Worth the investment.
Growing up my mother had always had a Zojirushi rice cooker, and I had coveted them for many years before deciding finally to purchase my own. Prior to this, I used a cheap Aroma model which was adequate at best and unreliable / ruined rice at worst. When travel to Japan was shut down and my cheaper rice cooker became less and less reliable, I decided to bite the bullet and purchase the 10-cup model (while our family is just three people, we do tend to host large gatherings for family and guests and I wanted the ability to heat/keep rice warm for a crowd and for long periods of time). The price tag on this model is admittedly steep - it is currently the top-of-the-line Zojirushi model available in the US (the highest-end ones on the Japanese market can reach upwards of $1000). Even my husband who is something of a rice connoisseur was skeptical. We initially did two tests with rice we use regularly - Koda Farms Kohuko Rose (our 'daily' rice) and Nanatsuboshi rice from Hokkaido (a premium rice). Both came out absolutely perfect - and after many hours on warm were still delicious and not dried out. The difference between this cooker and my cheap one is significant - even our regular 'daily' rice tasted nearly as good as the premium stuff: sweeter, fluffier, and fragrant. It does take longer than my old rice cooker, but since the quality isn't affected by remaining on warm, I tend to prep in advance. We tried other settings - jasmine (for long grain or basmati rice), brown rice, and had the same excellent results each time. The functions and timer are all intuitive and easy to use - you can set ahead the night before and have perfect rice in the morning for tamago gohan or rice with natto. While I was hesitant to spend the money for this machine I am truly glad I did, it is absolutely worth it for our family's needs. Read more


















