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Product Description
Zojirushi NP-HBC18 10-Cup (Uncooked) Rice Cooker and Warmer with Induction Heating System, Stainless Steel
Perfectly Cooked Rice with the NP-HBC18
Extract the full nutrient potential of rice with this advanced rice cooker from Zojirushi. The induction heating method heats the inner cooking pan resulting in exceptionally well-cooked rice. GABA brown cycle activates gamma-aminobutyric acid, a beneficial nutrient in brown rice. 10-cup capacity is great for parties or large families. Note: Capacity is stated in 6-ounce cups of raw rice. Cooked yield is roughly double the amount. Features automatic keep warm and extended keep warm cycle. Menu settings include: white rice (regular, softer or harder) sushi mixed porridge sweet GABA brown brown quick cooking. Easy-to-read LCD control panel with clock and timer display. Measuring lines on inner cooking pan for precise control of ingredients. Removable inner cooking pan makes clean-up a breeze. Convenient detachable inner lid allows easy washing. Comes with a rice measuring cup and a rice spatula with holder. Menu settings include: white rice, brown rice, sushi rice, mixed rice, and porridge.
Make Every Type of Rice
Brown Rice
This is a menu setting designed to cook delicious brown rice. In order to cook hard rice bran and the rice inside, preheating time is extended for better absorption of water, and is cooked at a lower temperature to allow the rice to cook longer without becoming mushy.
Sushi Rice
Because sushi rice will be processed after it's cooked, it's easier to handle when it is a little firmer. This menu setting is very similar to regular white rice, but uses less water (adjusted by the water fill lines) for a firm finish.
Mixed Rice
Mixed rice is rice cooked with additional ingredients and seasonings. This setting extends preheating for better absorption of seasoning. Also, the cooking temperature is slightly lower than regular white rice, to avoid ingredients from boiling over.
Porridge
Instead of cooking rice in larger amounts of water and risk making it sloppy, use the porridge setting to cook fluffy porridge. Cooking temperature is slightly lower than regular white rice, to be cooked longer for soft texture.
GABA Brown Rice
A newly discovered way of cooking brown rice to "activate" it and increase natural occurring gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), an amino acid in brown rice believed to have health giving properties such as lowering blood pressure, improving kidney function and relieving stress. The brown rice is "activated" by soaking it at 104°F for 2 hours before the actual cooking begins. All Induction Heating System rice cookers, including the IH Pressure models, have the GABA brown rice setting.
Zojirushi NP-HBC18 Features
- Superior induction heating (IH) technology
- Healthy cooking options: brown rice and GABA brown rice settings
- Easy-to-clean clear coated stainless steel exterior
- Automatic keep warm and extended keep warm
- Delay timer (2 settings)
- GABA brown setting or Brown Rice Activation activates brown rice for increased nutritional values
- Menu settings include: white (regular, softer or harder), mixed, sushi, porridge, sweet, brown, GABA brown and quick cooking
- cETLus listed, tested to comply with FCC standards
MICOM (Microcomputer) Technology
Aided by microcomputer technology, this category of rice cooker takes having rice on your menu from occasional to serious. MICOM allows the cooker to have multiple functions on its menu, making it a necessity for any avid rice fan who wants to incorporate rice into her daily diet. The microchip does all the thinking for you by, based on the type of rice you are cooking, from adjusting cooking times, temperatures, and timing the pre-soak of the raw grains to the final "wait" period during steaming.
Conventional rice cookers simply turn on and off in reaction to temperature. The "fuzzy logic" of MICOM fine-tunes this adjustment to adapt to various rice types, such as white, brown, sweet or porridge, which all have different cooking requirements. The trigger to everything is the thermal sensor, a small round button at the bottom of the inner body of the cooker. As the inner pan's weight rests on it and activates the sensor, it starts the cooking process and keeps an eye on the temperature and time.
Induction Heating (IH) system for precise temperature control
Induction Heating took rice cooking to another level by introducing another dimension to the heating process. Where the heating element would normally be located at the bottom of the cooker, IH transforms the entire inner cooking pan into a heat conductor, allowing for higher, more precise and more uniform cooking temperatures.
