How To Cook Sushi Rice in a Rice Cooker, Surprising Method You Should Know

Are you craving for some sushi rice this holidays? What better and faster way to do it than to use a rice cooker? Find out how to cook sushi rice in a rice cooker in a way you never expected!

Sushi Rice Essentials

When you say sushi, the first thing that comes to your mind is the freshness and goodness of its ingredients.

Its key ingredient is the rice and not just ordinary white rice.

Most of the sushi chefs use any kind of Japanese rice due to its sticky texture and added flavor. Not only because sushi originated from the same country.

The other essential component you need to consider when making sushi is the rice cooking itself. The process is quite complex and longer than the normal rice because they say, sushi making is an ‘art’.

Rice Variety

You don’t have to take much time looking for the proper rice variety for your sushi.

In fact, the best rice type to use for sushi is any short-grained Japonica rice or if you can’t find this available at the groceries, you can also use Calrose medium-sized grains.

Most Calrose short to medium-sized grains are also labeled as sushi rice. We are actually looking for the perfect stickiness and texture because this is where sushi is famous for.

How to Cook Sushi Rice in a Rice Cooker

Cooking sushi rice is different from cooking regular white rice in many ways. One of which is the manner of preparation. Sushi rice takes a long time to cook and involves more ingredients.

To make it easier, rather than spending more time cooking sushi rice in a traditional method, you can use the rice cooker and achieve the same result.

Check this guide:

1. Measure the desired amount of short-grained sushi rice and place it in the rice cooker inner pot
2. Wash and rinse the rice under cold water to remove residual starch until water runs clear
3. Add the correct rice to water ratio according to your rice cooker’s manual
4. Soak the rice for about 15 minutes to achieve the ideal stickiness. Unsoaked grains tend to become mushy and expand faster than soaked grains
5. Turn on the rice cooker and cook the sushi rice. If you are using a more modern rice cooker like an IH or Fuzzy-logic, then you’ll get a separate cooking setting for sushi rice. This should run about 45 minutes or more.
6. While the sushi rice is cooking, prepare your vinegar seasoning. (See Vinegar Seasoning Instructions below)
7. Once the rice is cooked, let it sit for about 10 minutes and transfer to a big bowl.
8. Remove the bottom layer of the rice which is the usual dried out parts.
9. Fluff the rice with your spatula to ensure that the seasoning sips in.
10. Pour in the vinegar seasoning around the rice and mix well to evenly distribute (keep your spatula moist or damp so the rice won’t stick). Measure a cup of vinegar seasoning to a cup of sushi rice.
11. Your sushi rice is ready to serve! You can serve the rice at room temperature. If you are going to make sushi, then cover the bowl with a damp towel to keep the rice moist until ready to use.

Vinegar Seasoning Procedure

1. On a medium-sized pan, add 9 parts of rice vinegar, 4 parts of cane sugar, and a part of salt.
2. Mix well and cook on medium heat for 3 minutes or until all the ingredients are dissolved.

You can also watch this video on how to make sushi rice in a rice cooker with the famous Sushi Chef, Taichi Kitamura.

What is the Perfect Rice Cooker for Sushi Rice?

Any rice cooker can actually do a decent job of cooking sushi rice. However, there are recent models that have dedicated a special sushi menu for those who are always on the go.

If you don’t have a rice cooker yet, or planning to gift someone who loves to cook sushi rice, then you can search for the best rice cooker for sushi rice.

Types of Modern Rice Cookers

Conventional rice cookers would only cook the rice when turned on, modern rice cookers use intelligent technology called fuzzy-logic to produce better quality rice.

Induction Heating Rice Cooker and Warmer

If you want your rice to have better texture, evenly-cooked, and great-tasting, then you must invest in an induction type of rice cooker.

An Induction type of rice cooker evenly distributes heat surrounding the cooker inner pot. By doing this, the machine automatically makes the adjustments needed in order to cook your rice perfectly.

One of the best examples of Induction Heating rice cookers is the Zojirushi NP-HCC10XH. This specific model has different cooking options including sushi rice, brown rice, GABA brown rice, and more.

Neuro-Fuzzy Logic Technology

The next modern rice cooker technology that is popular today is the Neuro-fuzzy logic. This rice cooker is equipped with a microcomputer chip that allows the appliance to think and act on its own.

It makes cooking extra special because you don’t need to take on the hassle of memorizing rice cooking procedures.

Fuzzy logic rice cookers will do the necessary adjustments of heat and cooking time based on the rice grain you used and the water ratio you put.

There is only one name when you say Fuzzy logic rice cooker, and that is the Zojirushi NS-ZCC10.

It has a compact design that can fit any kitchen counters without taking up much space. Equipped with full features like various cooking options, with sushi rice included.

The Zojirushi NS-ZCC10 is the most in-demand rice cookers in the market today!

Summary

You have finally learned how to cook sushi rice in a rice cooker. Now you can enjoy a Japanese-themed holiday by adding sushi to your menu.

Any rice cookers would actually do the job as long as you carefully follow the instructions on how to cook the sushi rice.

However, if you are still looking for a better and more efficient way of cooking sushi rice, then you can consider any of these rice cooker technologies I shared.