Rice cooker chicken rice is easy, comforting, and delicious with umami rich flavors. It has shiitake mushrooms, carrots, juicy chicken thighs and Japanese rice, cooked all in one pot!
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Great thing about this recipe is that it does not require any hands-on cooking! All you need to do is to soak the rice, place all ingredients in the rice cooker, and press the start button.
Despite the easy process, rice cooker chicken rice is packed full of natural umami from chicken, soy sauce, and shiitake mushrooms. The rice soaks up all the delicious flavors to the fullest, making this dish addictively tasty.
Ingredients for this recipe
- Japanese short grain rice
- Shiitake mushrooms
- Carrot
- Boneless skinless chicken thigh
- Tamari soy sauce
- Sake
For rice:
- Water
- Sake
- Tamari soy sauce
- Sugar
How to make rice cooker chicken rice
1. Wash rice. Place the rice in a bowl and cover with water. Gently swirl the rice with your hands to release excess starch. Drain the water and repeat the same 3-4 times until the water becomes cleaner. Cover with water and let soak for 30 minutes.
2. Prepare the rest of the ingredients. For the mushrooms, remove the stems and slice thinly. For the carrot, peel and cut into short matchsticks. For the chicken, cut into half-a-bite size pieces and combine with 1 tablespoon each of tamari and sake in a bowl.
3. Cook. Transfer drained rice to your rice cooker. Add 1 ¼ cup water, sake, tamari, and sugar. Arrange carrots, mushrooms, and chicken on top. Cook in regular rice cooking mode.
4. Serve. Fluff up the rice using a rice paddle. Serve with thinly sliced scallions.
*See the recipe card below for detailed instructions.
Tips
- Once you add vegetables and chicken to the rice cooker, do not mix them into the rice as it prevents the rice from cooking evenly.
- Measuring cup that comes with a Japanese rice cooker is normally 180ml. Do not get that mixed up with a US measuring cup (237ml). This recipe uses a US measuring cup to measure the rice and liquid volume.
FAQs
As you can see, Japanese short grain rice has a thicker and plump shape compared to longer grains such as jasmine or basmati rice. It is also higher in starch and absorbs more water. Soaking helps to cook evenly and fully, with a chewer texture.
Also, this recipe cooks rice with a seasoning mix which slows down the liquid absorption into rice. To prevent the rice from getting undercooked, it is so important to soak in pure water before cooking in the rice cooker!
Rice cooker chicken rice can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days, covered tightly. Microwave, or cook with a little amount of oil over the stovetop to reheat.
It can also be kept frozen for up to 1 month. Split into smaller batches first, or wrap into small rice balls for easier portion control.
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Recipe
Japanese Rice Cooker Chicken Rice
Equipment
- 1 rice cooker I use 5.5 cup size
Ingredients
- 1½ cup Japanese short grain rice uncooked
- 4 shiitake mushrooms
- 1 medium carrot
- 7 ounces boneless skinless chicken thigh 1 piece
- 1 tablespoon tamari soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sake
For rice
- 1¼ cup water
- 1 tablespoon sake
- 1 tablespoon tamari soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons sugar
Toppings (optional)
- Thinly sliced scallions
- Roasted white sesame
Instructions
- Place rice in a bowl and cover with cold water. Gently swirl the rice with your hands to release excess starch. Drain the water and repeat the same 3-4 times until the water becomes cleaner. Cover with water and let soak for 30 minutes.
- While soaking rice, prepare the rest of the ingredients. For the mushrooms, remove the stems and slice thinly. For the carrot, peel and cut into short matchsticks. For the chicken, cut into half-a-bite size pieces and combine with 1 tablespoon each of tamari and sake in a bowl.
- Once the rice has finished soaking, drain well using a strainer. Transfer the rice to your rice cooker. Add 1 ¼ cup water, sake, tamari, and sugar.
- Arrange carrots, mushrooms, and chicken on top. (do not mix into the rice)
- Cook in regular rice cooking mode.
- Fluff up the rice using a rice paddle. Serve with thinly sliced scallions.
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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