Cooking in a rice cooker - Part 1.5

Choosing a rice cooker. This is my preference, ask these questions yourself. What's important to you? Besides making good rice.


Here are some criteria that are important to me:
- must have a keep warm function- non stick surface (if you are sure NO ONE will use metal utensils)
- don't buy one that's too big- don't buy one that's too small
- buy one that is the size of the rice you normally cook for the day, rice doesn't keep much more than a day even in the rice cooker
- must have a steamer tray to make veggies and heat things up with
- I like glass lids (easy to access when making something other than rice) or the lid that locks (keeps warmer for longer)
- I don't like a lot of features on it, but you might want it. This is where the expense comes in, the electronic controls beyond a moisture sensor and temperature sensor
- If I can, I look for the thickness of the pan, thicker = better (less scorching)

What else? that's about it I think. In short,
- get one the size that your family will finish in one day
- get one that has a warming function
- anything else is extra

Cooking in a rice cooker - Part 1

And I'm not just talking about rice, flavored rice and steamed veggies or dumplings. I mean beef stews, soups, casseroles, etc. This one will address how a rice cooker does that and some basic recipes. Part 2 will follow with more elaborate recipes.

A rice cooker is simply a somewhat insulated base with a thermostat and a heating element and a pot that sits inside the base along with a lid. Rice and water goes in the pot, the pot goes into the base, cover with lid, and press the cook button to enjoy perfectly cooked fluffy rice in a short time.

The rice cooker does this by heating the water until it reaches a boil, then the heat is turned off but will come on again when it senses the temperature will fall below a simmer. At this point the water is kept at a simmer. Without going into a thermodynamic lecture, the pot's termperature will be at the same temperature as the water until the water has evaporated.

At this point, the temperature will rise with any additional heat, and at that point the rice cooker knows the water has gone and switches to a warming mode, well below simmer but just perfect for braising. Quick side note about braising. The connective tissue in the meats breaks down into lip smacking collagen at 140 F. So a braise should be done at 140 F or above until most of the connective tissue is gone before simmering the liquid away for the flavorful gravy.

Now that we know how the rice cooker works, we can use this information to easily cook the following in a rice cooker:
- braised meats
- simmering soups
- flavored rice
- rice with veggies and meats that can be boiled/steamed together

Level 1 expertise:
- you can use chicken broth instead of water
- season the water with your seasoning of choice (ie spanish rice)
- add chunks of left over chicken
- add egg or quick cooking fish on top of the rice after it's done and make sure it's in the warm mode
- use coconut milk, lemon grass and clove to make Indonesian rice

Level 2 expertise:
- in the cook mode, you can add oil and aromatics and sautee (small diced onion, garlic, carrot, celercy, etc) before adding your water and rice
- in the cook mode, sautee aromatics and add chicken broth, veggies, starches and seasoing to make soup
- in the cook mode, sautee aromatics and add water, chicken/chicken bones/wings and necks and veggies to make chicken broth
- in the cook mode, sautee aromatics and add water, beef bones or pork bones to make beef or pork broth

Level 3 preview:
- poaching stuff
- sous vide
- braising recipes
etc...

Additional tips:
- consider adding things to your rice, but remember how long it takes for them to cook. Add canned beans at the beginning of the rice cooking, but frozen peas should be added after it's done
- playing on the above idea, making mock pilaf is easy. Add cubed sausages, chunks of veggies, chicken broth, seasoning, nuts, dried fruits
- replacing water with more flavorful liquid is the easiest way to change the rice (coconut milk or tomato juice/veg juice or beef/chicken broth or ???)
- adding spices and herbs in addition of or independent from water replacement is another good way
- don't forget that you can also steam at the same time (for some rice cooker models), this makes for an easy chicken rice. Replace water with chicken borth, steam quartered chicken above to let the juice fall down, voila)
- don't forget you can also cook oats and polenta
- anything that can be done in a rice cooker can be done on the stove top (or the oven even). Or if you prefer you can also do it in a pressure cooker.

On Kitchen Knives

How many knives are in your kitchen drawers? You can discount the steak knives and the butter knives. Go ahead, count them, I will wait. Got it? OK, now how many of those do you actually use often? How much have you spent on knives? Knives should be a decades long investment for most home cooks. Buy the best you can afford that fits you.

Having said that though, I wouldn't spend more than $300 for all of your kitchen cutlery. A great japanese chefs blade can be had for $75 or less, and an french/german blade made in Americal for $100 or less. The best bang for the buck (hence my favorites) brands are Victorinox Forschner and Dexter-Russell. Both are extensively used in restaurants and commercial kitchens.

Some myths that aren't true:

1. Forged knives are better than stamped. This is no longer true and "forged" doesn't always mean forged. There are a lot of cheap (I DON'T mean inexpensive) that are forged from low quality steel. Some of the more expensive knives are not forged but sintered. Even worse, some expensive brands have devalued their product line by making cheap knives (again, I don't mean inexpensive) *Bottom line: do your research and buy good quality knives*

2. Brand names = quality. As I mentioned above, this is no longer true. Henckels make cheap stuff that is no better (even worse) than the less expensive Victorinox Forschner stamped blades or even the ubiquitous white handled Dexter-Russell knives you see in a lot of restaurants. *Bottom line: do your research and get the best bang for your hard earned buck*

3. Never needs sharpening. Hmmm...yea... Usually this means the blad is serrated somehow. Either a scallop serration or sawtooth or other styles. They WILL get dull, and when they do most are impossible to sharpen. But what's wrong with them? The sawtooth style serration will RIP your food rather than cut (best to cut through leather, shoes and cans). The scalloped serration is not very good at all for chopping, mostly good for slicing, but it won't be as smooth and as fast as a well sharpened knife. *Bottom line: keep it simple, except for one serrated slicer/bread knife, your other knives should be good quality steel with a smooth edge*

