli I had been meaning to try. I bought it because it doesnt need milk. The flavor is very light but you could toss it in some pasta sauce if you like. I'd imagine it would be good that way. I liked the taste but tried with a little soy sauce stirred in. It reminds me a little bit of chinese noodles that way.

To the rice cooker add 1 and 3/4 cup of water and 2 TBSP of butter or margarine (the instructions also say you can substitute olive oil)

Heat it up to the point the butter is melted and stir in the seasoning packet. Then add the noodles and cover. Stir occasionally and once the sauce begins to reduce leave the lid off and stir continuously. When the noodles start to try and stick to the bottom it's done.

Switch off the heat and remove the pan. Stir and sit on an oven mit for a minute or 2. Then pour out into a bowl and eat as is or top with choice of sauces, grilled chicken, whatever.

$1 a box for a filling meal as is or the addition of whatever you like. No draining. Easy cleanup. Add a little water to the pan and put back into the cooker with the lid on. It will warm up a bit from residual heat. Scrape the bottom with the spoon you used for cooking (I used plastic so as not to scratch the pan). Swirl the water around and dump out. Wipe out with a baby wipe or damp paper towel and that's that.

 

[XERTYX]

Another successful recipe in the rice cooker. Pasta in marinara sauce.

What I do is to melt 1/4 stick of butter and add kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper, curry powder, and sugar. Allow the spices to toast in the fat until aromatic. Then add about half a jar of spaghetti sauce. Stir and allow to also cook in the spiced butter. When it starts to bubble thin it with a little water and add about 1/4 box of elbow macaroni. Stir frequently to avoid sticking. When it starts to boil vigorously switch it to warm and allow the residual heat to cook the pasta. Keep stirring and switching back to cook and returning to warm as necessary until done. 

I tried it the first time with more water than necessary and it tasted watery. So I had to boil for a long time to reduce the water. Dont be afraid to use less water. Just keep your nose peeled for the smell of scorching. Thick pasta sauce will start to scorch to the bottom but if you cut the heat and scrape the bottom it will come off, it just gives a little caramelized flavor.

 

[jacqueg]

To cook things without them being directly in the water you put water in the bottom of the pot and then place things such as chicken wings on an elevated rack. Some of those racks are wire grids, some are platforms with holes drilled in them. There are also some that are made of a grid of silicone. 

Make your own grid. Depending on what you are trying to keep out of the water, and the size of your cooker, you can

-make "logs" of aluminum foil
-use one of those "lotus" steamer baskets that you can find everywhere, either metal or silicone
-use canning jar rings

I've been known to use my rice cooker in motel rooms. 

If you love your rice cooker and/or Roger Ebert, be sure to visit https://www.rogerebert.com/rogers-journal/the-pot-and-how-to-use-it

 

[hotelplus]

Have Asian blood here so we do have rice cooker anywhere we go haha. What I can share to you guys is just a simple soup that my grandma would do. Just fill the rice cooker with water (half of the pot) add some garlic, GINGER, and onions. Then add chicken cut in bites. Please include the bones since this would add extra flavor. Then add 1 and half rice. Add some salt and pepper.

 

[quailisotope]

Thawing ahead of cooking will always be a great idea.

 

[VyckieG]

Now I'm hungry! Thanks for sharing