3 Easy Rice Cooker Meals
By Brandon Muhawi
Senior Food Writer at Pro Home Cooks
A rice cooker is a worthy investment even if only to cook plain, white rice. The convenience of making perfect, fluffy rice each time without fail cannot be understated. However, any rice cooker beyond the bottom-line models is packed with advanced technology (thermal sensors, fuzzy logic, or even induction elements) that should be utilized to your advantage in the kitchen. That rice cooker is capable of prepping complete meals in a single pot while simultaneously producing perfectly cooked rice. Not to say these types of rice dishes couldn’t be made on the stovetop, but the rice cooker’s game is convenience.
These recipes are not designed to replace the delicious, slow-cooked rice dishes that are made on a stovetop or in an oven, but instead, act as convenient meals for busy evenings or even as meal prep on a Sunday afternoon. The recipes utilize lots of pantry items or fridge/freezer staples to put together an easy and delicious meal in very few steps. There has been a recent surge of rice cooker meals around the internet, most of which fall into the congee or fried rice categories. Those are delicious dishes, but for this post, we wanted to branch out of the East Asian food idiom and inspire some rice cooker meals with different flavors.
A few tips when making these recipes or coming up with your own rice cooker creations:
- Use liberal amounts of salt. These dishes are mostly rice, and what might seem like a normal amount of salt at first will likely be underseasoned. Don’t be afraid to adjust with more salt after everything is done cooking.
- Avoid the “Quick” setting on the rice cooker. Using the “Plain” (or similar) settings on the rice cooker might take an extra 3-5 minutes of cooking time but will help ensure everything in the pot cooks evenly.
- Measure the liquid before adding other ingredients. If you add other ingredients first, the lines on the side of your rice pot are now inaccurate due to the added volume. Alternatively, you can measure the liquid separately, though your rice pot lines are designed specifically for the best ratio in the rice cooker.
3 Easy Rice Cooker Meals
Ingredients:
Coconut Curry Chickpea Rice Ingredients:
2 scoops jasmine rice (about 12oz)
16oz can of unsweetened coconut milk
1 inch knob of ginger
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 lime
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp Thai chili flakes
3-4 green cardamom pods (or cardamom powder)
2 tbsp fish sauce – veg sub light soy sauce
1 tsp agave syrup (any sweetener works)
16oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 red bell pepper
Optional garnishes: Cilantro, crushed peanuts, fried shallots, lime
Red Beans and Rice with Andouille Sausage Ingredients:
2 scoops of short-grain white rice (about 12oz)
1/2 medium onion
2 ribs of celery
1/2 large green bell pepper
3-4 cloves of garlic
16oz can of red kidney beans
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp thyme, dried or fresh
2 bay leaves
Vinegar-based hot sauce (optional)
8oz smoked andouille sausage
Pesto Salmon Rice with Spinach and Peas Ingredients
2 scoops short-grain white rice (about 12 oz)
1/2 cup peas, fresh or frozen
1/2 cup frozen spinach
8-12 oz salmon, skin removed
1/3 cup basil pesto, plus more to garnish
Optional: pine nuts and grated parm to garnish
Instructions:
Coconut Curry Chickpea Rice
Instructions:
Wash jasmine rice until water runs clear. Drain the rice and place it into the pot of a rice cooker.
Peel ginger and garlic and roughly chop. Crush cardamom pods and collect seeds, discarding the shells. Place ginger, garlic, and cardamom into a blender with coconut milk, juice from lime, turmeric, chili flakes, fish sauce, and agave syrup. Blend on low until smooth and combined. Season this mixture with salt and plenty of black pepper.
Add the coconut curry mixture to the rice pot until the liquid reaches the appropriate line above the rice. Add water if necessary.
Cut bell pepper into small, 1-inch strips. Spread chickpeas and bell pepper over the rice. Place the rice pot into the rice cooker and press start.
When done cooking, mix it all together with a rice paddle. Serve with fresh lime, cilantro, peanuts, etc.
Red Beans and Rice with Andouille Sausage
Instructions:
Wash rice until water runs clear. Drain the rice and place it into the pot of a rice cooker.
Cut onion, celery, and green bell pepper into a small dice. Smash and mince the garlic cloves. In a non-stick pan, heat some neutral oil or butter. Sautee the onion, celery, and bell pepper with a sprinkle of salt until the vegetables are fully softened and just beginning to brown around the edges. Add minced garlic to the pan about 1 minute before finishing.
Open the can of kidney beans and drain the liquid into a separate bowl. Add the bean liquid to the rice pot and top off with water until the liquid reaches the appropriate line. Add sauteed vegetables, kidney beans, cayenne pepper, thyme, bay leaves, and a few dashes of hot sauce to the rice pot. Stir to combine evenly with the rice and liquid. Season with lots of black pepper (~10-20 grinder cranks) and several pinches of salt.
Slice the andouille sausage and arrange it in a single layer on top of the ingredients in the rice pot. Place the rice pot into the rice cooker and press start.
Once finished cooking, stir everything together with a rice paddle and remove the bay leaves. Adjust for seasoning and serve with extra hot sauce if desired.
Pesto Salmon Rice with Spinach and Peas
Instructions:
Wash rice until water runs clear. Drain the rice and place it into the pot of a rice cooker.
Slice salmon into ~1-inch cubes and season with salt.
Add water to the rice pot until the liquid reaches the appropriate line.
Add peas to the rice pot along with several pinches of salt. Stir to combine.
Spread frozen spinach over the rice and peas in the rice pot. Place pieces of salmon in a single layer atop the spinach. Place the rice pot into the rice cooker and press start.
Once finished cooking, open the lid and spoon the pesto into the rice pot. Stir everything to combine until the pesto evenly coats the rice. Take care to leave some salmon in larger chunks, if possible. Taste and adjust for seasoning and add more pesto if desired.
Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese and pine nuts for texture.
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By Brandon Muhawi
Senior Food Writer at Pro Home Cooks
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