Perfect rice, but read this before you buy this rice cooker
REVIEW OF 6-CUP MODEL I'm very glad that I decided to replace the malfunctioning 3-cup with this model instead of another of the same size and capabilities. We primarily eat brown rice, and with this we have many choices in how we want it cooked (in contrast to the top of the line Zojirushi this replaces, which had a single brown rice setting, and a GABA setting). Cuckoo categorizes brown rice with other non-white rices together under Multi Grain settings, and I can choose GABA, Multi Grain Rice, Savory Multi Grain Rice, Turbo Multi Grain Rice, and can choose to "scorch" (toast) the bottom of any of those preparations; plus there are Sticky Multi Grain Rice, and High Heat Sticky Multi Grain Rice modes; giving me ten options for my brown rice instead of two. So far, our experience has been that each of those options which we've tried has cooked rice which is superior in taste and texture to any other brown rice we have eaten. Another thing I prefer about this rice cooker to the Zojirushi is that rice has always been ready to eat by the completion time which has been set, whereas we learned that we had to set the Zoj to an earlier time, or we could be waiting as much as ¾ hour for our rice to be ready. Yes, I learned how to compensate for this peculiarity of our really good rice cooker, but why should you have to remember how much earlier to set it for this or that function. That said, I have found this rice cooker has a definite learning curve. Some of the terminology in the manual and the button labelling, and the sequences of setting this machine are not obvious to the Western mind. Just as an example, the term "Preset" is used instead of "Timer" and rather than saying that the timer has been set to whatever time was chosen, it tells you "Preset has been reserved." If, despite its ability to give you that degree of control over how your rice is cooked, you're not willing to put up with a certain amount of frustration initially, as you set this rice cooker with the manual in hand, it's probably not the right one for you. I tend to be somewhat impatient, but don't admit defeat easily, and persisted. REVIEW OF 3-CUP MODEL It's a tribute to how incredibly well this cooked rice on the settings which worked for me that even though I have sent it back because I could not access the setting I primarily want to use (GABA) that I'm giving this four stars, and asked to have it replaced. As an example, I have never had brown rice which had this depth of flavour nuance – it's absolutely outstanding. 1. Before you buy this, know that the control panel is difficult to navigate, particularly so because the English section of the product manual appears to have been literally translated from Korean by someone without a good working knowledge of English. It's possible to figure out what is meant if you ask yourself what other words that word which is incomprehensible in context could be a synonym for, but it's a bit frustrating when you're just trying to get your rice on so you can get on with your day or with getting a meal on the table. 2. Beware that if you're buying a 3-cup, it is listed as having one less setting than the 6- and 10-cup models, but nowhere do they tell you what it is which it doesn't have. I *think* I've figured out that it's scorched brown or GABA rice, but it could be its not being ready for easy dumpling cooking by having a steam plate, or it could be cakes, or perhaps an easily identified way to cook our oatmeal… I don't really know. I do know, however, that I came to my senses before the 3-cup replacement arrived, and decided to get the full featured 6-cup model, despite its much larger outside dimensions. I should say that this is not a problem which is peculiar to Cuckoo. I have encountered it before when I got a 3qt Instant Pot Ultra, which also didn't have the feature I most wanted, although the product description did not indicate it was missing. I don't know why they don't tell the consumer which settings are or are not available on smaller models, or even they feel the need to do this, considering chips and circuitboards have gotten so small, but I've now gotten the message that it's an issue and am swearing off getting smaller models of home appliances. If you wish to avoid either or both of these problems, I strongly suggest that you go to the Cuckoo site <cuckooamerica.com>, download the manual(s), and ask yourself just how well you'll cope with the technology, and how important it is to have stellar rice. As for myself, I didn't give up on Cuckoo. We eat rice almost every day, and like to use different varieties and preparations. So I've ordered the 6-cup, and accepting my bread machine needs to be moved to create enough space (this is bigger than the 6-cup top of the line Zojirushi). As great as the Zojirushi is, the rice cooked in this top of the line Cuckoo is incomparable, so it's worth it to me to figure it all out. Thank you for reading my review. I hope you found it helpful. Read more