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ndpanda
58
Nov 28, 2017
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I bought the 5-cup version of this cooker after using non-induction models from Zojirushi and Panasonic for 20+ years. All types of rice turn out noticeably better, and the GABA brown rice setting is nice to have. I've also noticed that cleanup after brown rice is quite a bit easier than with the conventional cookers, though I don't know why that would be. Of the appliances that I own, this is the one I would most recommend to others.
Nov 28, 2017
DoctorX
301
Dec 1, 2017
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ndpandaHi, can I ask what you meant by "noticeably better"? I have a Panasonic rice cooker and I've had rice cooked from relative's rice cookers and they all come out pretty similar. What does the induction Zojirushi do that warrant the high price tag?
Dec 1, 2017
Glottis
73
Dec 1, 2017
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DoctorXYou aren't going to get a response with facts or figures if that is what you are looking for. It's basically a rice cooker that cooks rice but it's built well and should last many uses/for many years and it has the added bonus of being able to cook a bunch of grains and rices without much intervention or input from the user.
If you are just cooking rice every now and then, you aren't going to taste it and go through a "this is what rice was meant to taste like, oh my god, there is no going back, those farmers were just waiting for this moment 10 thousand years ago", I've never met a single person that can even taste the difference between a cheap £20 one from CostCo and the £300 one from Zojirushi within the margin of error, in fact the CostCo one usually wins the blind taste test.
It's like wine tasting, every single study to date has shown that not a single "expert" can tell the differences between cheap and expensive wines by their monetary value when they are given a mixture of them without knowing which is which. Wine tasting contests used to have the name of the wine on the glass or some indication of who made it, a sort of cooking taste contest thing but since they started obscuring the name and doing blind testing, numerous wines that cost less than £5 have obliterated competition that costs even 100 times as much. The self professed wine experts have some very cheap taste it seems. A fool and his money are soon parted indeed. However if you have more than one use for it or you plan to use it very regularly it could pay for itself in time. If you are happy with your current rice cooker though I don't think you are going to be making some lazy hunter/ busy farmer from 10, 0000 years ago happy. Then again maybe it gives you magical benefits that can't be detected by any method other than the feeling you get when you see the rice leaving it and being served to you.
Dec 1, 2017
pedantic
15
Dec 2, 2017
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DoctorXThe two things that make this special are 1. Made in Japan 2. Induction Heating
Zojirushi also makes rice cookers in China, and the quality isn't as nice. The Induction Heating uses magnets to heat the pot itself. This allows for more even heating as the entire pot is producing heat rather than just a heating element under the pot. This theoretically allows for more finer temperature controls.
You could go to Walmart and get something for $10 to $20 and it will cook rice just fine. Until you put too much water and you end up with a soggy paste, or too little water and the rice is crunchy. This is supposed to cook rice more consistently. And that consistency is what people who eat rice everyday want, and are willing to pay for. If you eat rice, once a month or even just once a week. Maybe the price difference isn't worth it.
Dec 2, 2017
ndpanda
58
Dec 2, 2017
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pedanticI do eat rice almost every day, and when I commented above about ”noticeably better” results with the induction cooker I should have written “noticeably more consistent.” This is something I appreciate; it’s not so much a matter of taste as texture and degree of firmness. For those who eat rice only occasionally I suppose this cooker might be overkill.
Dec 2, 2017
RogierFvV
43
Dec 2, 2017
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DoctorXIH shortens the cooking time and is more efficient in electrical consumption. Worth it in spades, but you have to look at the total complement of features. The GABA Brown Rice setting is critically important once you understand the nutritional value of GABA rice.
Dec 2, 2017
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