Rice is a staple in our household (but it must be brown!)  My husband makes this amazing Thai dish with coconut rice and it’s so yummy I feel like I’m eating in an authentic Thai restaurant.  In the same week we could have baked chicken with spanish rice and vegetarian beans or an Italian risotto. With all the rice we eat in our household, you can imagine how convenient something like a rice cooker would be.

When it comes to kitchen appliances there are a few things that I look for.  Kitchen appliances should make the work of cooking easier.  So I always weigh the complexity of using the product against the convenience afforded by it.  Cuisinart’s Rice  Plus Multi-Cooker enables you to cook rice (and other foods) easily.  The Multi-Cooker has a “brain” (if you will) built into it called Fuzzy Logic which basically ensures your food will be cooked to perfection every time.  The “brain” “senses fluctuations in cooking and automatically adjusts to ensure perfect results.”

While I can multi-task at many other things, cooking is not one of them.  My husband always jokes that we eat in courses (because I can’t seem to get everything prepared and cooked on time). There are a lot of features, my favorite being the ability to program exactly when I want my rice (or other dish) to be ready.  So I can actually work on another dish while the Multi-Cooker works on my rice.  Translation:  Less likelihood of burning or overcooking other dishes (something I’m noteworthy for).

Now, when I purchase an appliance, I think about how often I’m going to use it.  For example, I love the idea of a bread maker or an ice cream maker…but how often am I practically going to use either one of those?  A rice cooker is something we will use several times a week.  The Multi-Cooker comes equipped with pre-programmed settings for six types of rice (I had no idea there were six types of rice). And because we can actually make other foods (oatmeal, soup), it’s getting a lot more use.  You can even steam veggies using the Steam function which means I don’t have to buy another appliance!  I haven’t steamed veggies yet but from what I’ve read, it’s very easy.  Simply put in 2 cups of water, wait 3 minutes for the unit to heat up, then start steaming.  The manual (which is extremely resourceful) actually has approximate steam times for various veggies and meats.  Steaming is a quick and healthy way of cooking foods.

Delicious Jasmine Wild Rice

More of a luxury, is the Keep Warm function.  Once the rice is done, the Multi-Cooker will automatically switch to this function and will keep food warm up to 24 hours.  So if you want seconds, you don’t have to head over to the microwave to reheat your rice (why aren’t all appliances this smart?).

The Reheat function can actually be used on other foods that were not cooked in the Multi-Cooker.  I’m not a huge fan of microwaving foods because I’ve heard that vital nutrients are lost.  Use this function to reheat foods (but be sure to add a little water or liquid to prevent the foods from drying out).  The only thing I would note about this function is that it can take 35 minutes to reheat foods (just something to keep in mind).

The amount of time it will take you to cook rice, really depends on a few things:  when you want it done and how you like your rice (soft v. hard).  With the Quick Cook function, your rice could be done in 30 minutes.

One last important function I look for in a kitchen appliance is the ease of clean-up.  I have a waffle maker that I really like.  But I have to handwash it each and every time and it becomes somewhat laborious getting into all those grooves. So I opt for pancakes most days.  All of the removable parts on the Multi-Cooker are dishwasher safe which makes clean-up a breeze.  Plus, the aluminum cooking pot is non-stick. I would recommend avoiding the use of metal on it so it doesn’t get scratched.

Check out their awesome video here.  

The Multi-Cooker has a rice capacity of 15 cups, includes a steaming rack, measuring cup, rice paddle, and spoon, and comes with a highly resourceful manual which includes recipes for rice, risotto, soup, and oatmeal.  It retails for $149 and is available for purchase online or at retailers nationwide. 

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