Best Rice Cookers

Best full-featured rice cookers user fuzzy logic

The most advanced rice cookers use fuzzy logic, which is intended to mimic human reasoning, cooking rice according to your specifications. These cookers continuously adjust the cooking time and moisture level to produce perfect rice, but the tradeoff is longer cooking time. In tests at Cook's Illustrated, advanced rice cookers took an average of 50 minutes to cook, while brown rice required an average of 105 minutes. Most higher-end rice cookers have quick-cook settings that slash cooking times, but rice won't be as tender. Advanced rice cookers also have timers that can be preset for up to 24 hours; they have settings for different textures and types of rice, and a choice of chime or beep at the end of the cooking cycle. Experts say that unless you're particular about the texture of your rice or capable of remembering to set the cooker before you leave for the day, you can likely get by with a simpler rice cooker.

Reviewers say that the 5.5-cup Zojirushi Neuro Fuzzy NS-ZCC10 (*Est. $180) is an excellent choice. In her review for the Los Angeles Times, Judy Yao writes that the "user-friendly" Neuro delivers "firm-tender rice with a hint of sweetness." Professional reviews give this model high marks for rice quality and features, including rewarming, the ability to make porridge, a retractable cord, an extended keep warm feature and a choice of chime or tune at the end of the cooking cycle. Editors at Fine Cooking say it's the best all-around model they tested. They praise its memory feature, which recalls fine-tunings made for specific types of rice and its removable lid, great for easy cleaning.

This rice cooker receives excellent ratings from owners posting to Amazon.com. A handful of owners note that the Zojirushi rice cooker must be sent to an authorized dealer every four to five years to have its battery replaced. A few others complain about this model's countdown clock, which only starts running during the last 10 minutes of cooking. The Neuro does not come with a steamer basket. A larger version, the 10-cup Zojirushi Neuro Fuzzy NS-ZCC18 (*Est. $185) is also available.

Reviews say that the Sanyo Micom ECJ-D55S (*Est. $115) performs nearly as well as the Zojirushi Neuro, and it includes two features the more expensive model lacks: a longer countdown clock and a steamer basket. MetaEfficient.com calls it the "best pick for an affordable fuzzy logic rice cooker." Testers at Cook's Illustrated find that the Sanyo ECJ-D55S makes great quality rice and is easy to use, although they did notice slight variations in the texture of brown rice cooked in the ECJ-D55S. Cooking.com names this model as its bestseller and owners at that site give it well above average ratings. It also earns an above average rating on Amazon.com from dozens of reviewers. It's advertised as having a 5 1/2 cup capacity, but tests show this is closer to 4 1/8 cups of rice in actual use.

Judy Yao's Los Angeles Times report reviews a larger version of this rice cooker, the 10-cup Sanyo Micom ECJ-D100S (*Est. $125), finding that it performs similarly: white and sushi rice were moist and fluffy, while a few grains of the brown rice were crunchy. We found solid user reviews for the Sanyo ECJ-D100S rice cooker on Amazon.com, Walmart.com and Cooking.com. This unit can double as a slow cooker or steamer, and even though it's large, users say it doesn't consume too much countertop space. We did find some complaints of an odor from the steam vent, but others report they didn't smell anything.

Editors at Fine Cooking name the 5-cup Sanyo Micom ECJ-F50S (*Est. $120) a best buy for its combination of features, price and ability to make great-tasting rice. The editors do stress that brown rice must be washed and soaked for an hour or it will come out undercooked. Cooking.com names the Sanyo ECJ-F50S a top-rated rice cooker. The Sanyo F50S uses fuzzy logic to control settings for quick cooking, porridge, stew and dol sot bi bim bab (a Korean rice dish in which the bottom layer is toasted.) A steamer insert is included. Owner reviews at Cooking.com are strong, with users praising the Sanyo's performance and easy clean-up. Users at Amazon.com give this Sanyo rice cooker a high rating, although several complain that there is no audible indicator when cooking is complete.

Another strong choice is the smaller 3-cup Zojirushi Micom NS-LAC05 (*Est. $140), which gets excellent reviews on Amazon.com. Owners say that you simply can't make a bad batch of rice in this model, which excels at cooking long-grain brown rice, jasmine and basmati rice. Owners praise the Zojirushi Micom's small footprint, retractable cord and large handle (which makes it easy to take to potlucks and other gatherings). Users also like its warmer and timer features and report that it's easy to clean. But this rice cooker is a little more expensive than the Sanyo ECJ-D55S. That, coupled with the Zojirushi Micom's lack of a steaming basket and its smaller capacity, makes the Sanyo a better value.

The most advanced rice cookers use induction heat to cook rice, rather than a standard heating plate. According to ConsumerGuide.com, these cookers get their heat from "an alternating electric current from the wall outlet." The current moves through coils and creates a magnetic field around the inner pot of the rice cooker, which in turn, generates heat within the pot. Editors at ConsumerGuide.com explain that this method of cooking allows for more accurate temperatures and evenly cooked rice. It also allows the rice cooker to make instant temperature adjustments.

The Zojirushi Induction NP-HBC18 (*Est. $300) uses this type of heat and gets rave reviews, so far. It's much more expensive than other types of rice cookers, but users at Amazon.com say that it yields "perfect" results every time. Testers at Food & Wine magazine say that it "prepares every type of rice perfectly -- from sushi-style to porridge." The NP-HBC18 has 12 menu options for various types of rice including quick-cook and rinse-free settings. It also has a detachable inner lid for easy cleanup.