Customer Reviews

Cuisinart CRC-800 8-Cup Rice Cooker

5 star:		(78)
4 star:		(41)
3 star:		(23)
2 star:		(32)
1 star:		(80)

 

 

It's easy to clean and sure looks great on your countertop!
Positive feedback stops here.

I made a mess out of cooking rice (all the negative reviews are true) until I figured that I should use slightly less water than the recommended quantity. After that, I spent 1 year using it nonstop (we eat rice every day).

365 days later, the non-stick bowl is BADLY chipped, like little bubbles that burst on the bottom and left pinhead-sized chips. I swear that I never used anything else than the included plastic scoop (and sponge for cleaning) and never ever scratched it, so I'm 100% sure the non-stick coating quality is to blame.

Add to that that non-stick coating is toxic*, this baby is out of my kitchen as soon as I can afford a Zojirushi. They're not as elegants, but they last forever.


For more info on teflon toxicity, visit http://www.ewg.org
http://www.ewg.org/issues/pfcs/20051214/index.php

This rice cooker is a great addition to any kitchen. I love the steamer basket addition which allows me to cook additional food items at the same time as my rice. The steamer basket is great for hard and soft boiled eggs. When using this cooker, make sure that you go by the directions on the rice itself, not by the instructions in the manual (rice to water ratio). Also, the rice does have a tendency to boil over. I usually put a little butter in with the rice to prevent this from happening. I'm very pleased with my purchase and highly recommend it.

After purchasing this unit, I too had spill over at very low water rice levels. I realized that this is the same problem one would get,using even medium heat to cook grits, or rice in a regular pot.......

(If you leave the top of the pot down tight.)

There is no way, because of the high heat setting of this unit, that the glass lid supplied can be used to completely cover the cooking pot, even though the instruction book indicates so.. The hole would have to be much larger to allow steam to escape.

The temperature setting of the heating dictates the designer set it high to allow the use of the steaming attachment, using a high boiling point

The steam will push the oxygen mols from the pot causing a very low barometric air pressure.

With this the bubbles generated by the boiling rice water will have almost no air pressure to keep them low or at minimum.{ they expand greaty), Thus foaming out the sides of the pot.

Even though I could not find in the instruction that the glass top would not work if it was used to completely cover the cooker top while cooking, the picture on the box was a clue.

The picture shows the steamer unit sitting in place, with the glass lid on top.

Using the steamer attachment, 2 measures of rice using plastic, and 2 1/3 cups of water using a measuring cup, I started the unit.

A few bubbles and steam came up through the bottom of the steamer, for a while, and than decreased. ( no boil over ). Once the temperature in the unit exceeded 220 degrees ( all water boiled off) : the unit went into stand-by.

Perfectly cooked rice. Every time

I use the steamer unit, even if I not even steaming vegetable or etc. No boil over. It has many holes in it to allow steam excapement with out
boil over. Caution........... The steamer tray gets as hot as the steam generated in the cooking process.

Do not touch the steamer tray attachment with-out waiting for it to cool, and keep this unit well away from the reach of children, or uncovered,
un-protected hands. In this cooling time the "laden" heat in the left over steam can return to the rice, and complete the cooking cycle.

If the water is allowed to boil out, burnt rice at the bottom.

The directions are in error, Check it out, Happy riceing

I love my Cuisinart 4-cup rice cooker! It's just the right size for a single cook or for a couple. I've made brown and wild rice in it with good results, and steamed broccoli and tofu in the steamer basket at the same time for a quick, easy meal. It's also wonderful for making oatmeal in the mornings with no stirring or burning. So nice to have breakfast waiting when you get out of the shower! The non-stick cooking surface makes for easy cleanup, too.

Tip: If you spray the inside of the cooking pot with a bit of nonstick cooking spray, you won't have any trouble with boiling over.

I tried another rice cooker first (Aroma brand). It failed to make even decent rice. I found this one on sale and grabbed it after the good reviews I had read here. (2009 - still works and looks great!) True, you need to add a little oil or I butter to help with the boil over, but I like to do that anyway. I use a little Mazzola extra virgin olive oil spray. Works like a charm. Also make cleanup even easier. I use Jasmine rice. I gently rinse the rice once, spread it evenly in the cooker, use cold filtered water and let it stand a few minutes before removing from pot (all per a Thai friend of mine). The first batch was good. The second time I used it I added a tad more water than the cooker instructions said.(instead of 1 1/4 cup I added closer to 1 1/2 cup for long grain rice, 2 serving amount.) The result has been perfect, yummy rice each time since. It's the perfect size for my husband and me. I like the stainless steel exterior. It looks good on my counter, and doesn't take up much space. I've only had it 2 weeks, but so far I'm happy.

