National Rice Month: Celebrating the Delicious and Nutritious Grain

As we welcome September, National Rice Month, we are excited to celebrate this delicious and nutritious grain with our sponsor, Zojirushi, and the US Rice Federation. Did you know that the US produces over 20 billion pounds of rice annually? This is a remarkable achievement, considering there are many varieties of rice grown domestically in California, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, and Arkansas.

Growing up, we always cooked our rice using a rice cooker. It was one of my chores to wash and get the rice ready for supper. I never thought about how versatile rice could be until recently when I learned how to cook it on a stove top. Using a rice cooker is easy and always cooks it perfectly. However, my new Zojirushi NP-NWC10 model has more functions than my last cooker. We can now cook different types of rice, including regular rice, sushi rice, jasmine rice, oatmeal, and even GABA brown rice.

GABA Brown Rice: A Healthier Option?

I was excited to learn about the GABA brown function on my new Zojirushi model. GABA is short for gamma-aminobutyric acid, which is supposed to be better for you. It's a technique of cooking brown rice to release more GABA. I'm intrigued by this healthier option and will definitely try it out.

Simplicity and Ease of Use

One of the features that I love about my new Zojirushi model is its simple design. The clock function is so handy because now I know exactly when my rice is ready. My last model did not have a digital screen, so I didn't really know when the rice was going to be done until it was about 15 minutes before it was finished.

Zojirushi: A Brand with History

Zojirushi started way back in 1910 as a vacuum bottle company and changed its name to Zojirushi in 1961. The 'zo' in their logo stands for strength and intelligence, which is fitting considering the brand's long history. Today, Zojirushi manufactures other appliances such as electric griddles, coffee makers, bread makers, and more.

Making Sushi Rice with Our New Model

Now that we have our new model, let's go ahead and use it to make some sushi rice! We pop open the cooker and take out the bowl. This is a five-and-a-half cup capacity cooker, which means it will cook up about 10 cups of fully cooked rice today. We're going to follow these increments to ensure perfect results.

Rinsing and Washing Our Rice

Before we start cooking our rice, we need to rinse and wash it. We take the California-grown sushi rice and run some cold water over it, agitating it, and then draining it. This process is repeated three to four times until the water is pretty clear.

Drying the Bottom and Adding Rice and Water

Now that our rice has been rinsed and washed, we need to dry the bottom of the cooker and add the right amount of rice and water. Since I added three cups of rice, I'll add water up to the three-cup level specifically for sushi rice. We close the lid and press the menu button for sushi.

