Cozy Wintertime Meals Made with the Umami® Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NL-GAC10/18

Happy New Year! We are so excited to cook our favorite wintertime meals this January as we cozy up to the colder weather. With Zojirushi’s versatile new Umami® Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NL-GAC10/18, we’re able to make so much more than white rice with just a single appliance, from soup, congee, and more. The exclusive Umami setting on this Zojirushi rice cooker is also great for cooking a variety of rice grains as well, as it extends soaking and steaming to make your rice fluffier, sweeter, and more delicious. Today, we’ll be sharing some of our favorite rice based dishes we’ll be preparing in January with the help of our Umami® Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NL-GAC10/18.

 

Zojirushi’s Umami® Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NL-GAC10/18Before we dive into the recipes, let’s get to know our rice cooker a little better. The Umami® Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NL-GAC10/18 is an elegant appliance that comes in a stylish Metallic Black color, with two sizes available to accommodate various household sizes: 5.5 and 10 cups. What makes this rice cooker unique is its advanced micro computerized fuzzy logic technology that allows it to offer a long list of menu settings including Zojirushi’s special Umami setting, that will help you whip up a variety of tasty dishes.

 

Menu settings include:

  • White
  • Umami
  • Mixed
  • sushi/sweet
  • Jasmine
  • Porridge
  • Congee
  • Brown
  • GABA brown
  • Quick white
  • Quick Jasmine
  • Steam
  • Slow cook

 

It features an easy-to-read LCD control panel, clock and delay timer, nonstick coated inner cooking pan, and all food contact surfaces are BPA free. The inner lid is detachable for easy cleaning, and the rice cooker also comes with additional accessories such as a steaming basket, rice spatula, and measuring cup. To see this rice cooker in action, visit our product video here.

Now that we’ve been properly introduced to our Umami® Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NL-GAC10/18, let’s dive into our dishes!

Rice Dishes:

Jambalaya

We love Jambalaya because it combines many great flavors into one delicious bowl. This hearty meal features shrimp, sausage, and a hint of chili flakes that will warm you right up.

 

Shiitake-Gohan

This classic Japanese rice dish is simple to make using the convenient mixed setting for an easy meal that will keep you satisfied with its umami-rich flavor from the shiitake mushrooms.

 

Soups:

Vegetable Brown Rice Zosui (Japanese Rice Soup)

Zosui is traditional Japanese comfort food that combines rice, chicken broth, and seasonal vegetables. This simple yet satisfying soup can be made from scratch or from leftover nabe base if you have it. Perfect for lunch or dinner on a cold day!

 

Keihan (Japanese Chicken Soup with Rice)

Keihan is another traditional Japanese dish that hails from the southern islands of Japan. This dish features shiitake mushrooms, chicken breasts, and egg crepes. Yum!

 

Casseroles:

Baked Rice Casserole with Artichokes and Mushrooms

Our baked rice casserole dish is excellent for mushroom lovers and is a gluten-free alternative to other traditional casseroles. Combine all ingredients into a casserole or ceramic bowl and bake until golden brown, about 15-20 minutes.

 

Japanese Style Curry Doria

This Japanese-inspired doria is a wonderful way to make use of leftover curry and rice and turn them into the ultimate comfort meal. This dish comes sizzling out of the oven ready to eat, featuring mozzarella cheese, parsley, and butter.  

 

What are your favorite dishes to enjoy in the wintertime? Do you have any favorite recipes that you plan to try from this blog? Be sure to share your experience with us on social by tagging your photos on TwitterFacebook, or Instagram! #Zojirushi #ZoFan 

Celebrate the Holidays with Japanese Flavor

Are you excited for the holidays? In addition to going all out with festive decorations, Japanese people love to celebrate this time of year with popular American foods seasoned with a Japanese twist. For those who want to add a twist to their holiday dinner, we’ll be sharing some of our favorite Japanese and American holiday recipes that are guaranteed to delight and impress – all of which can be made easily with the help of the new Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NL-DCC10/18.

Introducing The Rice Cooker That Does It All

The newest addition to our rice cooker lineup is the Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NL-DCC10/18. It comes in 5.5 or 10 cup capacities and in a beautiful Pearl Beige color. What’s unique about this appliance is that it is built with advanced micro computerized Fuzzy Logic technology, meaning that the rice cooker can automatically adjust cooking temperatures and cooking time to cook your rice (or cake!) perfectly every time.

