No need to over-think things because I've already done so. This is a rice cooker. There is no fuzzy logic. There aren't different settings. It cooks rice when you press the button. That's it. (For more info, see "SCIENCE!" at the end of this review.)

We got a rice cooker to sit along side our Instant Pot because I like the rice and Instant Pot whatever-we-made to be ready at the same time.

1) The pot is actual true all-the-way through stainless steel. No non-stick coating. That is why we bought it. The base of the pot is shaped to sit flat on the heating element and transfer as much heat as possible up to the pot.

2) I cook rice/quinoa with a pat of butter for flavor and to prevent sticking. However, if left in "Keep Warm" for long enough (an hour or so), rice will stick to the bottom of the inner pot. The solution? Unplug the unit after serving out seconds to prevent crispy rice in the bottom. And if rice does stick, a quiet soak in the sink for a bit will loosen the hangers-on.

3) I measure the rice into the inner pot, rinse the rice twice (cold water to over the top of the rice, swirl, and drain) before cooking. This washes some of the starch off the outside of the rice kernel and makes it taste and behave more like restaurant rice. My understanding is that brown rice must be extra rinsed to ensure it a) doesn't cause the pit to bubble over and b) doesn't come out a sticky gloppy mess.

4) I use the cup that came with the pot. This 1-gou measure is needed to use the fill numbers on the side of the pot ... 3 gou of rice, fill the pot with water to the #3 mark on the pot, press play.

5) I bought the Asurion 4-year warranty on it. Why? Because no matter what model of rice pot you look at, under the $150 price point, the chances are simply higher, due to quality control standards, that the pot's element or thermocouple (see below) will go bad at some point. For the 2 bucks or so extra it cost me, if the pot shoots craps, I get a new one.

That's it. So far, this little beauty is doing fine.

SCIENCE! How does it know when your rice is done? The same way your furnace knows that the room has reached a comfortable temperature. Inside the heating unit, there's a thermocouple (temperature-activated switch) that keeps the heating element on as long as the temp in the pot continues to read 212 degrees F, the temp at which water boils. When all the water has boiled off, the temp inside the pot begins to rise and the thermocouple turns off the high heat.

14 cups cooked rice my derriere. "For most rice, use a 1:2 ratio of one cup of rice to two cups of water". The ratio will vary by type of rice and how wet, dry or "toothy" you prefer your rice. The "7" marking is far to close to the top of the pan/lid. Cooking rice tends to foam a fair amount. if the pot is too full you will have foam and liquid running everywhere over the top. Don't fill to over the "6" mark. the "5" would be safer.
I filled the pot to the "7" mark. It took 9 cups of water. With a 2:1 ratio, that means you can put 6 cups water : 3 cups uncooked rice = max. 9 cups cooked rice. And, again you will have a mess to clean up. Nowhere near 14 cups of cooked rice. So practically speaking, you can expect to get maybe 7 cups of cooked long grain white rice (most popular with Americans) while avoiding the mess of a boil over. (that would be 2 1/3 cups uncooked rice and fill water to between 5 & 6 marks. So, if they used honest advertising they would be selling this as 2.5 cup uncooked / 7 cup cooked rice capacity. I do love the stainless Steel inner pot though. If the real capacity held 3 more cups, I'd keep it. As it is, this thing is going back.

Ever since the Teflon / PTFE scare, my parents have been on a mad scramble to replace their kitchen supplies with non-Teflon alternatives: cast iron skillets, carbon steel skillets, aluminum baking sheets, and more recently their rice maker?

While I remember how awesome our Tiger rice cooker was while I was growing up, I definitely remember how scratched up the bottom got over time. This is part of a new breed of rice cookers that offers and alternative to having a non-stick rice cooker bowl. Although super basic, and without all the timing functions of the Zojirushis or Tigers, it does the job and without Teflon. If you cook rice enough, and use proper water measurements, you should have no issues with rice sticking to the bottom of this cooker. All the rice comes out fine and usually the residue layer at the bottom is similar to that of the other fancy rice cookers. It's not a burnt up layer of rice but something more akin to if you had a ball of rice and used it like a ink stamp over an entire plate, you would get the same kind of residue. Usually, I'll just let it soak for about 15-20 minutes and it'll all come right off without scratching the bowl.

Why I'm docking one star: When I first got my cooker, it had some factory oils inside the unit that eventually got all burnt off after using the unit probably around 4-5 times. Prior to that, it gave off a slightly unpleasant smell and made me wonder if the unit I received was defective.

I cooked 1 cup of rice with a little over 2 cups of water. As warned, the rice did stick to the bottom of pan. The rice water spilled out of the vent hole in the cover. Perhaps I did not rinse the uncooked enough? I also bought the steamer insert but have not used this yet. I would probably use it only as a steamer due to excess water spill with rice. This is a nice looking little steamer and small enough to store easily. I will continue to use and revisit my rating if the pot cooks with less boiling over. The rice cooked nicely and the cooker flipped to warm at the appropriate time. The stainless stell unit is easy to clean and even the stuck on rice scraped away easily with a short water soak.

Don't buy it. This rice cooker is dangerous. It spits and splatters the contents and hot water within a 1 metre radius. We can't use it as a result. I can't seem to contact anyone from Aroma via this website to request a refund and return the product.