Saturday, January 31, 2026

One New Video ( 🍞) + A Rice Cooker Question? + Perfect Roast Chicken & More

Friends, hello.

Last Saturday, I wrote about my Great Aunt Rene's chicken recipe and hoped many of you would give it a go for its ease and deliciousness. I noted that I always serve it with rice made in my rice cooker, and this past week, I received several emails about that rice cooker.

It's this Cuckoo Rice Cooker, and before buying it, I had embraced my Instant Pot for cooking rice. I love that the Instant Pot shuts off when the rice is done and keeps it warm (as opposed to a stovetop that requires manual attention). But I hate the experience of using an Instant Pot: it's so massive.

So I bought a rice cooker, thinking it might replace the cumbersome appliance I use primarily for rice. So far, I have liked it, but let me share some thoughts:

It has worked great for 2 cups of dried rice, which is what I typically cook for my family of six. The machine says it can cook 3 cups of dried rice, but I have not had great success using 3 cups — it takes forever, and the rice does not cook as well.
The interface is simple but not intuitive: unlike the IP, which requires you to select a time and pressure, with the rice cooker, you just hit start! It somehow just knows what to do.
The one time I tried to cook brown rice, it didn't turn out well, though that was likely user error, and I should try again.
The inner canister is nonstick, which I know many of you dislike.

So, while I like my rice cooker, I would love to know if any of you have a better suggestion, particularly one that maybe can cook larger quantities of rice and one that is not nonstick. If you do have a suggestion, please leave it on Rene's chicken post so everyone can benefit. Thank you 🙏

Honey Mustard Baked Chicken

PS: This week I added a video to the Jim Lahey No-Knead bread recipe. I hope it helps! 🍞🍞

Review of the Week

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Perfect Roast Chicken

"Roasted 2 birds last night for dinner with friends. Outstanding and so easy! I'll never use another roasting method for chicken again. Salting the evening before changes the game – moist delectable flesh! And the roasting method – perfectly golden crispy skin! Thank you so much!"

— Sharon

7 Recipes to Make Right Now

This time last year, I shared this recipe for Miraculously Delicious Turkey Burgers, which were unlike any I had made before. The turkey meat is seasoned with a purée of apples, cilantro, scallions, mango chutney, soy sauce, and spices — no eggs, breadcrumbs, mayonnaise, or oil, ingredients often used in turkey burger recipes to prevent the patties from drying out. My kids love these ...