Mini Rice Cooker Tomato Rice 迷你电饭锅番茄饭

There was a craze for whole tomato rice cooker rice about a year ago. The rice was simple to prepare - just add a raw whole tomato over the rice and cook. However, I felt the taste of the tomato was a bit raw. To me, only through heating and frying in hot oil, the nice aroma of the garlic, onion and tomato can be released.

In this recipe, garlic, onion and tomato were first stir-fry before adding the rice to cook. The result was a nice frangrant rice with nice orange colour 😋

I use a simple mini rice cooker with a spring thermostat to prepare this meal. In other words, the rice cooker could not  turn on the "Cooking function" without a lid, or insufficient food weight in the pot. Therefore, in the initial stage of cooking, I have to close and open the lid several times. The process would be much easier if it was prepared in a advanced rice cooker. Just select the "Quick Cook" function to start ccoking :)

Yield: 3 adult portions

Ingredients 

1 1/2 cup rice 米

1 clove garlic, chopped  蒜蓉

1/2 onion, diced 大葱丁

1/2 stalk celery, sliced 西芹片

1 ripe tomato, peel and diced 去皮番茄丁

1/2 tsp light soya sauce 新抽

2 tsp tomato paste 浓番茄酱

1/4 tsp coarse black pepper 黑胡椒碎

Water or chicken stock 水或鸡汤

Salt & sugar to taste 盐和糖适量

Directions

1. Rinse and soak rice for about 20 to 30 minutes.

2. Prepare the ingredients accordingly.

3. Before cooking starts, submerge soaked rice in water to about 1cm deep. By measuring the water this way, you would not over add the water after the other ingredients have been added.

4. Add about 2 tsp of olive oil and chopped garlic to the rice cooker pot. 

 

Cover with a lid and turn on the "Cooking" button.

Wait for the garlic to become fragrant, then stir in the diced onion. Close the lid and wait for the onion to release the frangrance.

Stir the ingredients occasionally.

5. Add in the light soya sauce, then followed by celery and diced tomato. Close the lid and let the ingredients heat up for about 3 minutes. 

6. Add in tomato paste, sugar, salt and coarse black pepper. Stir till all the ingredients are well mixed.

7. Pour in the rice and water.

8. Add salt and seasoning powder to taste. Cover and let the rice cooking process continues.

If you are using chicken stock, then you need not add the seasoning powder.

9. When the thermostat switches to "keep warm" mode, allow the process to continue for 10 minutes before switching off the power.

10. After the power supply has been cut off, let the rice sit in the rice cooker for about 20 minutes to let the rice dry up.

If you stir the rice too early before waiting for the content to dry up partially, the rice grains would be sticky.

11. Loosen the rice with a spatula and give it a brief mix before serving 😄

Serving with pan-fried honey pork belly and Japanese cucumber :)