3-Cup Rice Cooker with Steaming Basket | Compact rice cooker with automatic keep warm, steamer basket and removable nonstick pot.

very good black +decker rice cooker. gets the job done , rice is cooked nice and soft ,gets the job done.

OVERVIEW & BACKGROUND Both model sizes are best for: 1-2 servings; Mainly for individuals, couples, a bit more can be squeezed out of them if servings are kept smaller. Covers most cooking, even baking style options except for much higher temperature sort of cooking/baking like frying, broiling, grilling, roasting. These types of cooking methods are best done in another higher temperature (usually over1000 watts if electric powered) appliance like a regular range stove top, grill, or the portable stove tops sometimes called a hot plate. ***********UPDATE:********** Be aware that there are many mini/personal size electric griddles that cover this spectrum of "higher" yet are actually LOWER wattage temperature that I did not know about at the time I wrote this. The one I now use now is rated atjust 260 watts! I did not just buy ONE, but TWO Black And Decker Rice Cookers-though a month apart from each other. They are the smallest (RC503) and the second smallest (RC506) models which are currently offered on their present model line up. I will discuss them both here equally in the Overview & Background section. Then in their respective individual model sections, I will discuss each one separately in far more detail. Overall, I have found them both to be so very adaptable, flexible, and meeting my food preparation and nutrition needs very well, sometimes exceeding my own wildest dreams as these cookers are definitely not a One Trick Pony. I bought them both because: -1. The huge global inflation that is causing food prices to skyrocket without an end in sight and -2. The global supply chain breakdown which has impacted, plus severely limiting, packaged frozen food for individuals and smaller groups to my local grocery stores in a dependable, predictable, and timely manner. While I usually prepare a 1 Pot meal or snacks using just one Rice Cooker at a time when cooking just for me, both of them can be used to make not only more food, but a variety of food when needed-generally one to two servings. I can feed up to about 4 servings depending on the size of the portion served separately intended for each person. These cookers take very little space either when stored or in use. They are very inexpensive (together I paid under 40 dollars for both at the time of this writing) and with the right recipes and ingredients, can do a wide variety of main and side dishes with so little clean up afterwards. When you do clean up the Inner Pot, use only soft non-abrasive sponge, rag, wet paper towels etc. or soak in soapy water before you start to wipe clean. Plus NEVER use metal utensils in these cookers or you will ruin the non-stick cooking surface. It is very easy to scratch it! Completely dry the insert itself before placing it back into the electric base. I had an unexpected side benefit of lower salt intake as well as consuming more nutritious food of grains (other than the expected rice), vegetables and controlling meat amount inclusion which helped me to lose 10-15 pounds without even knowing it! They are ultra portable and can be moved from not only from room to room, but travel if I ever do that again. I am a single person on the SNAP (food stamps) program right now. I am on a very limited food budget of hovering just under 200 dollars per month. That means I have to be very careful even before this huge inflation wave happened. While I always hunted for bargains, used store discount cards, and coupon clipped in the past, that proved not to be enough anymore, especially now with the double whammy of inflation and supply breakdown. I decided I need to eliminate food waste as close to 100% as possible. So I purchased the tiny RC503 first with my Stimulus check. I noticed such a huge drop in waste (approaching the upper 90 percentile), I decided to buy the RC506 a bit later as it is the smallest model to offer an included Steam Basket. Plus I needed a bit more “room” for a little more food. This combo proved to be the best means to reach, even exceed, my goals. ***Reasons To Buy Any/All Of These Rice Cooker:s*** -*Rice Cookers can be used in less than ideal situations. If you don’t have a traditional kitchen available and need to set up some sort of makeshift portable/temporary/transitory/even an emergency sort of meal prep area, station, or center, all you need is a reliable power source (preferably an electrical outlet-otherwise a generator) to power up and operate the Cooker(s). RC503 is only 200 watts, and RC506 is 300 watts. So easy