It also includes a wide variety of settings which include: White, Long Grain White, Sushi, Congee, Brown, GABA Brown, Jasmine, Steel Cut Oatmeal, Quinoa, Quick White, and Cake.

Choose from convenient features like automatic keep warm, extended keep warm, reheat, and delay timer functions on the rice cooker’s easy-to-read LCD control panel, so you can cook your dishes whenever you please.

In addition, the appliance comes with an easy-to-clean detachable and washable inner lid, detachable power cord, and extra-large steam vent cap for high-powered cooking. The Menu

Now that we’re thoroughly acquainted with the Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NL-DCC10/18, let’s get to cooking!

First Bite

If you’re hosting a holiday get-together, it’s important to make a great first impression. Not only are these dishes visually attractive, but they’re also easily shareable and super tasty.

 

 

  • Gomoku Sushi: This is a beautifully garnished rice bowl that features seasonal vegetables and seafood on top of sushi rice. Because it can be prepared in advance, it’s the perfect appetizer for events or large gatherings.

 

  • Prosciutto Rice Balls: These bite-size rice balls combine Japanese culinary techniques with Italian style. The prosciutto pairs perfectly with the rice, and the basil adds a fresh zing. Pro rice tip: Always rinse the rice before cooking, even brown rice. Milling leaves a lot of starch on the surface of the rice, and if not removed the rice becomes gummy. We recommend to rinse it 3 to 4 times to remove the excess starch. Remember to work quickly to prevent the rice from absorbing starchy water as much as possible. Watch this video to learn more.

Main Course:

Did you know that Christmas Eve and Christmas are widely celebrated with a bucket of KFC fried chicken in Japan? Because turkey is not readily available in the country, this craze has endured throughout the holidays for decades. Here are two dishes that you can make to celebrate just like the Japanese, with chicken as a star ingredient.

 

 

  • Karaage is Japanese-style fried chicken that is fried to crispy deliciousness in small, bite-sized pieces served with rice. It is sure to be a favorite during the holidays.

 

  • Curry Doria is a mix between a casserole and Japanese curry. Add generous amounts of mozzarella, and add your protein of choice to your liking (in this case, chicken!). Pro rice tip: Remember to use your measuring cup to measure out your rice and use the water measuring lines on the pan to measure the water. We cook and test tons and tons of rice every year, so our rice cookers can cook the best-tasting rice for you consistently. It’s scientific. It’s precise. Trust us, and use the rice measuring cup in conjunction with the water measure lines. It will yield a perfect result. Every. Single. Time.

A Sweet Ending

One of the biggest highlights of a Japanese Christmas is the decorative cakes that look like works of art — they are almost too pretty to eat! In Japan, people especially love enjoying strawberry shortcake on this holiday. Below are fruit-forward cake options that you can make straight out of your rice cooker.

 

  • Layered Trifle Tower: This fluffy sponge cake is layered beautifully with marsala sherry, raspberry jam, custard, and fruit. Serve in a clear vessel to show off the beautiful interior.

 

  • Whole Wheat Sponge Cake: This whole wheat cake only requires seven ingredients (plus the fruit) and is easily baked at the touch of a button. Top with whipped cream, enjoy, repeat.

 

 

How are you going to spend the holidays this year? Are you planning on trying any of these recipes or tips we shared today? Be sure to share your experience with us on social by tagging your photos on TwitterFacebook, or Instagram! #Zojirushi #ZoFan

 

Meet the Newest Members of the Zojirushi Family and July’s Product of the Month: Hello Kitty Rice Cooker and Stainless Mug

We are so excited to announce our collaboration with Sanrio to launch our two new Hello Kitty housewares, the Hello Kitty Rice Cooker and the Hello Kitty Stainless Mug.

This partnership marks Zojirushi’s first-ever licensed collection and coincides with Sanrio’s 60th anniversary, celebrating the heritage of two iconic Japanese brands and their milestones through these fun limited-edition products.

Let’s take a closer look at the two products and their features:

The Hello Kitty Rice Cooker (NS-RPC10KT)

The Hello Kitty Rice Cooker is a gorgeous white exterior with one-of-a-kind Hello Kitty illustrations in 360 gold print. It’s a necessity for all Hello Kitty fans – so kawaii!

