Zojirushi Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NS-TSC10/18

Purchased in June 2016, used at least weekly since then (often 3-5 times a week) Before I say anything else, a note about cooking rice - RINSE YOUR RICE, PEOPLE. IT'S IN THE DIRECTIONS AND IT'S CRUCIAL FOR GOOD RICE. Fit & Finish: - Despite the shell being mostly plastic, this rice cooker feels a bit luxe and everything is nice and tight. The super shiny plastic is extremely easy to wipe down whenever it gets dirty. - The retractable power cord is an amazing feature, such a creature comfort. It works just like it did when we got it, albeit slightly slower now. I've never had a problem with getting it to go in the direction I needed. - The lid and hinge mech is solid and easy to use, just one big button to release. An interesting thing to note is the hinge only opens just beyond far enough for the rice pan to be insertable into the machine, so if it didn't pop up all the way and your hands are full, you'll need to use an elbow to nudge it the rest of the way open. My solution is to just pop it open and make sure it's fully open before I start doing anything else. - The handle is light and plastic but has not cracked at any point, not even the joints. This was something I was worried about since the unit feels like it could be an issue, but I kinda swing this thing around when moving it in/out of my pantry, and it's still totally solid. Product in use: - The user interface (buttons and screen) is intuitive, easy to use, and there are no seams between the buttons for any water ingress. The buttons on my unit haven't even started to wear down after 7 years. - As far as functions go, I only really ever use the White or Quick rice features - I don't eat brown rice at home, and haven't felt the need to use any of the other ones. I've also never used the timer feature as I am not the best planner. But this thing sure does make the most perfectly cooked rice every single time. It's honestly kind of rough having such high quality, easy to cook, white rice at home, and then go out to eat and the rice you're eating is just mushy and overcooked or gummy. This thing spoils you. --- A note about Quick Rice - I have found that the quicker cook time /can/ lead to slightly tackier/gummier rice if you open the lid as soon as the cycle ends. I would give it a few extra minutes to steam out before opening and the rice will be almost as perfect as the regular cycle. - Volume of rice cooked - I don't think I have ever maxed this thing out, but I have gotten close. What is MORE impressive, is that I can cook 1 single 'cup'** (**OF THE CUP THEY GIVE YOU TO MEASURE THAT CORRESPONDS TO THE LINES IN THE RICE PAN, WHICH IS ACTUALLY 3/4 CUP) of rice and it comes out just as perfect as if I cooked rice for 6 people. This amount of rice has never been short of enough for one meal for two adults. On quick rice, this amount cooks in like...15 minutes? And on White it'll start at 50, but will actually skip a few and be done in 25min or so. Summary: I thought for sure that $130 (at my time of purchase) was a bit overkill for a rice cooker, but I will 1000% buy another one of these whenever my current unit dies, if that ever happens. I thought 7 years was a good run (< $20/year for perfect rice at home?!) so any more time after this is just a big bonus. 10/10, and 10/10 with rice.

We already had the Zojirushi water boiler, and it is probably 7 years old. With that in mind, when we were looking for a rice maker, we decided on Zojirushi. Not only does this look lovely on the counter top, it works incredibly well. The first thing we made was brown rice. Easy... 1. Use cup, which is very kindly provided, and level fill with the rice you want to use 2. Add water to clearly marked corresponding line in the rice maker. 3. Select menu.... select the type of rice you are using.. 4. Press start. 5. Enjoy nicely cooked rice. We baked cheesecake, which is delicious. I made my husband a birthday cake, and he said it was the nicest sponge cake he had tasted. ( I added lavender and vanilla) The perfect omelette! mix eggs, add a little milk, and any additions (cheese, onion, carrot, etc.) I read in a recipe online, that you cook it for 15 minutes. I set the rice maker for quick, which shows 40 minutes. I was in a hurry, and just set the timer on the microwave for 15 minutes. Well, the microwave timer went off, and I looked at the rice maker...well, wouldn't you know it, the timer had adjusted and was just about to go off. The omelette was perfectly shaped, and just flopped out onto the plate when I inverted the inner pan of the rice maker. That night, I just had to make my husband an omelette, well, it was more of a fritatta, as he wanted some leftover rice in it. Quick, easy, and delicious meal. We have used the timer program for oatmeal. We had guests who needed to be up very early, so we set it for oatmeal, and when they got up, the oatmeal was done to perfection. We put water up to the 3 cup mark, then fill the steamer basket with eggs, and press quick. Pefectly hard boiled eggs. We experimented, and put 2 cups of water and one cup of beer in it, and bratwursts in the steamer basket. Quick program...and the brats are fabulous. This is the way we cook them now. With care, I hope it lasts as long as our Zojirushi water boiler. UPDATE Have cooked chicken curry in it, pasta and meatballs, and a number of dishes.

