We know that cleaning a rice cooker can be challenging as it is used almost every day in households. However, without proper knowledge you may end up damaging it.
So, we will discuss an easy, five step guide on cleaning rice cookers. Compared to the service a rice cooker gives to a home, it asks for very little attention orcare. You just need to clean it once in a while, which takes almost no time or effort.
Precautions
Before starting to clean, you need to take care of somethings. As the rice cooker runs on electricity and gets hot, you need to handle it with care.
1. Read the Manual
Read the manual of your rice cooker to know how to clean it, if there is any other important instruction that you need to know before cleaning the cooker.
2. Let The Rice Cooker Cool
First of all, let the rice cooker cool down. Let it come to room temperature, then start whatever you are planning to do. You might burn yourself or cause other accidents if you try to clean the rice cooker while it is hot.
3. Detach The Plug
You must detach the plug from the electrical circuit board before attempting to clean the rice cooker even if the cooker is switched off or not working and cooled down. Still, you should remove or detach the plug or the wire.
How to Clean Rice Cooker
A step by step guideline to clean your rice cooker is following. It is a very easy and effective process. Anyone can do this and clean their rice cooker in no time.
Step 1: Disassemble
First of all, you need to disassemble all the removable parts of the rice cooker. If your lid is fully detachable, then you can detach the lid. Otherwise, you can remove the inner lid for cleaning. Also, remove the pot from the cooker.
Step 2: Wash the Inner Pot
The next big thing to do is cleaning the pot. There are several different methods you can follow in cleaning the inner pot.
Method 1: Soak Overnight
Clean with lukewarm soapy water. Use liquid dishwashing detergent with water and soak it overnight for best results. If you do not want to leave it overnight, you can also leave it soaked for a few hours until the food particles are off. When all the burnt and dried food is removed, rinse the pot a few times. This method is helpful when you have a burnt pot.
Method 2: Wiping the Pot
This is almost the same as method 1. Instead of soaking the pot overnight, you can use a sponge or cloth to wipe the pot with soapy water. It works especially if the pot has no burnt food or too much food residue. After wiping with soapy after, you can rinse or wipe it with clean water.
Method 3: Using Baking Powder
Use baking powder and water to make a paste to clean the pot. Wipe the pot with a cloth or sponge with the paste. After wiping and removing the food, rinse it or wipe it with clean water.
Method: Sanitizing Solution for Cleaning
You can make you sanitizing solution for cleaning the rice cooker. Use 2 tablespoons of chlorine bleach, 2 tablespoons of dishwashing liquid and mix it with enough warm water. Soak the pot in the solution for 2-3 hours. Rinse thoroughly afterward.
Method 5: Using Vinegar
Put one cup of vinegar and one cup of water in the inner pot of the rice cooker. Then turn on the cooker and let the water boil. When the water starts boiling, turn off the cooker. Let it sit until it cools down to room temperature. After that, simply rinse the pot with water a few times.
Step 3: Clean the Lid
When the lid of your rice cooker is detachable, you can clean it by soaking it in dishwashing liquid. Gently scrub the lid with a sponge or washing cloth. Then rinse the lid.
Suppose your rice cooker does not have a datable lid but has an inner lid that can be removed. You can clean the removable part like the pot. Clean it with soapy water and rinse it well. Depending on the amount of food or dirt residue left on it, you can gently wipe the inner lid too. You can either use only water or soapy water. Wipe it or rinse it with clean water afterward.
Step 4: Clean the Interior and Exterior
wipe the inside and the outside of the rice cooker with a damp cloth. Gently scrub to remove any food residue stuck on the interior or exterior of the cooker. Take your time to loosen up any hard food, but do not use a metal utensil or other things to scrap the cooker.
Step 5: Clean the Accessories
Remove any other removable accessories before cleaning. All of the detachable partsare washable unless mentioned in the instruction. Your rice cooker can have a steaming tray, measuring cup, spatula, or other accessories. You can clean them with warm soapy water.
While soaking your pot, you can also soak these accessories too. Then rinse thoroughly with clean water.
Step 6: Let the Rice Cooker Dry
No matter which method you use to clean your rice cooker, you must dry very well. You cannot use the cooker unless it is fully dried. If water comes in contact with the electrical parts of the rice cooker, it can entirely damage the machine.
You can wipe the pot, inner and outer parts of the rice cooker with a dry cloth. You can also leave the pot, rice cooker, and accessories to air dry if you have enough time.
Maintenance of Rice Cooker
Cleaning a rice cooker is not backbreaking work. Yet, you should not leave it until it becomes unusable. Just keeping some things in mind and caring a little can make your rice cooker stay clean and last a lot longer. If you properly maintain a rice cooker, it can last for ages.
Do's
Don't
Conclusion
Maintaining and cleaning the rice cooker properly will increase the lifespan of it. You also get consistent food quality if you clean it after every use. Usually, rice cookers are very durable and do not require much cleaning. The task has become even easier as we have explained how to clean the rice cooker.
FAQ
How often should you clean your rice cooker?
It is best to clean your rice cooker after every use. Otherwise, food will get stuck on the pot and burn when you try to cook again in the pot.
Is the rice cooker easy to clean?
The rice cooker pot has a non-stick coating that makes it very easy to clean. Most of the time, you can only use detergent liquid and lukewarm water to wipe or wash the rice cooker.
Is it okay to leave the rice cooker plugged in?
It is safe to leave the rice cooker plugged in. After cooking, rice automatically turns off. So your food will not get burnt. It does not cause a short circuit if you leave your rice cooker plugged in.