on electricity unlike the higher wattage appliances out there. -*Addressing Special Dietary Issues. If you or someone in your group has a special diet be prepared just for them, it is very easy to do in a rice cooker such as these. Even if you visit outside your home or residence at someone else's place, it can be easily done right on the spot. Especially great for Diabetics, people with food allergies, personal/religious belief dietary restrictions (i.e. veganism, keeping Kosher etc.). You will still be able to dine with others without calling undue attention to the food in front of you just like everyone else. -*Faster than a “Slow” Cooker. Most meals average around 30 minutes or so. -*Not heating up the kitchen when the weather is very hot, especially hot and steamy, times of the year. -*Easy to use (only 1 Device Operating or Control Lever) and ability to prepare as simple or elaborate meals/snacks as you want. -*Cheap on the food budget without sacrificing nutrition . -*Proportion Control practiced without undercutting with a decent amount of food per person. Leftovers eliminated unless intentionally desired by the user. -*Numerous “Rice Cooker” recipes available both online, at your local public library, and in purchased cookbooks specializing in preparing raw ingredients in a rice cooker. I collected several books and searched online and I now have a huge selection of entrees to choose from. Just like eating out in a restaurant-without the cost! RC503 The smallest (and cutest) model offered. It DOES NOT come with a Steamer Basket. Still it is great for very small proportions (like a side dish or a snack). I cooked white rice in it just for me and it came out perfect! Just remember to use the included rice measuring cup and the spatula/spoon/scoop included in your box for best results. The included rice measuring cup is great for rice measuring accuracy within this Rice Cooker unless otherwise specified by your chosen recipe. Then I use the regular cups used by most people.. The usual regular measuring cups might make your rice overflow as it is somewhat bigger than the included rice measuring cup. RC506 This is the one size up model. I usually prepare my main 1 Pot course, a bit bulkier items (like ribs shown being prepared and served in the included photos), and could be pressed to squeeze out an extra proportion for an unexpected guest far easier than the micro mini RC503. The included Steamer Basket allows me to steam a little something extra within it without having to use my little RC503 all the time just for a very small extra amount of food. Just remember to use the spatula/spoon/scoop plus the rice measuring cup included in your box for best results. The included rice measuring cup is great for rice measuring accuracy within this Rice Cooker. . The usual regular measuring cups might make your rice overflow as it is somewhat bigger than the included rice measuring cup unless otherwise specified by your chosen recipe. Then I use the regular cups used by most people. ******"UPDATE-June, 2024******* It has been some years since I last wrote the above review. Since then, I actually lost around 50% of my SNAP (Food Stamps) monthly allowance. Plus Inflation seems not to let up very much if at all. How am I coping with these major changes without going back to the local Food Banks or even begging? By relying on these same rice cookers 99% of the time now. I "translated" my favorite food dishes into cooking them in one or usually both of my rice cookers at the same time each day. I will let you see for yourselves-via above new pix-the tasty, healthy results right out of the rice cookers. I wish you could smell & taste them for yourselves! "Swedish Meatballs" & "Japanese Style Curry Bowl" are my absolute favorites shown above. The Swedish Meatballs & Japanese Curry sauces are cooked separately (each one entree was prepared on separate days) in one rice cooker. The Egg Noodles & Udon Noodles are cooked in the other cooker due to different cooking times as well. When it is time to serve them, The Meatballs was served in the all metal insert which it was cooked in. The Curry was served in a more traditional ceramic bowl. The money savings from this "less is more" approach is noticeable very quickly after nearly 100% implication. My food bill no matter how much the time period passed (weekly, monthly), added up very quickly, after I stopped eating out completely and relying on these rice cookers far more than before. I am able function (stay within a very meager, now far more limited) budget, even thrive health-wise, thanks to this nontradional approach in food preparation in everything I do. I hope and wish you success as well as you explore your own way!