Along with the ability to cook up to 5.5 cups of rice, this rice cooker will feature many Zojirushi standards, such as:

Easy one-touch operation with an automatic system that keeps the rice warm once it’s done cooking,

A patented triple heater system that works intuitively to always generate the ideal temperature for the best tasting rice,

 

A detachable and washable inner lid,

Easy-to-clean nonstick coated inner pan,

A hinged lid with easy-to-open handle, as well as a lock tight lid with push button release and a removable dew collector.  The rice cooker also comes with a measuring cup, spatula, and a spatula holder as accessories, which are BPA-free

The rice cooker is adorable and also thoughtfully constructed to not only make the cooking part easy, but also the clean-up. For example, during the boiling process, starchy foam may adhere to the inner lid and become dirty. The inner lid is designed so it can be removed and washed thoroughly. Especially if you add any ingredients other than rice (such as condiments) when cooking, wash thoroughly to prevent odors. The inner pan is nonstick coated for easy cleaning, because we all know how time consuming it is to clean off sticky rice!  When cleaning or washing, we advise not putting forks, knives or other cooking utensils in the inner pan to avoid scratches. Please only use the rice spatula that came with your rice cooker to keep the pan from scratching and deteriorating.

The Hello Kitty Stainless Mug (SM-TA48KT)

While the Hello Kitty rice cooker will only be sold in white, the Hello Kitty Stainless Mug will be offered in two colors – black and white – both featuring the same unique-to-Zojirushi gold print.

If you own, used, or have encountered any of our vacuum insulated stainless products, you know how they EXCEL at keeping beverages hot or cold…we’re not exaggerating. Enjoy the temperature retention for up to 6 hours for all of your liquids!

In addition to powerful temperature retention and a lovely design, they also offer everything you love about Zojirushi’s vacuum insulated stainless products, such as 6 oz capacity made of high-quality 18/8 stainless steel , a 2-step lid release process , which prevents excess condensation, a stopper that completely disassembles for thorough cleaning , Easy-to-clean double layer nonstick coated interior , nonstick coated

interior for enhanced durability, An air vent so drinks flow smoothly ,

and a safety lock to prevent the lid from opening accidentally.

Look at that beautiful 360 gold Hello Kitty design!

Zojirushi has other products that also have floral or other designs on our products. We take care in using materials and application methods that prevent the designs from coming off, but don’t rub or scrub hard when washing. Please be gentle. This tip works to keep both the rice cooker and stainless mug’s exterior design in pristine condition.

Are you as excited as we are?

The Hello Kitty Limited Edition Collection is exclusive to the U.S. and Canada, and features a never-before-seen Hello Kitty pattern. This pattern was designed specifically for Zojirushi, and the items will only be available through select retailers in North America, beginning in early July 2020 with plans on restocking the collection in early September.

Missed out on the release?  Make sure to sign up for our Zojirushi 101 newsletter for the month of July, and take our survey for a chance to win a product from the collection!

Don’t forget to also try out these delicious Hello Kitty recipes from this month’s Zojirushi 101.  The perfect meals to make with your new Hello Kitty rice cooker!  We feature 2 delicious Japanese dish-inspired meals with the iconic mascot, such as Hayashi Rice.

Be sure to show off your Zojirushi x Hello Kitty housewares with us on social by tagging your photos on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram! #Zojirushi #ZojirushixHelloKitty #ZoFan

Product of the Month –
Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer (NL-BAC05)

Hello and happy February Zojirushi fans!  We are so excited to announce that our Product of the Month is the Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer (NL-BAC05)!

Why?  Because it is such an all-around versatile rice cooker!

This rice cooker and warmer works best for individuals, as well as small families because of its compact cooking capacity.  It can make as little as a half cup of uncooked rice or other grains, which is great for an individual serving, and as much as three cups for multiple portions.  The Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer ensures perfectly cooked rice and grains every time.  How?  It comes with a rice measuring cup and an inner cooking pan with water level markings which make it easy to measure out the correct amount of ingredients.  Long gone are the days of inconsistent measuring and guessing; we made is simple, so you can have the best meal.

This rice cooker and warmer is also intelligently designed.  It comes with a black, nonstick inner cooking pan that is 2.5 mm thick, allowing for even heat distribution for better cooking.