4. Gimmicks = good. Some have specific uses, but most are useless. Diamond coated edge? No thanks, how do you sharpen it? What happens if the diamond coating wears off? Titanium coated knives? Usually pretty good at preventing surface rust, but what happens when the coating gets scratched? Besides you should always immediately wash and dry your knives after each use. The one gimmick that I wouldn't mind having is a ceramic bladed knife (Kyocera brand). A ceramic blade is wicked sharp and keeps its sharpness for a long time. The caveat is to ONLY use it for slicing and LIGHT chopping. The edge is brittle, so any abuse (cutting on hard surfaces, hard chopping, etc) will chip it faster than a steel blade. The whole blade is brittle, so don't drop it or use it in extreme temperatures or use in hot boiling water then ice cold water. *Bottom line: watch out for gimmicks, most will solve one problem but will create others. For the most part, a simple knife is better for the long run*

Taking care of your knives:

1. Wash your knives immediately after use, especially after cutting acidic things

2. Dry your knives immediately after washing

3. Use your steel often, at least before each use

4. Don't put your knives in the dishwasher

5. Don't put your knives in the drawer unprotected

6. Don't use powered knife sharpeners unless you're confident you know how to use it

7. Don't cut on glass, metal, marble, ceramic or stone

8. Only cut on wood/bamboo or plastic surfaces

9. Don't scrape your board with the knife edge, use a board scraper or at least the back of the knife not the edge

10. Don't use your knife for anything else except cutting foodstuffs (no opening tin cans with your knife despite a famous Food Network chef predisposition to do this)

What I recommend:

1. 8"-10" Victorinox Forschner chefs knife (or a santoku or a chinese chefs knife/not a cleaver)

2. the most comfortable vegetable peeler for you, OXO is what I use

4. A decent steel, at least the length of your chefs knife

5. Victorinox Forschner serrated slicer, I have the 10". I like the curve so my knuckle doesn't hit the board. Get one that's at least curved if not offset so you have knuckle room

What makes a good knife, in order of importance:

1. Comfort/good balance, I prefer mine to balance at the bolster

2. Durability

3. Edge holding capability

4. Full tang

How to hold your knife:

1. Pinch the balance point with your thumb and forefinger

2. Wrap your other fingers around the handle (if the knife fits you well, these two steps should feel natural)

3. In general lock your wrist and make your big movements from your arm/shoulder, precise control of the tip should be through your thumb and forefinger

4. No need to grasp the handle as if it's going to fly away, just curl your fingers around the handle

Material considerations:

1. Carbon steel - can be hardened to be very hard, but usually more brittle than stainless steel. Hard material means the knife can be sharpened to a very keen edge and hold that edge longer. But use it to hack away at hard bones or to open a tin can, the edge will chip faster than a stainless steel one. Major downfall: tend to rust and produce black stain on your acidic foods.

2. Stainless steel - a little bit less hard than carbon steel but usually tougher. Higher toughness means it is not as brittle and would tend to bend rather than break/chip. A stainless steel knife may be less sharp than a carbon steel and doesn't hold its edge as long. However, it is resistant to rust and stains throughout its life.

3. Ceramic - very sharp, very hard (thus holds its edge for a long time), very brittle. It can break just being dropped on the floor or counter. Need to be carefeul with chopping motions, best to use as a slicer only. Also prone to cracking with extreme temperature use (use in very hot foods/boiling water and immediately dunked into ice cold water).

4. Exotic steels - VG10 is the darling of the knife industry right now, both kitchen and knives in general. There are many other exotic steels, but do be careful with nomenclature. Surgical stainless steel isn't that good for real knives. This is a steel focusing on the stainless aspect of the material, not necessarily hardness/toughness/edge holding. A lot of great expensive knives are made of exotic steels that produce great compromises. As hard as a carbon steel but retains some stainless properties, or just as stainless and tough as a stainless steel but can be hardened a little more.

The only knives you need in the kitchen, in order of importance:

1. 8"-10" chefs knife with a curved belly or santoku knife with a curved belly

2. vegetable peeler that is comfortable for you

3. a steel, at least the length of your chefs knife

4. serrated slicer

5. easily disassembled kitchen shears

6. cleaver

7. paring knife

8. boning/filet knife

Uses around the kitchen:

1. Chefs knife or santoku for chopping or slicing

2. Vegetable peeler for peeling vegetables or shaving cheeses or chocolates

3. A steel to straighten the edge that's been rolled. Use a steel every time before use (4-6 strokes per side)

3. Serrated slicer for slicing roasts, cutting bread, cutting soft ripe fruits (apricot, tomatoes, nectarines)

4. Shears for butchers twine, but even more importantly to cut the ribs from fowls to butterfly them, mince herbs, chopping whole tomatoes in the can, trimming the fat on meats, cutting fins on fish, etc

5. Cleaver for separating larger meat joints, cutting through frozen foods,

6. Paring knife for making decorative cuts, devein shrimp, section citrus fruits (making supremes), strawberries

7. Boning/filet knife to filet fish, making cuts close to the bones, making slits and pockets for stuffing into the meat

Knife brands I would consider:

Victorinox Forschner 10" Chefs knife - $27 @ Amazon

Victorinox Forschner 10.25" curved bread knife (40547) - $26 @ Amazon

Dexter-Russell 8"-10" Chefs knife - $15-$35 @ Amazon

Tojiro DP series 8.2" Chefs knife - $80 @ korin.com

Global 8" Chefs knife - $100 @ Amazon

MAC 8" Chefs knife - $120 @ Amazon

Shun Classic 8" Chefs knife - $135 @ Amazon

Hattori 8" Chefs knife HD series - $90 @ japanesechefsknife.com