Is the Black+Decker rice cooker worth it for regular rice nights?
Worth it, if rice is a regular part of your week
Why stovetop rice keeps letting you down
You've stood over a pot of rice, lid cracked open, watching the clock and hoping this isn't the batch that sticks to the bottom or turns to mush. Lift the lid too soon and the steam escapes before it's finished its job. Wait too long and you've got a scorched crust fused to the pan. That's the coin flip every stovetop cook knows, and it's the exact problem a rice cooker like the Black+Decker is built to end quietly, on its own, without you standing guard.
How the black and decker rice cooker actually works
Here's what I'd want to know first: a rice cooker doesn't watch a clock, it watches temperature. Water boils at 212°F and won't climb past that as long as there's still water in the pot, because the extra energy goes into turning water to steam instead of raising the heat. So the cooker just runs on full power the whole time, no thinking required, right up until the rice has soaked up every drop. The moment the water's gone, there's nothing left to absorb the heat, and the pot's temperature jumps past that 212°F ceiling in seconds. A thermostat inside is watching for exactly that jump, and when it happens, it trips the switch from cook to warm. That's the whole trick behind the little click you hear: it's not a timer, it's a thermometer. That's also why the steaming basket that comes with this one earns its keep. It sits above the rice, catching the same rising steam instead of wasting it, so a handful of broccoli or a piece of salmon cooks through while the rice finishes below. One pot, one burner spot, two parts of dinner done at once. It's sized around three pounds of dry rice, which is a household that eats rice several times a week, not a caterer's kitchen, and the dishwasher-safe bowl means the sticky part isn't a hand-wash chore.
So this isn't really a rice appliance, it's a switch that knows when to stop guessing on your behalf. Once you see that, the steaming basket stops looking like a bonus and starts looking like the reason to pick this over a plain pot: the same trick that ends rice on time also cooks your vegetables for free.
Who this rice cooker is for, and who should skip it
Worth it if
- rice is a staple in your weekly cooking
- you want consistent results without watching a pot
- you like the idea of steaming vegetables or fish while rice cooks below
- you want a small, simple appliance that doesn't take up much counter space
Skip it if
- you cook rice only occasionally
- you prefer full control over stovetop texture
- you regularly cook for a crowd larger than a 3-pound batch supports
It's not for someone who only eats rice occasionally, or who genuinely enjoys tending a stovetop pot.
The black and decker rice cooker verdict
If rice is a regular part of your week, this is a quiet yes: set it, forget it, get on with the rest of dinner. If you cook rice once a month, or you genuinely like babysitting a pot for the control of it, save the counter space.
Day one with this looks like starting the rice, walking away to chop vegetables or set the table, and coming back to a pot that's already switched itself to warm, no scorched layer waiting for you. That's the whole payoff: one less thing to watch while everything else in dinner is happening. With well over thirty thousand ratings behind it, the recurring theme from people who actually cook with it is exactly that, rice that comes out the same way every time without them standing over it.
Amazon shoppers rate it 4 out of 5 across 36,855 ratings. That is their number, not ours.
Before you go
How do I cook rice in a black & decker rice cooker?
Measure your rice, rinse it if you want less starch, add water to the marked level, close the lid, and press the switch down; it flips itself to warm once the rice has absorbed the water.
How much water to put in a black and decker rice cooker?
Use the marked lines on the included cup as your guide, generally around 1 to 1.5 cups of water per cup of white rice, with more for brown rice.
Is it 2 cups of water to 1 cup of rice in a rice cooker?
That's close for some rice types, but white rice usually needs closer to 1.5 to 2 cups of water per cup of rice, while brown rice needs a bit more.
What is the ratio of rice to water in a rice cooker?
A common starting point is 1 cup of rice to about 1 to 1.5 cups of water for white rice, adjusted upward for brown or wild rice.
By the numbers
earn an unconditional yes at full priceOut of 243 kitchen products we have reviewed, and this is one of them.
other reviews field the same questionHow do I cook rice in a black & decker rice cooker?
comes up across our kitchen coverage, not just here — one of the things worth settling before you choose.
Verdict datasetQuestion indexCC BY 4.0
Full spec sheet
| Brand | BLACK+DECKER |
|---|---|
| Capacity | 3 pounds |
| Product Dimensions | 5.5"D x 10"W x 9"H |
| Power Source | Corded Electric |
| Product Care Instructions | Dishwasher Safe, Hand Wash |
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