Julia Moskin writes about rice cookers and how they have shaped the landscape of cooking rice. She cited many comments around the world, from China, Japan, Korea, even Iran and the USA where the traditional method of cooking rice has been replaced with the rice cooker. The electric rice cooker has now been a standard appliance in almost every kitchen in the world. She cited the many advantages of the rice cooker such as its dependability when it comes to having the rice conditions to cook rice, “it doesn’t burn”.The rice cooker is even used not just for cooking rice, but for cooking and steaming other food such dumplings and custards. The convenience of the rice cooker cannot be downplayed, according to the author.
Some restaurant owners even do all their cooking in the rice cooker. However, the author noted that there are still some people who are not comfortable of throwing away the traditional method of cooking in favor of this modern appliance, no matter how convenient and flexible. This is where the debate begins.Although the author tries to influence the reader about the flexibility and convenience of owning a rice cooker, there are still purists out there who insist on the traditional method of cooking rice and their native delicacies.
Cooking rice in a rice cooker for them is like painting a work of art using CAD. For the traditionalist, the art of cooking must never be downgraded for the sake of convenience. Both sides of the issue were considered by the author in her essay, although she is leaning towards the modern way of rice cooking as the best gift technology has given mankind.