The beauty of Japanese rice cookers is that there is no secret to them. There is nothing that you need to be in-the-know about to get perfect restaurant quality rice. You clean the rice, you add water, you push a button. One hour later, perfection. Rice cookers are believe it or not one of the few products that was not only invented but also perfected in japan. The first rice cooker was actually invented by Toshiba, after testing from a Husband and Wife couple got all the kinks out of a special switch that turned off the heat at just the right moment. But in Japanese post-war economy, everyone was worker and not everyone could eat dinner at the right time. Keeping rice not only cooked but also hot and ready to eat for long periods of time became the new challenge. Certain companies that worked in vacuum flask container manufacturing stepped in, which is how companies like Zojirushi and Tiger become the giants they are today. If you want a mainstream rice cooker, you choice is going to be between the two. Zojirushi has a much larger presence in the US market and well I am kind of a fan. This is not my only Zoji product; I have a hot water pot, lunch box and several vacuum flasks that I swear must use magic to keep things as hot or cold as they do for so long. While we don't eat rice with every meal, the ease of which you can just add rice as a side dish is great. Feature wise, the keep warm feature is just fantastic. Often times, I will cook rice for lunch and the just leave the left over rice in the pot for dinner later on. The rice always has that "just cooked, fresh from the steamer" taste. Compared to some cheaper rice cookers that use the older/original Toshiba technology, this is one of the key features that you are spending the extra money for. The other feature that you are spending the extra money for is the "fuzzy-logic" computer on board. Basically the way it works is that it takes environmental temperature readings, takes into account how fast the water is boiling, and adjusts the cooking time and heat to cook the rice in such a way that it will be perfect every time. This is what makes the machine "push the ON button and walk away". The pan is incredibly easy to clean. Just some hot water and soap swished around is often enough to clean it. You should rarely have to use a sponge. I know many reviewers have complained about the lining peeling off after a year or so. Zoji sells replacement pots on their website for around 35 dollars. Just make sure that you never use any metal on the pan and you should be good to go for many years before you need a new pan. The cord has a feature similar to the automatic whined up on older vacuum cleaners. It makes storage a breeze and the handle on the top is very nice too. The inner steam suppression lid is also super easy to take off and clean between uses as well. The addition of a steamer tray is a fantastic feature too. You should check out some youtube videos for rice-cooker recipes. Many Japanese homemakers have figured out interesting ways too cook different meals very easily with an appliance that is in every Japanese home. All and all, money well spent if you want one less thing to worry about when cooking dinner.

This rice cooker cooks rice excellent. It’s very easy to use. It fits about 5 cups of rice, which is quite a bit. It feeds my family of six. I have never experienced any water leakage with it and it’s super easy to clean. The quality of this product is excellent. I definitely would recommend other people to buy it especially people who have never used a rice cooker before this is pretty easy to follow and learn how to use it.

My husband and I previously owned a rice cooker we had owned for years (I can't remember the brand). I decided to upgrade to this machine since I wanted to get it as a gift for my husband and it was on sale at the time. This product cooks rice amazing! We normally cook long grain white rice so I was used to using the same amount of water as rice in our old cooker. The other one took maybe 30 minutes at the most to cook the rice but even if I checked on it often and stirred the rice, it would stick to the bottom of the bowl. With this machine, it takes 65 minutes to cook long grain white rice (I make a big batch of it) and it turns out perfect every single time, even when I was accidentally using the wrong amount of water (for 4 cups of rice, it takes 5 cups of water). The little provided measuring cup is perfect for this (for the measuring lines in the bowl, the water is at the 4 cup line). I like that this machine plays a tune when it is finished cooking (so I know exactly when it's done). The machine keeps the rice hot for a long time after it is turned off so it's perfect if you don't want to eat it right away. It also comes with a handy spatula for stirring the rice and serving it. I am very happy that I purchased this and would definitely purchase another one in the future. This is also incredibly easy to clean. I haven't used the machine to cook anything except rice but I like that it comes with a steamer for veggies. My only downside is the book the machine came with isn't clear on the amount of water to use for rice (which is why I was using the wrong amount) but their website is very clear on how much to use with the kind of rice. Also, I had assumed long grain white rice was to be cooked on the white rice setting but it is actually supposed to be on the Mixed Rice setting. Despite using the wrong amount of water and the wrong setting, this machine has smart technology to still cook it properly. The rice turned out great but turns out amazing when you use the correct setting and water amount.

Definitely a good quality rice cooker. Have been using it for more than a year without any issue. Easy to use. The rice always cooked perfectly each time. I pretty much use the white rice or steam functions. It is not cheap, but worth the money if you cook rice everyday. The rice cooker takes longer to cook compare to other brands I owned, like 60 minutes compare to others like 30 minutes. The other minor thing I don't like about it is the holder for the rice scoopulas is kind of in awkward spot/position.

I love this rice cooker! The UI was super simple, especially when you reference the handbook. I haven’t owned a nicer rice cooker before—I previously had a $20 one from Walmart that burnt the bottom of my rice no matter what I did. The rice does take a long time to cook, about 65 minutes, but this hasn’t been an issue for me. I just wash the rice put it on when I get home, which takes less than 5 minutes, and let it cook while I get into my comfy clothes and prep the rest of dinner. It always comes out soft, perfect, and with separated grains. I haven’t tested the quick-cook function out yet, or the oatmeal option, but it’s so amazing for rice. It’s very easy to clean. Since this was definitely a splurge purchase for me, I was very concerned with having to keep it clean and dry so that it doesn’t begin tarnishing on me. Cleaning it is super easy since the pot is nonstick and nothing sticks to the plastic spatula. You just pull out the metal lid piece, super easy to wash, the rice basket, and the paddle. Takes no more than 5 minutes to wash by hand. I haven’t experienced any water leakage, and the machine’s size and handle make it very easy to pick up and move around my counter. It’s lightweight without feeling cheap or flimsy. I have a 5.5 cup capacity machine and it easily feeds around 4-5 adults. If you have a larger rice portion with your meals, I’d say it feeds 3-4. Gone are my days of cooking rice in stainless steel pots on the stove—this Zojirushi really does pay for itself. I’m eating rice at least twice a day now, it’s just so convenient and so nice to use and clean up. The praise and recommendation the Zojirushi brand receives isn’t for no reason. It truly is worth the coin.

Makes great rice. 5.5 cup capacity is misleading. They mean the supplied cup which is ~3/4 cup. Internal markings state 4 cup max for white rice, so 3 cups of white rice is the max. I rarely need more than that, so it is fine. If you need more, get the next model up.