Rice cookers come in many different shapes and sizes, and with a multitude of varying features. Making delicious rice is so much easier with a rice cooker, but you have to choose the right one or you might end up with a machine you don’t love.
In this article, we will introduce you to the best Korean rice cookers so you can make an informed choice when buying your next rice cooker. We’ll also discuss what you need to look for so you’ll always be happy with your purchase.
Don’t have time to read? Here are our top picks and why we picked them:
| Rice Cooker Name | Why We Picked It |
| Cuckoo CR-0655F Rice Cooker & Warmer | Best Overall |
| Cuckoo CRP-P0609S | Great Self-Cleaning Function |
| Cuckoo CR-0632F | Best Pressure Cooker |
| Lihom LJP-HK100GDE 10-Cup Rice Pressure Cooker | Induction Heating |
| Cuckoo CR-0631F 6 Cup Micom Rice Cooker | Best for Medium-Sized Families |
| Cuckoo 10 Cup Electric Rice Cooker | White Diamond Coating |
| Cuckoo CMC-QSB501S Rice Cooker | Best Mid-Range |
What Is So Special About Korean Rice Cookers?
You will notice that our list consists almost exclusively of Cuckoo rice cookers. That’s because they’re really awesome and you can expect the best from this brand. It’s also a very popular brand with people all over the world who love to cook rice.
As a country that makes millions of tons of rice a year, it comes as no surprise that they know exactly how to make machines that can make perfectly cooked rice with little effort.
But there has to be proof of the excellence that makes Korean rice cookers so amazing, right? Well, here are some of the reasons these rice cookers stand out:
Intelligent Cooking
Most Korean rice cookers come equipped with what is referred to as an intelligent cooking algorithm. It’s also called Fuzzy logic, and it’s what makes it possible for these rice cookers to adjust to the rice and food you want to prepare and make it perfect. The cookers are so smart that there isn’t even really a need for human intervention during the cooking process.
Versatile and Multifunctional
Korean rice cookers are usually very versatile and come with great multi-functional abilities. Often, they can slow cook and make many kinds of foods. There are also some of them that have self-cleaning functions.
Beautiful Designs
You’ll find that most Korean rice cookers are beautifully designed and colorful. Whether they’re large or small, most of them are very visually appealing.
What to Look For in the Best Korean Rice Cooker
There are several things that you should keep in mind when you shop for your new Korean rice cooker. To help you on your journey, we’ve made a list of all the features that matter most.
Capacity
How much rice do you want to cook in one sitting? Do you want to cook enough for the family or are you only planning to cook one or two cups of rice? The capacity of your rice cooker is important so you don’t have to waste any food or cook rice more than once.
Fuzzy Logic
Fuzzy logic, as we mentioned before, is what makes the rice cooker so smart. Without it, the machine won’t be as clever or versatile. You may even have rice that doesn’t taste as good if you’re not using a cooker with fuzzy logic technology.
Induction Heating
Induction heating in a rice cooker ensures that every grain of rice or piece of food you make is cooked evenly and perfectly. It may cost more, but if you like your rice perfectly cooked, you may not mind.
Keep Warm Function
The ‘keep warm’ function in a rice cooker is what keeps your rice warm and fresh once it’s done cooking. This allows you to put your rice in the cooker, start the cooking process, and forget about it for hours. You can go shopping, come back and enjoy delicious, fresh food.
Pressure Cooker
Rice cookers with this function will allow you to cook your food faster and it will come out more flavorful and delicious.
Versatile Cooking
If you’re just looking for a brilliant rice cooker, this probably won’t matter to you, but many Korean rice cookers are able to cook more than just rice. Some can prepare vegetables, meat, pasta, and even cakes.
Price
Many Korean rice cookers can be rather expensive, but you will be able to find models that aren’t overly costly. Keep in mind that if you want more features, you will have to pay extra.
The Best Korean Rice Cookers: 8 Awesome Options
Cuckoo CR-0655F Rice Cooker & Warmer
Our very first contender for the title of best Korean rice cooker is one of the most popular models made by Cuckoo. It is a very versatile brown rice cooker that can easily handle just about anything you throw at it.