It also features a triple heater with extra-large heating elements that heats the food from the bottom, side, and top.  In order to prevent messy overflows during high temperature cooking, the rice cooker also includes a removable Steam Vent Cap.  Lastly, another notable feature is its removable Inner Lid to aid in cooking an an easy-to-use LCD Control Panel from which you can program the rice cooker and warmer.

With all these useful features, its no wonder that this rice cooker and warmer is able to prepare more than just rice.  As we mentioned previously, this rice cooker has dedicated menu settings for rice and other grains.  When cooking rice, the settings for White/Sushi, Quick, Brown, and Long Grain White allows you to cook short, medium, and long-grain white rice, short and medium brown rice, as well as white rice with the germ, germinated brown rice and semi-brown rice.  The menu settings for Quinoa and Steel Cut Oatmeal lets you prepare white, black and red quinoa, steel cut oats, as well as rice mixed with barley.  And the rice cooker’s microcomputer uses advanced fuzzy logic technology to ensure perfect results every time by making fine adjustments to cooking time and temperature.

We love how our Quinoa and Chicken Super Salad (pictured below) and Thai Oatmeal Salad with Eggplant turn out in this rice cooker, along with how the long-grain white rice for Jambalaya is made.  Check out other recipes on our website for more inspiration!

Oh, and did we mention that it makes cake?!  The “Cake” menu setting lets you make various types of cakes such as sponge-type cakes and cheesecakes, by pouring in the prepared batter, selecting the “Cake” menu setting, and programming in the cooking time.  How simple is that?

Cooking is just one of the rice cooker’s function.  This rice cooker can automatically keep cooked food warm with the “Keep Warm” setting and can do that for an extended period of time with the “Extended Keep Warm” setting, which maintains a low temperature so the food doesn’t dry out.  The Timer function lets you set when you’d like cooked rice, quinoa, or steel cut oats to be finished cooking.  Two timers can be preset, which is great if you know you will need rice ready for dinner or oats ready for breakfast.  And you’ll know when your food is ready because the rice cooker’s melody or beep will play.

As with our other products, the retractable power cord and sturdy handle makes this machine simple to store, and all surfaces that come in contact with food are BPA-free.  Accessories include a spatula and a measuring cup.

We hope you love this awesome rice cooker and warmer as much as we do.  Make sure to share all your delicious recipes with us and don’t forget to tag your photos with #ZOJIRUSHI on Instagram!

Design Explained –
Our Steam Vent Caps

Do you know that most of our rice cookers have a cap on the steam vent? Compared to conventional rice cookers, our advanced rice cookers – the ones that utilize a microcomputer – are sleeker, with tight-fitting components and lids. We make these rice cookers with steam venting systems that consists of three components – a vent, a vent cap, and a vent cap receptacle.

This is the Steam Vent Cap!

Each piece of the venting system has a purpose. The vent is a tube-like opening that goes through the cover and inner lid, into the body of the rice cooker where the inner pan rests. The vent is covered by the steam vent cap, which rests in the steam vent cap receptacle, keeping it securely on the cover of the rice cooker. The entire system is built to seamlessly blend into the top of the rice cookers. One customer even brought his appliance into our office inquiring about the system because he didn’t realize it was there!

Can you spot the Steam Vent Cap?

The steam venting system works in conjunction with good rice prep. The first step is to correctly measure the right amount of rice and water. Then, it’s important to wash the rice correctly, removing excess starch and bran or dust from the rice kernels. Once the rice begins cooking, the rice cooker releases excess steam through the vent, and the steam vent cap catches any foamy substances that come out with the steam. The rice cooks better this way because the steam vent cap allows the rice cooker to cook your rice at a higher heat, without worrying about overflow because the steam vent cap can capture excess moisture and bubbles that may foam up.

Yay for delicious rice!

As long as the vent cap is washed under running water and the steam vent cap receptacle area is wiped with a soft cloth to remove any moisture, the steam venting system in your Zojirushi advanced rice cooker should work wonderfully. Remember to remove and clean the inner lid and you’ll have perfectly cooked rice every time!

Don’t forget to remove and clean the Inner Lid!

Check out our full line up in the Products section, and be sure to comment with any questions you might have.