Cooking Perfect Sushi Rice with Our Zojirushi Model

Now that we've started cooking our sushi rice, let's wait for it to finish. My new Zojirushi model has a digital screen that tells us exactly how many minutes are left until our rice is ready. I love this feature because I can now share the exact time with my youngest child who loves counting time. Simple pleasures like perfect sushi rice cooked to perfection using our trusty Zojirushi model make life so much easier and enjoyable.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: en(music)- Greetings my beautiful lovelies.Its Emmy and welcome back.Today's video is sponsored by Zojirushi,the makers of my favorite rice cooker.This month, September,is national rice monthand Zojirushi has joinedwith US Rice Federation incelebrating the 30th anniversaryof national rice month.Today, I'm going to be usingthis beautiful machine thatZojirushi sent me to cookrice that has been growndomestically here in the US.Did you know that the USproduces over 20 billion poundsof rice annually? 20 billion pounds!These are some of the varietiesof rice. I had no ideathere were so many differentvarieties that were growndomestically:sushi rice;jasmine rice;Texas long-grain rice;look at this beautiful purple rice;sprouted brown rice;Arborio rice.So all of these rice varietieswere grown here in the USmostly on family farms locatedin California, Louisiana,Mississippi, Texas, and Arkansas.So a big thanks to Zojirushiand the U.S. Rice Federationfor supporting my channel andfor sponsoring this video.Now today,I'm going to be combining forcesand using some domesticallygrown sushi rice,and my new Zojirushi ricecooker to test out this gadget.Look at this!This is actually a toy thatI've had for many years.I've been holding ontothis for a long time,because this looks a bit daunting.This is a toy for childrento make makizushi.So before we can even testthe gadget, we're going tohave to cook up some rice. Growing up,we always cooked ourrice using a rice cooker.Just until recently, haveI learned how to cook riceon a stove top because Ialways used a rice cooker.That was one of my assignments,my chores, was to wash andget the rice ready for supper.And, using a rice cooker,itcouldn't be any easierand it always cooks it perfectly.This is the NP--NWC10 model,and it has a lot morefunctions than my last cooker.We can cook different types ofrice, including regular rice,sushi rice, jasmine rice.It can also cook oatmealand there's a Gaba Brown function.So I just learned that GABAbrown is not a new variety ofrice. In fact,it is a technique of cookingbrown rice to release moreGABA; and GABA is short forgamma aminobutyric acid,which is supposed to be better for you.There's also a congeefunction, which cooks rice soup(one of my favorite thingsto have for breakfast); alsoporridge.So this is a much fanciermodel than my last machine.And I have to say afterspending some time using it,I quite like it: simple featureslike having a clock is sohandy because then I knowexactly when my rice is ready.My last model did not havea little digital screen,so I didn't really know whenthe rice was going to be doneuntil it was about 15 minutesbefore it was finished.It would do kind of afifteen-minute countdown.But this one specificallytells you how many minutes areleft.And I love that because I cantell my youngest child, who isvery much interested in time,exactly how much time is goingto be before dinner is ready.Simple things; simple pleasures.So, Zojirushi started way backin 1910 as a vacuum bottlecompany and changed theirname to Zojirushi in 1961and 'zo' which is theJapanese word for elephantstands for strength andintelligence. Look at that logo!So stinking cute!Zojirushi also manufacturersother appliances,including electric griddles,coffee makers, breadmakers --and I can attest to their quality.I have the electric griddleand I also have the bread makerand both of them are excellent.So, let's go ahead anduse this to make our rice.Couldn't be any easier!We pop that open andwe take this bowl out.This is a five and ahalf cup capacity cooker,which means it will cook upabout 10 cups of fully cookedrice.Today, we're going tobe making sushi rice.So we've going to follow these increments.The cooker comes with aspecific measuring cup,and we're going to becooking three cups today.So I'm going to measure out myCalifornia grown sushi rice.So we're going to take this into the sinkand we're going to runsome cold water over it,agitate it, and then drain it.And we're going to do thisthree to four times until thewater is pretty clear.Ready!So now that we've rinsedand washed our rice,we're going to dry the bottom,place it into our cooker.Since I added three cups of rice,I'm going to add water tothe three cup level here,specifically for sushi rice,and then we're going to close it.I'm going to push themenu button for sushi;and then I'm gonna hit \"start.\"And it sings me a song.So I know in 67 minutesmy rice will be complete.And while that is cooking,let's go ahead and open this up.So this is the FutomakiMaki Cook Joy sushi maker.It's made by Bandai.Here is the toy itself. Sohere are some different molds.Here is the main unit. Hereis a little rice paddle.This is a little pair oftongs to pick up the sushi.This is a component of this.This is very convenient.This is a little stand forour cards, so we can lookat our instructions whilewe're making our sushi.So there's a plastic band;and here, my lovelies,are the instructions. Isthat not intimidating?Oh my goodness.Very illustrative. There arestep-by-step illustrations,which help. And there's also YouTube,which I will also bereferencing if I get stuck.Oh my gosh! So this machineis capable of making small,medium and large sushis; andyou'll need to make thosedifferent sizes in order tomake these different designslike this Teddy bear.So, I've already washedall the components --let's put this together!So we're going to take our plastic band,and we're gonna insert this roller inside;then we're going to insertthis roller, place that here.And then we're going to insertthis last roller into here.Clip right here.All right, we have one minuteleft on my rice cooker.