This rice cooker has a multi-cook option, which means you can prepare other food while cooking rice. It comes with eight clever built-in programs for making perfect rice. You can set it to make brown rice, mixed rice, steam vegetables, prepare baby food, and even porridge.
As the name suggests, this electric rice cooker can also warm your food as you prefer thanks to the Warm/Reheat functions. There is also a ‘My Mode’, which allows you to customize the degree of glutinosity and softness of your rice.
The auto-steam cleaning function means cleanups will be a lot easier and not as much hassle. All you will have to do is dish up all your food and press a button that releases jet steam to sanitize and clean the rice cooker’s interior. The inner pot is coated with non-stick Teflon and the detachable cover is very easy to clean.
Included with this Cuckoo cooker are a few extras like a rice scoop and rice measuring cup. Thanks to its capacity of 6 cups of uncooked rice, you can easily feed a medium-sized family. The ‘keep warm’ function will ensure your food stays warm and fresh until you’re ready to eat.
If you need to schedule your cooking, the machine has settings that allow auto-scheduling for up to 12 hours and 50 minutes. The only noticeable drawback with this rice cooker is that it might take longer to cook than you’d expect. This is partly due to the smart cooking that takes longer to ensure better quality food.
Pros
- Easy to use
- Attractive design
- Auto-scheduling
- Keep warm function
- Versatile cooking
- Cleanups are easy
- Good capacity (6 cups uncooked rice)
- 8 smart built-in programs
Cons
- Cooking takes long
Cuckoo CRP-P0609S Rice Cooker
This rice from Cuckoo is yet another excellent appliance that is made of high-quality products and will offer your deliciously cooked rice (and other food) for a long time.
You can cook 12 cups of cooked rice in one session, making this a good option for medium-sized families who like to eat seconds later.
It may look like nothing complicated on the outside, but this rice cooker uses fuzzy logic technology for perfect rice every time. Despite being very smart, it’s not difficult to use and make the most of the cooker.
You get 12 menu options that let you choose to make glutinous rice, brown rice, GABA rice, porridge, and even scorched rice. Since the cooker is able to act as a slow cooker as well, you can also prepare other meals like steamed ribs and chicken.
The impressively effective self-cleaning function means your time spent cleaning is a lot less. Although you will have to thoroughly clean the rice cooker to avoid problems, the self-cleaning is so good that you won’t have to do much. At the push of a button, the mechanism will sanitize the cooker, and the inner pot and steel covers are both microwave-safe.
Safety is also a big deal with this cooker, as the steam is released automatically and softly for convenient and secure cooking. It has an overheating alarm that will let you know if the cooker’s external or internal temperatures are too high.
An LCD screen that is easy to see and navigate ensures that your overall experience with the cooker is problem-free and uncomplicated. All these great features come at a price, though, so you can expect to pay more for this one than a smaller, less function-packed rice cooker.
Pros
- Great self-cleaning mechanism
- Easy to use
- Versatile cooking
- Safe design
- 12 menu options
- Good rice capacity (6 cups uncooked rice)
Cons
- Expensive
Cuckoo CR-0632F Micom Rice Cooker
If you are looking for the best Korean rice cooker that is great for making fluffy rice while also being able to act as a superior slow cooker, you’ll love this Cuckoo. Although this electric rice cooker isn’t as good-looking as the other models on our list, it is still a fantastic machine that is very good at cooking rice.
Because this rice cooker can act as a slow cooker, you can prepare food that comes out tastier and cooks a bit better. The fuzzy logic technology and intelligent cooking algorithms that are used by the cooker also help it to find the most suitable temperatures and cooking times to make perfectly cooked rice every time.
With a capacity of 12 cups of cooked rice, you can rest assured you can feed your family delicious rice and maybe even have leftovers. You can easily cook brown rice, white rice, GABA rice, meat, make porridge, soup, and quinoa.
The personal mode allows you to create the most delicious rice for your unique preference and taste because you can choose the consistency, glutinosity, and hardness with the touch of a button. You may find that the screen display is a bit small though, which could be a problem for people with poor sight.
Cleanups are kept simple with an inner pot that has a high-quality non-stick coating. The water drainage system also collects any excess water condensation so your food tastes fresher and no odors will ruin your meals or kitchen.