Induction heating occurs when a magnetic material enters a magnetic field. This is recreated by passing an electric current through coils located at the bottom of the rice cooker's body. As the special, 2-ply inner cooking pan is placed inside, a magnetic field is created, which in turn generates instant heat. The entire cooking pan becomes the heat source, with the ability to cook at higher temperatures, which can be turned on and off instantly for greater control.
Available Extended Warranties for This Appliance
Customer Reviews
After reading up on consumer reviews and Japanese sites, we opted to try the Zojirushi Induction Heating Rice Cooker. The stainless steel is STUNNING--the pictures do NOT do it justice--it is gorgeous on my countertop--a piece of furniture, like the KitchenAid Mixer. It is easy to set up (clock time, etc) and easy to use. (The directions are very clear.) I tried some Jasmine Rice in it for our first try--and WOW! I was totally amazed! Each piece of rice is perfect in every way. I have never had such results before. Perfect temperature, perfect texture, perfect stickiness, perfect taste. The aroma in the kitchen fills the house and it's wonderful.
There is very little steam (unlike most rice cookers) and it is very easy to clean up. It keeps the rice at that perfect temperature for hours--even longer with the extended warm feature.
I know it's expensive--but in this case, I truly believe you get what you pay for. If you want to know what rice is supposed to be like--you must get one of these! Zojirushi makes a couple of different types of rice cookers--and I have heard that they are all terrific. This one cooks with induction heating, which uses magnets... the unit doesn't get hot...
If you can--get this one!
I have a cook/warm rice cooker that I'm going to sell at a yard sale. I will never be able to go back to using that type of machine again. The difference between the Zojirushi and the cook/warm is more than night and day. The difference between the quality in the rice bowls alone is unbelievable. The Zojirushi has a bowl that is very thick and heavy, not unlike my stove top cookware. My old cook/warm rice bowl feels like one of my cheap mixing bowls.
Prior to purchasing the Zojirushi, we never really cared for brown rice. It was too crunchy/chewy. Now my family and I love brown rice. The GABA Brown Rice setting is amazing. I have never made, nor eaten, brown rice that was so light and fluffy before in my life. Because of that, we mostly eat brown rice now - which is much healthier for us anyway.
You will not be disappointed with this machine. It's looks beautiful sitting on the counter top. Clean up is a breeze - the stainless has some sort of coating and does not show fingerprints or smears!
UPDATE 08/12/2012: Well, after years of using this fabulous rice cooker numerous times a week, I needed to replace it. I ordered another one because my husband and I love the way this makes brown rice, other grains, and steel cut oats. The rubber seal on our original model was worn out. If we weren't around to take the food out right away, it was drying out and wasn't hot enough. I looked at the new pressure cooker model, read the various reviews, and decided to re-order this model. However, I am going to look to see if I can do something to prolong the life of the seal on my new one.
1. Add 10% more water than is indicated, this will make fluffier rice
2. In order to make Persian-style rice, throw in one tablespoon butter and salt to taste with the water: when used with Basmati rice, this would produce fragrant rice with every grain standing apart.
3. For long-grain rice, use the "Soft" option.
4. Please use it to cook brown rice on GABA setting. Exquisite.
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We have had this rice cooker for a week now and have already tried all its settings. It's unbelievable how this cooker makes fluffy, moist rice where each grain stands out without getting sticky. This happens whether you put in Basmati rice, Sushi rice or brown rice. It's astounding how the rice remain fresh, warm and hardly dry out. That was a big change for us, having used no-good Oster rice cookers until we went to a Japanese supermarket and saw how cool and functional this unit looked. We are now eating more (healthier) brown rice and not throwing away any rice the following day. The Japanese sure know how to cook rice.
The menu is simple but offers plenty of choice. The inside bowl is heavy and made of Stainless Steel and has deep and clear marking to help you add the right amount of water without having to use cups. The melodies are a bit of a nuisance, but you wouldn't hear them over your dishwasher, so that's quite all right. The cooker does take twice as long as other, cheap rice cookers, but the ensuing taste is worth the wait.
Without a doubt, the machine is beautiful. If you really want to eat great rice every time and can afford the price, this is your best choice.