(plays tone)Just kidding -- that wasmore like 10 seconds.There it is: all beautifully cooked.So go underneath therice and give it a stir.Just turn it over....lightly.And if you run your rice paddleunder a little bit of waterbefore you scoop it,the rice will not stickto the rice paddle.And now we are ready to colorthis so we can make our sushi.And I'm going to be using some of this:this is Deco-Furiand this is specifically forcoloring rice for bento boxes.So in this bowl, I'mgoing to be making pink.So I'm going to add one packet of this.Look at that!Immediately it turns therice a beautiful color.What's really greatabout deco-furi is thatit's already seasoned,so we don't need to add any salt,or anything additional to this.To keep the rice from drying out,cover it with a little bit of cling film.Next, let's do a little bit of yellow.Alrighty. So the rice is prepared.Now we have to prepare the seaweed.For the large rolls,we're just going to take thenori sheet and fold it in half.The mini rolls we're goingto take the half sheetsand then fold them into quarters.And for the small rolls,we're going to cut this into eighths.So the first sushi I'mgonna attempt is this one:the heart-shaped maki-zushi.First, we're going tobegin with the heart,which is a medium-sized roll.We're going to fill this trough with rice.Now we're going to liftthis up; slide this closed;and we roll forward;and it's going to start forming the roll.Now we're going to take our nori sheet;we're going to place itinto the belt and rotate it.And look how it feedsit in! Ah, it's so cool!And you keep rotating androtating and it's wrappingthe rice in the seaweed.So stinking cool!Pick this up; pull this back;and it should reveal a rolled sushi!Look at that!I think I overstuffedthis just a little bit.We're going to take the moldthey provided to make the heartshape. So it has a V andthen two bumps on top.So we place this into this like that,and then place this on top,and then use this coverto press everything together.Press, and then we push this out,and it should give us a heart shape.Ready?Now we're going to move thissetting to the large settinghere.This is our plain sushi rice;now we're going to placethe roll that we just maderight into that bed,and then make sure there's ricesurrounding the entire roll.Close it;and rotate.Okay, its turning!A large sheet of nori and feed that in.I love how it just munches it up.So cool.Like adding machine tape or something....So cool!And then we unlock it; pull it out.And there it is!Look at that!It's so cool!Oh, one's a little bit off center....I think I put a little bit toomuch rice on the bottom and alittle too little on top,but let's go ahead and cut itand see what looks like inside.So get my knife moistened.Oh man!Okay, let's just cut itin the middle and see --it does not look like a heart at all,but at least it's in themiddle. That's great.It doesn't look like a heart,but let's go ahead and give it a taste.Here we go. Itadakimasu!So it definitely needs someshoyu or some soy sauce and somewasabi, but not too bad.And I love the texture of sushi rice.The rice cooker cookedthe sushi rice perfectly:it's tender while being sticky,but my sushi makingskills on the other handcould definitely use some improvement.So, let's make some more.So let's tackle this one nextand this one makes a cutelittle pink flower.Adjust this for the small setting,moving the roller to the S.Again, fill the trough; roll it.Get the seaweed; roll it in.So stinking cool.Pull this back.And look! We have the perfect little roll;little cigar...of rice.Oh the little ones are so cute!So I'm going to do this five more timesso we have the petals for the flower.So we're going to stack these upwith the asparagus in the middle,and then we're going totake this belt of seaweedand hold it together.Make a little bed of rice;place our bundle in there --you want to completely surround it --This is my favorite part,Just love how it eats it up.There we have it: the perfect roll!I'm going to cut thesealtogether. So I made the flower.Let's go ahead and trymaking the kittycat.So what we do is wetake our two pink rollsand place them in the trough here.And then we smush it, andthat will give us this kind oftriangular shape.There we have it.That's going to be thetop of the kitty's head:two pieces of asparagus.And these are going tobe the eyes of kitty.So one eye here, one here;we put some rice in between that space.Now we're going to placethe nose of the kitty.And this is a piece of carrotthat's been cut into a triangular shapeand we're going to have it pointing up.I'm going to put the onepiece here and one piece here.And then fill this all back up with rice.And now we're just going tocover the whole thing with thelayer of rice.And roll it.Hopefully it will be a kitty.In goes the nori --again, my favorite part.Let's pop it out.That's so great.Oh my gosh, I think it mightlook like an actual kitty!Okay. This is exciting!Alrighty, lovelies,now for the moment of truth:we're going to cut thesemaki-zushi in cross sectionand see how we did.I'm gonna cut the ends off first.Hey, I think we did all right!Yeah!Look!There's the flower.Yes, yes, way better than my heart.Look at that.That looks awesome. Cut the end off.Not so great there, butthat's just the end.So let's go ahead.Ah! Look, it's the kitty's face. Nice.There's the kitty's face --a couple pieces for the ears.We need some various thin strips.Now it'll look more like akitty -- otherwise itlooks more like a bear.There it is: the kitty!So pleased with that.Here are my finished maki-zushi --aren't they stinking cute?I'm so pleased with how they turned out,especially after myfirst run with the heart.These turned out great.Look at that cat dish, so cuteLet's eat the flower.Itadakimasu!It's a very big bite.That little bit of deco-furithat we added gives a littlebit of kind of savoriness...It's not really tangy likesushi rice normally wouldbe, but it does give it some flavor.But once you add the shoyu and the wasabi,it just rounds it out completely:the wasabi gives it a littlebit of this kind of spicy kick,but not spicy chili,kind of more of a sinus-y kind of spiceand delicious mustardy-like flavor.And then you've got that richsaltiness from the soy sauce,which goes so nicely with thenori or the seaweed on theoutside of the maki-zushi.Although these look very complex,these are very simple in flavor.You can make a traditionalmaki-zushi with imitation crab,a little bit of fish row ora little bit of egg inside.You could add all kinds offlavorful additions inside for amore traditional and flavorful maki-zushi.All in all, I'm very pleasedwith how this machine worked.I think kids would love to do this.It does have a bit of a learning curve,but once you figure out howto roll the little individualrolls, it actually goesalong pretty quickly.Alrighty, my beautiful lovelies,thanks so much for tuning inand big thanks to Zojirushiand the US Rice Federationfor sponsoring this video.If you'd like to learn moreabout Zojirushi and theirproducts head over to www.zojirushi.com.And if you'd like tolearn more about USA Rice,head to www.usarice.com.Thanks again for watching.I hope you enjoyed that one.I hope you learned something.Please share this video with your friends;follow me on social media;like this video; subscribe;and I shall see you in the next one!Toodle-oo!Take care. Bye!(music)\n"