As is the case with most Cuckoo rice cookers, safety is ensured thanks to good design and an auto-lock cover. The ‘keep warm’ and reheat functions allow you to eat your food whenever suits you best and it will still taste great.
Pros
- Very good slow cooking
- Easy to use and clean
- Good capacity (12 cups cooked rice)
- Keep warm function
- Fuzzy logic technology
- Personal mode
- Versatile cooking
Cons
- Display screen uses small fonts at times
Lihom LJP-HK100GDE 10-Cup Rice Pressure Cooker
The only rice cooker on our list that isn’t made by Cuckoo is still able to show off with many great features. Because it makes use of induction heating, you can rest assured that you’ll have evenly-cooked and delicious rice every time you use it.
The attractive design of this Korean rice cooker does a good job of hiding the fact it is fantastic at cooking rice that will leave you wanting more. Even if you’re not the best cook around, you’ll still be able to make delicious rice and with a capacity of 10 cups of uncooked rice, you can make more than enough for a big family.
You will find that the best Korean rice cooker is always made to last many years, and that’s the case with this model. It comes with a diamond-coated inner pot that won’t ever let your rice stick or burn, and it is scratch-resistant too. Naturally, such greatness comes at a price: this rice cooker is quite expensive.
A voice navigation system will keep you updated on every step of the cooking process until your food is done. Although this is a very robust and big rice cooker, it won’t take up as much space as you’d expect.
The automated steam-cleaning system goes a long way towards making cleanups a breeze. The pot lid and nozzle are easy to clean.
There are multiple cooking functions you can use and they’re easily accessible from the LCD menu display.
Pros
- Induction heating
- Easy to use
- Voice navigation
- LCD display
- Attractive design
- Automated cleaning
- Diamond coating
- Great capacity (10 cups uncooked rice)
Cons
- Expensive
Cuckoo CR-0631F 6 Cup Micom Rice Cooker
If you’re looking for the best Korean rice cooker for medium-sized families who like rice that also looks really pretty, this is a great choice. If you want to find a gift for that special person in your life who is always cooking rice, again, this could be the perfect option.
A capacity of 6 cups of uncooked rice means you’ll get loads of delicious rice cooked to perfection. Although this is a rather big rice cooker, it is lightweight and surprisingly compact — it only weighs 6 pounds so you can move it around quite easily.
There are many functions to choose from with this Korean rice cooker, including steaming food, making mixed rice, GABA rice, and making an entire meal quickly with the multi-cooking function. The LCD display gives you easy access to the 10 menu options.
Like most other Cuckoo rice cookers, this one allows you to customize the ‘My Mode’ function so you can set the degree of glutinosity and softness for your rice.
The adjustable temperature settings and reheating option mean the cooker will keep your rice warm and fresh until you’re ready to eat. The fuzzy logic technology used by this rice cooker will help you make delicious rice even if you’re not the world’s greatest cook.
Cleanups aren’t a massive chore thanks to the excess water drain dish that comes with the cooker, and the one-touch button that releases the cover lid. The inner pot is made of non-toxic and non-stick materials for fast cleaning and great durability.
There is one noticeable drawback with this rice cooker, unfortunately, and that is the battery that powers the clock. It doesn’t seem to be replaceable, and if it is, finding information about how might prove difficult.
Pros
- Ideal for medium-sized families
- Very easy to clean and use
- Fuzzy logic technology
- Adjustable temperatures
- Durable and affordable
- Many cooking options
- Customizable ‘My Mode’
Cons
- Clock battery may be difficult to replace
Cuckoo 10 Cup Electric Rice Cooker
![Cuckoo CRP-P1009SW 10 Cup Electric Heating Pressure Cooker & Warmer – 12 Built-in Programs, Glutinous (White), Mixed, Brown, GABA Rice, [1.8 liters]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41fr2pSj61L._SL500_.jpg)
This can easily be the best Korean rice cooker just because of the durable and amazing white diamond coating that makes it scratch-resistant, highly durable, and very easy to clean. Also, this coating means heat is trapped better and you will be cooking rice with optimal heat distribution.
Even some of the best Korean rice cookers can’t promise all that, but this model does, and it’s got an attractive design to boot. The LCD display gives you easy access to a menu full of options. You can choose from 12 built-in programs that allow you to make mixed rice, glutinous rice, GABA rice, porridge, and more. You can also steam food with ease.
