ZojirushiNP-HCC18XH Induction Heating System Rice Cooker and Warmer, 1.8 L, Stainless Dark Gray

This rice cooker was expensive when I bought it, and it's gone up in price now that I'm looking for a second smaller one. I have the 10 cup, and am considering adding the 5 cup due to I like brown rice, and the rest of my family prefers white. The expense, however, is the ONLY con after over 4 years of owning it and honestly, it's been worth every penny so I don't really consider it a con.We had gone through probably 5 different cheaper rice cookers over the years, you know those common models where it has one button to start and a glass lid... while a few of them did Jasmine rice pretty good, none of them could do both brown and Jasmine rice perfectly. This one does. If you've only ever had the one button rice cookers with the glass lid, and you move to this one, it's like going from an old base model Toyota Tercel from the 90s, to a nice modern Lexus sedan. Night and day difference.The rice cooks perfectly every time. Seriously, almost every time we have dinner guests over, someone comments on how good the rice is. Which if you think about it, is kinda exceptional. I mean it's just rice, right? By itself it's a fairly boring basic thing, and yet this rice cooker makes it better than a standard rice cooker, or what an average person can achieve on a stove. I say average person because one of my friends whose a chef, his stove top rice cooking skill rivals it. I can't do it, but this machine is like having him in my kitchen every time I make rice.But it's not just the perfect rice. This machine keeps rice good and warm and ready for anyone to have a serving for DAYS. Those one button rice cookers we used to own, even the better ones that could do a good pot of Jasmine, you had to get it out of there by the next day, or it was going to get bad. This allows us to have cheap warm good food ready across days. I made a pot yesterday at the time of this writing, and I just had perfect jasmine rice with sardines for lunch, I'll have a perfect rice with grilled mackerel later, and I'll have perfect rice with my beans tomorrow at lunch. If my kids are hungry in the middle of the day, and they want a quick something... there's warm rice and usually something in the fridge to throw on top of it, quick and easy and far healthier(usually) than microwavable frozen food.Now if you only eat rice once in a while, and it's not a staple in your house, and money is an object, then this is probably overkill. You're not going to get your money back in the convenience and higher quality of your staple, like you absolutely will if rice is a staple of your diet. But if it is a staple, and you've only ever used those cheaper one button rice cookers with the glass lids, and especially if you're trying to use brown rice to eat healthier, this rice cooker will be worth every penny. Pot after pot of perfect rice, regardless of what kind of rice you cook in it. And if rice isn't currently a staple for you but money is no object and you buy this, don't be surprised if rice becomes a staple... the convenience of this with the quality of rice it makes, may well lead to you eating it far more often.And for those of you who are into GABA rice... You don't need to buy special GABA rice, this will turn brown rice or other whole grain rice(white rice is not whole grain and can't be turned into GABA) into GABA for you. It takes longer to cook, about 3 and half hours(on the GABA setting, the regular brown rice setting is 90 minutes), but you're talking about getting GABA for a fraction of the cost. Just checked here on Amazon, GABA rice is going for about 10 bucks a pound if you buy it in a one pound bag. At my local Winco, brown jasmine in the bulk section is like a buck something for a pound and if you buy it in 25 pound bags like I do, on sale, you can get it for well under a dollar a pound. So you will very quickly recoup the costs of this rice cooker, if you're currently buying special GABA rice regularly as you can just buy a whole grain rice and use the GABA setting to activate it/turn it into GABA rice.So in closing, there are many kitchen appliances that promise to deliver perfect this, or perfect that with greater convenience, and few of them really deliver but this rice cooker absolutely does when it comes to rice. I can not imagine going back to one of those cheap one button glass lid setups, they're just a significant downgrade. I would absolutely miss this if I had to do that.

A premium rice cooker that delivers exceptional results with its induction heating (IH) technology. The 10-cup (1.8L) capacity is perfect for families or entertaining, and its sleek stainless dark gray design looks sharp on any countertop. The IH system ensures even heat distribution, producing fluffy, perfectly cooked rice every time—whether it’s white, brown, sushi, or jasmine. I love the versatility of the menu settings, including GABA brown rice and porridge, plus the delay timer for meal planning. The keep-warm function is reliable, maintaining rice quality for hours. Cleanup is straightforward with the nonstick inner pan, though it’s hand-wash only. It’s pricey, but the consistent performance and durability make it worth the investment for rice lovers.