STILL LOVE THIS COOKER. The retractable cord has become one of my favorite things. I wish all appliances had one.

2 year update. It's still used weekly in my kitchen. We love it for steamed potatoes and carrots. It still looks great on the counter too. Easy clean up and the cord still retracts.

I purchased this rice cooker without reading any reviews. At first I cooked long grain rice and had no problems with boil over. Then I tried making Jasmine rice and the explosions started. Frustrated, I went online to read product reviews. After my 100th review, I, too, hated this product and would've given it a really bad review. It was going in the trash. However, I have a Cuisinart blender and toaster that I love so I kept reading more reviews. There's an earlier post in this thread that gives a very scientific review of how the instructions are wrong. And instead of using the glass cover you should use the steam tray as the top when cooking rice. I had nothing to lose, so I tried it using Jasmine rice.

The results? No boil over and absolutely no mess whatsoever. I must say that my Jasmine rice taste a little like long grain rice as it's light and fluffy and not mushy how I like it. BUT, I didn't have any spill over, there was no mess on my counter, and the rice is delicous. So I completely agree. DO NOT USE THE GLASS COVER, use the STEAM TRAY instead as your cover and you will not have any spill over. The other review wrote something about the heating plates needing to be extra hot to steam the food so it was set up more for steaming than cooking rice. The hole in the glass top didn't provide enough air...

Just use the steam tray instead of the glass cover. For my more mushier rice I will just add a tiny bit more water or not. This is now a great product in my book. I just wish CuisinArt would've gotten their directions right.

So 4 stars for having me to clean up the mess on my own and go online for the truth, and wasting my time. Otherwise, 5 stars because I now have excellent rice and a beautiful rice cooker/steamer.

I recently purchased this rice cooker for my small kitchen. Its compact cubic shape will take very little room on your counter, and as an extra plus, its brushed metal look is very attractive. Note that although the body of the cooker itself gets a bit warm, the rim of the pot and the lid get very hot, as the liquid from the cooking food will boil up and come out at the seams, which is okay because the pot and lid are easy to clean... but I wouldn't recommend this product if you have kids, or if you don't have a place to put it outside of a child's reach. The cooker also comes with a little recipe book and some rice-to-water proportions for various types of rice, which is very helpful when cooking a new kind of rice, and a steaming basket for foods, which stands atop the little pot and steams veggies (esp. while cooking rice!) really well.

I am amazed that people are having problems with this product. I rinse and soak my rice in a bowl with a strainer (a necessity for non-sticky rice), put 2 cups of rice and 2 cups of water in the pot - and it's fine (I don't put the steamer basket in there because it is not necessary for just rice - could that cause the overflow?). I have absolutely perfect rice very single time. This is the best thing since sliced bread....my husband and son love rice - and this has changed my life. I would pay $100 for this product. I cannot imagine why people are having problems with overflowing and bad rice...I follow the instructions in the manual - and it's great. I'm not one for gadgets - but this is a must have!

We use this cooker at least once a day -- in the morning to cook oatbran cereal, in the evening to cook brown rice. We bought it after a few close calls burning rice on the stove, and have never had a problem with burnt rice since (it has never been undercooked, either).

I'll admit that I did not really care for the brown rice or oatbran cereal my husband needed to eat for sugar-busters until we found this cooker. Now I really enjoy them!

Pros: Compact, attractive, warming mode, great results time after time.
Cons: Relatively small capacity, top gets very hot, can boil over if you do not use oil, have to unplug it to shut it off.

Since rice expands, it's important to read the guidelines and not try to cook too much. We find using about a teaspoon of olive oil eliminates any boil over. Also, for the hot cereal, try adding dried fruit or nuts -- it's great this way!

Well,I am smitten. When this cooked my morning oatmeal without a single splatter, I knew I was in love. Yes, it does oatmeal and much more than just rice - every grain imaginable plus some legumes, then steam veggies on top. What I really love is it's ability to make a one-dish meal: saute pilaf ingredients right in the pot, add rice-press a button and just FORGET ABOUT IT till you're ready to eat! Nor has it ever burned my food. I wonder if those bad reviewers even gave this product a test drive(and followed directions?) Stick to recommended portions, or smaller-great recipe booklet included. I definitely believe it's a good investment, easy to clean (I hand wash though as I don't have a dishwasher) Oh, it's cute too, but the functionality will win you over.