The fuzzy logic technology ensures that no matter what, your rice will always come out perfectly cooked. The simple touch controls and preset timer add to the already great ease of use of this Korean rice cooker.
An impressively smart cooking algorithm makes it easy for the rice cooker to make perfect rice of any kind. It can make sweet rice as well as sticky rice with ease. Because it’s so smart and effective, you can expect your rice to cook in as little as 20 minutes.
A safe steam release system means the cooker is able to automatically and softly release pressure. This keeps you safe and makes your cooking experience convenient. An overheat alarm will quickly let you know if the cooker reaches any unsafe temperatures on the outside as well as the inside.
Convenient and easy-to-find reheat and ‘keep warm’ functions make it easy to keep your rice warm for long periods so you can eat whenever suits you. A capacity of 10 cups of uncooked rice makes this the biggest Korean rice cooker on our list.
You get a rice scoop, measuring cup, and steam tray included with the purchase of this cooker.
Pros
- Intelligent cooking algorithm
- Fuzzy logic technology
- 12 built-in programs
- LCD display
- Safe and easy to use
- Versatile cooking
- Impressive capacity (10 cups of uncooked rice)
- White diamond coating
- Cleanups are easy
Cons
- Big and quite bulky
- A bit expensive
Cuckoo CMC-QSB501S Rice Cooker
This Cuckoo rice cooker might be able to take the title of best Korean rice cooker because it is so great at rice cooking while also being highly multi-functional. What we have here is a premium 8-in-1 rice cooker that is a pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, soup maker, yogurt maker, steamer, warmer, and sauté cooker. With this in your kitchen, you don’t even need half of the appliances you have.
Add to that its attractive design and you have an absolute winner. The modern LED screen comes with easy touch controls that let you use the preset timer and a voice guide that is available in English and Chinese.
All these great features can be a bit overwhelming though, so beginner rice cookers might need some time to get acquainted with the machine and everything it can do.
The highly durable 2-ply non-stick inner pot is made of stainless steel and aluminum so you can rest assured it will last many years while also ensuring even heat distribution. The safe steam release promises to keep you safe during all your cooking while being amazing at locking in the flavors of your food.
Thanks to the stainless steel construction and non-stick coating, the rice cooker is also very easy to clean. The water drain system works hard to prevent a build-up of germs and gross smells.
Pros
- 8-in-1 cooker
- Beautiful design
- 14 safety features
- Very versatile cooking
- Easy to clean
- Good capacity (5 cups of uncooked rice)
- Durable and robust
Cons
- Not suited to beginners
Frequently Asked Questions
If you have some questions about the best Korean rice cookers, you may find the answers you need here. We gathered many commonly asked questions and their answers for your convenience.
Are There Any Differences in Korean Rice Cookers?
Most Korean rice cookers are the same but they don’t always have the same features or functions.
Is Cuckoo a Reputable Brand?
Yes, Cuckoo is one of the best brands when it comes to modern and high-end rice cookers. They come with a lot of technology that makes them worth every penny spent on them.
Why Does My Rice Cooker Smell Bad?
If you have a rice cooker with an auto-clean function, it may be that you have skipped thorough cleaning because you thought this function is enough to keep your rice cooker clean. All your rice cooker needs is a good cleaning.
What Else Can Be Cooked in a Korean Rice Cooker?
Depending on the model and brand, a Korean rice cooker can cook soup, quinoa, sausages, oats, steam vegetables, bake sponge cakes, and even boil eggs.
Does a Korean Rice Cooker Make Better Rice?
Typically, you’ll find that a Korean rice cooker can make much better rice than similar cookers from your local stores.
Is A Stainless Steel Rice Cooker Safe?
Yes, stainless steel rice cookers are safe. They are more resistant to poisonous chemical leaching.
Cook Amazing Rice With the Best Korean Rice Cooker
We’ve given you a list of all of the best rice cookers that Korea has to offer. All you have to do is decide which is the best Korean rice cooker for you and your family and go out and buy it. Then, it’s time to discover why these cookers are so popular and admired.
Hey, I’m Joey. I’ve been cooking since I was a little kid and love everything about it. You can find my writing about food, kitchen appliances (such as blenders) and much more. Thanks for stopping by!
