Both the pressure cooker and rice cooker are designed to make perfect bowls of rice. However, even though both machines may look similar, they come with different features that set their difference apart. Both machines also use different mechanisms that affect their cooking times for rice. So, which should you invest in, a rice cooker or a pressure cooker?
Can Pressure Cooker Cook Rice and Replace Rice Cooker?
Differences and similarities between rice cookers and pressure cookers
Both the pressure and rice cooker have come a long way since the days of yore. Today’s pressure and rice cookers come outfitted with a wide array of features that give them more capabilities and efficiency. However, the differences between pressure cookers and rice cookers are a lot more pronounced than the similarities.
Both pressure cookers and rice cookers share certain properties. For instance, both cook food using steam. Some pressure cookers look very similar to rice cookers, making it hard to differentiate between the two in a line-up.
Most rice cookers come with an external casing, containing a heating pad or coil, a lid, and an inner pot. Some rice cookers come with extra accessories such as steaming baskets. The heating component in the rice cooker is responsible for heating up the liquid so that steam can be formed. The rice then absorb the steam for it to become soft. This is why the liquid, added at the beginning, disappears when the rice is fully cooked.
Pressure cookers, on the other hand, come with some parts that are included in a rice cooker. However, there are some major differences between the two. For example, the lid of the pressure cooker is often outfitted with a pressure sensor, as well as a lid that must maintain the seal in order for pressure to be reached. Thanks to this pressure that a pressure cooker is able to cook food a lot faster and efficiently than any cooking method.
Which is the best for cooking rice
As the name suggests, rice cookers are designed specifically for the purpose of making rice. As such, they cannot be used for making many other dishes unless the rice cooker is designed as multifunctional. You should invest in a rice cooker if you like to cook rice often. Rice cookers can cook a diverse range of rice types, which is ideal if you like to sample different grain sizes, aromas and flavors of rice during the week.
Pressure cookers, on the other hand, can cook rice as well as an extensive selection of other food types (e.g. desserts, legumes, veggies, tough cuts of meats). A significant advantage of opting for the pressure cooker is that it can prepare food much faster while retaining the original flavor, color and taste of the cooking food.
Unless you invest in a multifunction rice cooker, your rice cooker will not be able to make any other foodstuff other than rice. As such, if you are looking for a workhorse in your kitchen, the pressure cooker would be the best alternative to invest in.