White rice in a Crockpot Mini, anyone actually tried it?

[Thomas Martinez]

Seeing as a few peoples have mentioned it in the past, I figured I’d open up a thread about cooking rice in the Crockpot Mini. The instructions, if I remember correctly, are to rinse your rice, add 1 cup of rice and 1.5 cups of water to the inner pot, and then set it to low for approximately 3.5 hour.
This seems like a long time to cook rice for those used to rice cookers, but as someone who's used to slow cookers, it makes sense as the low setting will allow the rice to cook at a more moderatly temperature. Rinsing the rice prior to cooking will help to remove any excess starch that can otherwise lead to the rice sticking to the inner pot.
I’m curious to know from others if anyone’s ever experimented with the ratio of water to rice, or if anyone have used the Mini crockpot regularly for preparing rice.

 

[Tired Teira]

Yeah I do this almost weekly in the Mini. For me 1:1.5 is too much water. I find that 1:1.25 works better to avoid mushily rice. Also, as noted below, you dont want to use too much water in a slow cooker since nothing evaporate under that lid.

 

[Claustrophobic Animal]

why low for 3.5 hrs tho, has anyone tried cooking it on high for a shorter length of time?

 

[Better Badger]

buy a rice cooker lol

 

[Amused Albatross]

I’ve ran this exact recipe in my Mini crockpot for rice maybe 50 or more times. I’ve found the standard 1:1.5 ratio to be too wet for rice, and 1:1.25 works better. I must rinse the rice prior to add to the crockpot, or else the rice will stick to the inner pot (when I skipped it once!). A light spray of cooking oil makes it much easier to clean up after cooking.

 

[Feverish Disco Dynasty]

3.5 hours for rice is insane when a rice cooker would do the same in 20 minutes

 

[Claustrophobic Animal]

I’ve ran this exact recipe in my Mini crockpot for rice maybe 50 or more times. I’ve found the standard 1:1.5 ratio to be too wet for rice, and 1:1.25 works better. I must rinse the rice prior to add to the crockpot, or else the rice will stick to the inner pot (when I skipped it…

so does rinsing the rice really do anything if the rice is being cooked in a seal environment? the starch cant come out right?

 

[Tired Teira]

so does rinsing the rice really do anything if the rice is being cooked in a seal environment? the starch cant come out right?

when rice is rinsed the starch comes off the grains before cooking. That’s why rinsing is used prior to add rice to the pot

 

[Happy Va]

I don’t think mini crocks is designed for cooking rice. You’re supposed to use them to cook dips and keep queso warm at parties!

 

[Escape from the Scooter J]

I gave it a try once but it came out fine, I’ve never bothered since I have a rice cooker in my kitchen

 

[Amused Albatross]

I don’t think mini crocks is designed for cooking rice. You’re supposed to use them to cook dips and keep queso warm at parties!

I disagree that crockpots minis arent designed for cooking rice. The low setting comes to around 190-200F which I find to be plenty to cook rice properly. It’s not supposed to just warm food, right?

 

[In Search of Sc]

Has anyone tried making rice using jasmine or basmati rice in the crockpot? I’d think that the ratio would be different for these types of rice than long grain rice.

 

[Better Badger]

still says buy a rice cooker. Like a real one is 25 bucks

 

[Proud Peccary]

Scaling matters. I usually use 2 cups of rice in the crockpot mini and it needs to cook for less time, around 3:10. For 1 cup it take closer to 3.5 hours.

 

[Claustrophobic Animal]

what if you opened the lid to check on the rice while it was cooking? Does cooking rice in the crockpot work out the same if you opened the lid like regular slow cooker recipes?

 

[Tired Teira]

what if you opened the lid to check on the rice while it was cooking? Does cooking rice in the crockpot work out the same if you opened the lid like regular slow cooker recipes?

yes it would ruin the rice if you opened the lid. Same with slow cookers. It will take away heat from the rice and the rice on the top of the pot will not cook even. Just set it and forget it

 

[Topsy-Turvy C]

While rice cookers are an option, I find the crockpot mini make better rice. The rice cooker I own is a cheap Zojirushi knockoff and the mini crockpot does a better job than it.

 

[Feverish Disco Dynasty]

While rice cookers are an option, I find the crockpot mini make better rice. The rice cooker I own is a cheap Zojirushi knockoff and the mini crockpot does a better job than it.

better rice than a zojirushi knockoff isnt really saying much lol

 

[In Search of Sc]

Does anyone preheat the crockpot before adding the rice and water?

 

[Amused Albatross]

Does anyone preheat the crockpot before adding the rice and water?

I don’t preheat the crockpot. The recipe states the time needed for cooking if the crockpot start from cold. Since it’s a slow cooker preheating might save 15-20 minutes. However, why worry about 15 minutes when it’s a slow cooker that you just have to set and forget?