I needed to buy a replacement rice cooker to the one my mom bought for me when I was a college student many, many moons ago. After doing a lot of research online a few months ago, I decided to buy the Zojirushi NP-HCC10XH instead of the model with pressure. (I already had a pressure cooker, and the Zojirushi website indicated that with the pressure model, you are discouraged from cooking oatmeal because doing so may clog up the pressure release mechanisms. I don't eat a lot of oatmeal, but I wanted the option of cooking it in the Zojirushi.)For the quality of the rice cooked, this cooker is pretty fantastic. The texture and moisture of the rice seem far better than the rice from the "traditional" non-induction heating cookers. With this cooker, the bottom of the bowl does not end up with the usual browned rice layer, which was never a favorite of mine with all traditional "popup" rice cookers I had used in the past. The brown rice setting on the Zojirushi works like a charm. My ancient 2-cup "popup" rice cooker struggled to make brown rice correctly -- usually, the brown rice was undercooked or unevenly cooked; however, the Zoshirushi produced moist, fluffy brown rice! (I have read many complaints or gripes on the Amazon website about the quality of the rice produced, and I honestly wonder whether those reviewers properly rinsed the rice grains before starting the cook cycle. It makes all the difference. Also, even though Zojirushi has the water levels for a variety of rice marked on the bowl, there can be variations depending on not only the variety of rice you have, how "dry" the uncooked rice grains are, the moisture in the storage container of the uncooked rice , etc. So, if the rice turns out too mushy to your tastes, use less water the next time; and if the rice turns out too crunchy to your tastes, use a little more water the next time. I suppose some people expect perfect rice every time and for all types of rice within the types marked inside the rice bowl.) As far as the rewarming and extended warming features on the unit, the unit does not seem to allow you to manually turn on those features if you had depressed the "Cancel" button after a cooking cycle has completed. Also, the cord on this unit unfortunately is neither retractable nor detachable. (My old cheapo cooker did not have one, too, but the cord was detachable.) I suspect that the induction heating elements reduce the available interior space of the cooker for a cord-winding mechanism. But, it would have been nice for this unit to at least have a detachable cord.The question for many is whether the Zoshirushi induction heating model is worth the price. The answer is "It depends." If you are a discerning rice eater and are very patient to wait for the rice (or organized enough to plan hours in advance), this cooker will produce beautiful results and you will not be disappointed. With that said, I give this cooker 4-stars, because for my chaotic lifestyle, I rarely have 1.5 hours to wait for the rice to cook. Luckily, the Quick setting (which is still 10 minutes or so longer than most traditional "popup" rice cookers I have used) on the unit cooks jasmine rice pretty well (but admittedly, not nearly as well as the very long jasmine setting), and the taste of the "pretty well" is only a little bit better than my ancient, traditional "popup" rice cooker, which costs (even at today's prices) a whole lot less. I have no regrets on my purchase of this Zojirushi model whatsoever because I am a bit of a foodie, but buyers need to carefully think about their needs and expectations before paying this much for this particular rice cooker or any other high-end rice cooker. For those who need help figuring out these needs and expectations, check out http://sacredrice.com . That website offers good insights and advice on rice cookers. Happy eating!Updated comments:After more months of use, I am a bigger fan of this rice cooker! To eat healthier, I have been eating only brown rice using the GABA setting. Wow, did that make a difference in taste and texture! Because of my chaotic schedule, I was using the Quick setting for brown rice, instead of the 1+ hour brown rice setting or 3+ hour GABA setting. The GABA setting is a game changer for me. The GABA brown rice is nuttier and the texture is soft without being mushy. The aroma is amazing. I am definitely a fan of the GABA brown rice setting and this rice cooker overall. The keep warm setting does not dry out the rice too much. If the rice becomes a little dry, I sprinkle about a shot of water and lightly fold the rice to distribute the water. In a few minutes, the rice texture is significantly restored. Two other tips would be to (i) rinse the brown rice over and over until the water runs clear; (ii) meticulously measure the water level on a flat surface outside of the cooker itself; and (iv) fluff up the rice immediately after the finished-cooking chimes go off (after 10 minutes, the rice texture overall becomes fluffy and less gummy. If you wait too long after the chimes go off to fluff, the texture is still good, but not nearly as good as it can be). These tips actually make a significant difference.Admittedly, I used to think that a 3+ hour GABA setting cook time was not practical for my schedule. However, I cannot argue with the excellent results. I put the rice cooker on delayed timer before I leave home for work, and when I come home, I am greeted by the sweet, nutty aroma of my brown GABA rice. I changed my overall rating to five stars.