Perfect size for one, or two without leftovers. Hard to wrap my head around folks returning this for being small. THAT IS THE POINT! (SMH) Anyway, perfect. One thing I did not see is that rice cookers are great for making grits as well. I can say that I easily split half mine between rice, and grits. One bit of advice I have when cooking rice is spray the bowl with olive oil prior to adding water, then the rice. Doesn't happen always, but the oil will prevent scorching.

This rice cooker only lasted less than 6 months. Multiple calls to the manufacturer to replace within the 2 year warranty, MULTIPLE over weeks and jumping through hoops, they asked for another photo and another week. They were backlogged. Hmmm. I wonder why they are backlogged -' it's probably because most of their products suck and they have to replace more of them than actually just make something that works. I don't care how little money this cost. Don't buy it, don't buy Black and Decker. It is a waste of your time. Ehy I would have to basically sign over my firstborn child to get a replacement rice cooker for their 2 year warranty that they boast is beyond me, and initially, I followed the very complicated photo instructions, receipt Instructions, email instructions, follow up phone call instructions. I just gave up and decided to buy a new rice cooker because my time is more valuable than the stress that they are causing me.I'm sure that's what they were hoping for. Just DON'T BUY this product or any Black and Decker product if you don't want to get screwed over. They are backlogged producing crap!!!

Excellent rice cooker! The rice cooks perfectly and there isn't the stuck together at the bottom rice like with a cheap rice cooker, its good rice from to bottom. I haven't used it for anything else yet but look forward to trying the other use cases. The box and way it was packaged was also nice, as are the things that come with it. It looks good on the counter too. The feet are not very slide friendly though so you may want to get some small felt pads if you want to be able to pull it towards you as opposed to lift it towards you. It also doesn't have a clock function or retractable cord. Still, it is a 5 star rice cooker and I purchased it because of the ceramic bowl (much healthier than non stick even if they claim to be bpa free blah blah blah non stick just like plastic is always toxic!). Thanks for reading!

Have had it for 4 years now and still works great! Super easy to use.

Never thought I could cook anything but rice in a rice cooker but I do whole meals now. My cooker is a 6 cup size. It is perfect for meals for 2. There are recipes all over YouTube . The bowl is non stick and washes up easily . The steamer basket is perfect for raw vegetables to be steamed to perfection.

I bought this for a friend of mine who had it on a bridal registry. I decided to get one a year later and when I asked her how she liked it (same 3-cup model) she said they loved it and so I ignored the other review and bought it. I only eat brown rice. I have read the instructions and have made brown rice, regular oatmeal & steel cut oatmeal. I have tried several times with varying amounts of water / grain ratio. It either boils over and drips down the sides, or the bottom sticks, or both. The only way I can stop it from boiling over is to make such a small amount that it isn't really worthwhile, and the bottom sticks anyway. Update 3/16/25, I found that if I let the oatmeal and water sit for 10 minutes and then turn the cooker on it worked ok, but still sticks. A few days ago when I went to make my oatmeal there was no power to the cooker. I contacted the seller (or B&D?) through amazon and they quickly replaced it. The new one has a shiny black interior instead of gray for the cooking pot which is working so much better, no sticking or overflowing. So bad it just stopped working but good customer service and cooking better with the new black pot.

size of the cooker is too small..it is not as shown in the pic..DONT BUT THIS..the seller has not even refund my amount..DONT EVEN THINK OF BUYING THIS..

This little rice cooker is like the Audrey Hepburn of my kitchen... petite, classy, and always delivers a stunning performance! I’ve used it more times than I've told bad jokes in Amazon reviews, and let me tell you, it never misses a beat. Its small size is deceptive, much like my wit, because what it packs inside is pure magic. This darling cooks rice to perfection every time... it's fluffier than a royal corgi and just as pleasing. Easy to use? It's as straightforward as a nun in a cucumber field... Just pop in your rice and water and whatever and press the button, and voila... you're a Michelin-star chef. It’s like having your own sous-chef, without the ego or the mess. This rice cooker has been a revelation in the kitchen. It’s more reliable than a Netflix subscription and more entertaining. A star performer in a compact package... just like me on a Saturday night.

É pequena serve uma única pessoa.

This a compact one person and one meal cooker. Cooks one cup of rice. It take approximately 20 mins.

Absolutely love this rice cooker, it's a very small size but makes the perfect amount for either two people or leftovers for 1 Makes rice pretty quick, and always turns out well.