****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
Got it a few days ago. I tested it with just one cup of rice - this cooker cooked it in 10-15 minutes flat!I'm Korean-American, and I expected the Cuckoo to be faster than the Zoji cookers, but, wow, this was the fastest I've ever seen rice cooked! This was on the "Turbo" cooking function but there wasn't that THAT much of a difference between quality of the rice cooked on the turbo vs the normal glutinous functions that I noticed. Actually, I kinda preferred the rice cooked on the turbo function. With two cups it took 5-10 minutes more - still fast as lightning.The rice kernels were fully cooked into its center altho only a tiniest bit al dente. I read another Korean reviewer remark that she wished it was a pressure cooker. I understand this sentiment, however, because I know Koreans like their rice fully cooked and evenly from outside of the kernel all the way in. The pressure cooker models cost around $400 a pop, however, so, yeah.... Also, I think many Americans, however, would prefer this texture, and I myself didn't mind it at all either. The kernels were truly cooked all the way to center - don't mistake me... just the pressure cookers I think do tend to change the molecular structure of the starch to make them more texturally appealing to Koreans, and there is a difference. I, myself, am not that picky, however. I think this cooker still cooks rice to a quality that you would find from 90% of so called sushi restaurants in the US and that on the "turbo" function - in other words, not bad at all, unless you really are picky and sensitive to the texture and flavor of rice.Also, no residual moisture on the sides when I opened like you would get with bargain basement 20$ cookers. No splattering or boil overs either. And even on the regular glutinous rice setting, the rice cooked evenly and rather fast. The glutinous setting I think took maybe 10-15 minutes more, but that's still really fast to cook rice. For reference, the Zoji models I'm familiar with can take over an hour. The tiny quality difference in rice flavor of rice cooked for an hour vs this rice cooked in 15 minutes was not at all big enough for me to favor the one hour cooked rice. I'm too old and impatient for that.Also, many Zoji I think tend to rot the rice after a day, because their warm setting sometimes is not hot enough, but I think with the Cuckoo rice cookers, they got the temperature so that altho the rice may overcook a bit after a long time on the warm setting and turn a tad yellow from the heat, they got the temperature just hot enough to keep the microbes from forming too quickly. In other words, I think this cooker keeps the rice fresher a day or so longer than most Zoji models on the warm setting. This model still does say to take the rice out and store away in refrigerator, etc. if longer than 24 hours, etc. But, I'm confident the rice is still good enough for me a couple days later, etc.Zoji makes really good rice cookers, but imo, the top of the line Cuckoo cook better rice these days. It's like the Toyota vs. Hyundai wars among rice cookers, I guess. Zoji still has all the best reviews from being the top manufacturer of yester years. I wouldn't discount the Cuckoos tho.I'm getting on middle age and I live alone, so I bought this small model because I've been trying not to eat too much carbs. For last 2-3 years, I've almost never ate rice but once a month or so. My mother's family all had diabetic symptoms, and I didn't want to go that route. Still I had a craving on occasion for rice. This model can really cook tiny portions, which was what I wanted, and I'm very happy with it. Easy to use, easy to clean. Small portions, so, little waste.Lastly, the English in the user manual was atrocious - as if it was Google translated directly from Korean. I also read some reviewers who never bothered to set the time, perhaps because the instructions were confusing? In case it helps...To set the clock;1. Press the left bottom button for two seconds. This will activate the time setting feature and make the time blink.2. Press the same button to adjust the hour. Press the right bottom button to adjust the minutes.3. After getting the correct time inputted, press the right top button to set the time. You're done!The cooker does have a lithium battery in case of electrical brown outs. So, if you use the timer function to cook at a certain time, less to worry about too. Your rice will more than likely be ready and cooked unless a very long prolonged electrical black out or something.Love this cooker - perfect size, perfect function, great price - at least for me.Now, I gotta stop using it because, I got fatter.
