Picked the $30 rice cooker over the $80 one and it's been fine for 6 months

I was standing in Target trying to decide between a basic Dash rice cooker for $30 and a fancy Zojirushi for $80 (way out of my budget honestly). I went with the cheap one because my main goal was to stop spending $12 a week on takeout fried rice. It makes decent rice every time, no bells or whistles but it works. I've saved about $180 so far just by cooking rice at home instead of ordering out. Has anyone else had good luck with the budget version of something?

2 comments

2 Comments

barbara_moore732d ago

That part about saving $180 by cooking at home instead of ordering out really hit me. I did the same thing with a cheap air fryer from Walmart that was like $25 on clearance. First week I made frozen fries every single night and thought I was a genius. But then I started actually using it for chicken and veggies and it turned out fine. The timer knob is a little loose and I have to wiggle it sometimes but it still makes crispy tofu better than my actual oven. Sometimes I wonder if the expensive ones would cook faster or something but honestly I can't imagine spending more than $40 on any single kitchen gadget. My rule is if it has one job and it does that job okay I'm good.

the_sage1d ago

Barbara, that loose knob issue... does it ever mess with the timing? I had a similar cheap air fryer and the knob would skip a few minutes if I turned it too fast. Ended up burning a batch of wings because I thought I set it for 20 but it was actually 35. Made me wonder if part of the reason those $80 ones sell is just so the knob and buttons actually work right. But maybe that's just bad luck on my end.