Introduction
Welcome to
7 Days of Rice: All-in-One Rice Cooker Recipes. This is an introductory recipe book brought to you by Karate Rice. These pages contain seven of my favourite all-in-one rice cooker recipes. Since this book is so small, there are no filler recipes. I make all of these recipes on a regular basis. Unlike some other rice cooker cookbooks, these recipes are designed to be cooked using nothing but a rice cooker. There is no need for a frying pan or saucepan with this book.Some of the recipes make more than one serving. The nutritional information provided is not per serving, rather, per recipe. It's normal for me to eat every "serving" as one meal. When you look at the calorie count, you'll notice that none of these recipes are particularly high calorie. That's the beauty of whole plant foods. We get full before we eat "too much". Additionally, all these recipes contain ZERO cholesterol.If you enjoy these recipes, you are welcom to join the Karate Rice Facebook community where we discuss rice cooker recipes and vegan health (http://www.facebook.com/karate.rice.recipes)
About the Author
Andy Cowan grew up in Scotland. He has lived in Japan for over 10 years. Throughout this time he has used a number of different Japanese rice cookers and has learned from the Japanese how to prepare great tasting rice. Since becoming a vegan in 2011 he has started to develop great tasting, low fat, all-in-one rice cooker recipes which he shares on his website http://www.karaterice.com
Table of Contents
In a Rice Cooker Bowl | In a Seive
Choosing a Rice Cooker
Rice cookers range in price dramatically. You can find them on Amazon for under $20 for the budget models, all the way up to over $500 for the most advanced models. In my experience, I have found the Japanese company Zojirushi to make what I consider to be the best rice cookers. Personally, I recommend Zojirushi Induction Heating rice cookers. This technology provides the most even heating to the rice cooker cooking bowl and makes what I consider to be superior rice.Below are the different types of rice cookers commonly available (from cheapest to most expensive):
Electrical rice cooker
Has an on/off switch and uses a heating element under the cooking bowl to heat the rice. This type of rice cooker may or may not have a 'keep warm' function.
Micom rice cooker
This style of rice cooker has a 'Micro Computer' which controls the heating cycle. A micom rice cooker will typically cost over $100. It has a number of rice cooking options, e.g. white rice, brown rice, porridge, etc. These rice cookers utilize a heating element under the heating bowl.
Induction Heating rice cooker
An Induction Heating (IH) rice cooker includes Micom technology. The difference is in the heating method. Rather than a heating element, an IH rice cooker uses an electrical current to create a magnetic field which heats the cooking bowl directly. The heat comes from all around the cooking bowl which ensures the most even heat distribution.
Pressure rice cooker
In addition to Micom and IH, the top of the range models also feature pressure cooking. This helps to reduce the cooking time of the rice.Even though I have used, and sometimes still use, pressure rice cookers, they are not my number one choice. Technically one could argue that they are more advanced than more basic Induction Heating models. However, the downside to the pressure rice cookers, other than their higher cost, is that we can't open them during the cooking cycle. This isn't a problem if you simply want to make plain rice. However, for all-in-one recipes, it is advantageous to have the option of opening the lid while the rice cooker is on.
How to Wash Rice
When cooking Japanese rice, a very important step is to wash it before cooking. Short grain rice is particularly starchy and if we don't wash it beforehand, it can become too sticky when cooked. I always wash my rice regardless of whether I am using short or long grain rice. Brown rice can simply be rinsed. The following procedure is a simple way to wash white rice. You can watch a video of me washing rice on Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtQR2_mZKRA
- Measure out the rice into the rice cooker cooking bowl.
- Add a little bit of water and then mix the rice round with the tips of your fingers for about 10 seconds.
- Add more water to the cooking bowl (about 1/2 full) then pour the water away. Be careful not to lose any rice!
- Repeat steps 2 and 3 twice more.
- Your rice is now washed.
Note: If you're concerned about wasting water, the "rice water" is an excellent natural fertilizer for the garden.The other way I like to wash rice is using a sieve and bowl. This is handy when I don't want to add rice at the start of a recipe, for example This video demonstrates the sieve washing technique: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knGf1OBxYxc
- Measure out the rice into the sieve inside a bowl.
- Place the bowl under the tap in the sink.
- Turn the tap on gently and mix the rice round with the tips of your fingers for about 10 seconds.
- Once the bowl starts to overflow, lift the sieve and pour away the milky coloured water.
- Repeat steps 2 and 3 twice more.
- Your rice is now washed.
Recipes
Mushrooms and Rice
Makes 2 servings
Ingredients- White Rice 1 cup (150g)
- Fresh Mushrooms (120g)
- Dried Mushrooms (20g)
- Soy sauce (2 tsp)
Directions- Wash the rice as normal (see How to Wash Rice). Then add water to slightly over level 1 for White Rice (no more than 1 ).
- Add the dried mushrooms.
- Clean up the raw mushrooms and break/cut into bite size pieces then add to the cooking bowl.
- Add soy sauce.
- Return the cooking bowl to the rice cooker ensuring the exterior is dry, select the white rice setting and press Start.
Prep time: under 10 minutesCooking time: 50 minutes
Nutritional BreakdownEnergy 628.2 kcalCarbs 138.2gFat 1.4gFibre 7.8gProtein 16.2gSodium 592.4mg
Green Peas, Sweetcorn and Rice
Makes 2 servings
Ingredients- White Rice 1 cup (150g)
- Green peas (60g)
- Sweetcorn (60g)
- Soy Sauce (2 tsp)
Directions- Wash the rice as normal (see How to Wash Rice). Then add water to level 1 for White Rice.
- Measure out half a rice cooker cup of green peas and top up with sweetcorn then add them to the rice cooker bowl.
- Add soy sauce.
- Return the cooking bowl to the rice cooker ensuring the exterior is dry, select the 'white rice' setting and press Start.
Prep time: under 5 minutesCooking time: 50 minutes
Nutritional BreakdownEnergy 638.6 kcalCarbs 138.6gFat 1.7gFibre 8.5gProtein 15.3gSodium 698.4mg
Rice Chili Stew
Makes 3 servings
Ingredients- White Rice cup (75g)
- 16 oz tinned tomatoes (454g)
- 2 rice cooker cups of rehydrated/cooked (or tinned) beans (220g)
- rice cooker cup of sweetcorn (60g)
- Onion (80g)
- Clove of garlic (5g)