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9 Best Ethnic Rice Cooker Meals for Seniors

March 22, 2022 By Victoria Mongiardo Leave a Comment

A meal in a rice cooker, highlighting the idea of ethnic rice cooker meals for seniors

Rice cooker meals have been a super popular trend in recent years as they have been known for their ease and convenience. It’s undoubtedly an excellent way to create easy-to-make meals entirely in one pot.

A rice cooker is perfect for everyone, but rice cooker meals for seniors are particularly good. After all, a rice cooker makes soft and tasty foods that can be quickly prepared without much effort. You can often avoid a hot stove entirely too, making the whole process safe and simple.

You just need to throw the ingredients into the rice cooker, and they come out ready to be eaten! Here are my top picks of rice cooker meals for seniors.

They’re all inspired by ethnic recipes, which means they have plenty of flavor. This is an important feature, the ability to taste often declines with age. Food that’s rich in spices can help encourage seniors to eat. Plus, those spices offer health benefits too.    

Rice Cooker Meals for Seniors

  • Korean Congee
  • Spanish Paella
  • Mexican Arroz Con Leche
  • Italian Mushroom Risotto
  • Chinese Sausage and Rice
  • Indian Chicken Biryani
  • Chinese Fried Rice
  • Cajun Sausage Jambalaya
  • Chinese Steamed Egg

Korean Congee

Rice Congee from Freshness GF

Image and Recipe from Freshness GF

A bowl of Korean congee is tasty, easy-to-make comfort food that can be enjoyed for breakfast, lunch, or dinner! Korean congee, or Dak Juk, is a smooth and warming rice porridge that is soft and easy to eat.

It is the perfect dish for a cold day or when you are sick. It is also super nutritious with plenty of protein and vegetables, making it a nice meal for seniors who need extra vitamins and nutrients.

You can get as creative with the ingredients as you want, but most traditional add-ins include shredded chicken, abalone, jujubes, pumpkin, eggs, and various nuts.

Spanish Paella

Paella with shrimp, highlighting rice cooker meals for seniors

Recipe from Family Cookbook Project

Spice up your day with Spanish paella! Paella is a classic Spanish rice dish that is filled with intense flavors of saffron, cumin, and paprika. Although paella is traditionally cooked in a large frying pan called a paellera, a super easy version can be made with a rice cooker.

Rice cooker paella has all the same flavors but takes half the time to make! The rice is a fluffy yellow spiced rice with lots of ingredients. Some paellas are made with seafood, while others are made with vegetables or meat.

Paella is a filling and traditional Spanish meal that all seniors should definitely try! Seriously, it’s one of the best rice cooker meals for seniors.

Mexican Arroz Con Leche

Mexican Arroz Con Leche

Recipe from New Mom in a New Era

This sweet, creamy rice pudding is an excellent dessert for seniors since it isn’t overly loaded with sugar. You can also adjust the ingredients to be friendly for people with diabetes.

Arroz Con Leche is a traditional Mexican dessert or breakfast that uses only a few simple ingredients that can usually be found in any home.

The ingredients include white rice, milk, condensed milk, evaporated milk, cinnamon sticks, and sugar. The rice cooker version of Arroz Con Leche also makes this dessert the perfect casual treat to whip up at a moment’s notice.

Italian Mushroom Risotto

Rice Cooker Mushroom Risotto

Image and Recipe from Let’s Dish

This easy mushroom risotto will make any senior feel like they are touring the gorgeous Northern Italian cities. Mushroom risotto originates from the Lombardy regions of Italy, and it is a rice dish that is creamy with butter, starch, and parmesan cheese.

The mushrooms also give the risotto a tasty, earthy flavor that makes this dish so elegant.

This sophisticated dish is easy to chew and will be an easy but excellent gourmet meal for seniors. Risotto can also be made with seafood, sausages, or pumpkin, so try out the different risotto recipes and see what you like best.

Chinese Sausage and Rice

Chinese Sausage and Rice

Recipe from The Woks of Life

Chinese sausage and rice, or Lap Cheong fan, is a rice cooker meal that consists of sweet and crispy sausage and rice. This meal is so easy that all Chinese children know how to make it. All you need is rice and Chinese sausage. You can also flavor it with soy sauce mixed with rice wine, sugar, and garlic.

This sausage is an excellent alternative to hot dogs since it is sweet and flavorful. The rice also absorbs the many flavors, making it the perfect combination with the unique sausage.

The simple ingredients make this an easy dish for everyone to enjoy! As rice cooker meals for seniors go, what could be better?

Indian Chicken Biryani

Indian Chicken Biryani

Recipe from Cooking 4 All Seasons

Chicken biryani is a beloved South Indian spiced rice dish with juicy chicken. The rice cooker version uses the moisture from the water and the chicken to make fluffy and flavorful rice.

The soft chicken and rice make biryani a great meal for seniors with sensitive gums. This savory chicken and rice dish has layered pieces of marinated chicken, giving the dish a rich curry flavor.

The spiced and fragrant aromas from biryani make this dish a crowd favorite.

Chinese Fried Rice

Fried rice on a white plate

Recipe from Food.com

Fried rice is a Chinese food staple that was traditionally made from leftover peas, carrots, meats, and eggs from other meals. The lightly seasoned nature of fried rice makes it enjoyable for even the pickiest eaters.

Rice cooker fried rice is super easy to make since you don’t need to use any extra dishes. Everything can be cooked directly in the rice cooker.

There is also no one way to make fried rice, so add any ingredients you want and leave out those you do not like. Bacon and Chinese sausage are also tasty additions since they are salty and flavorful.

Cajun Sausage Jambalaya

Cajun Sausage Jambalaya

Recipe from Ashlee Marie

Jambalaya is a Cajun dish that is made with loads of spices and ingredients. This dish is one of Louisiana’s favorites, and it traditionally has chicken, sausage, or seafood. Jambalaya also has bell peppers, onions, and celery.

This dish makes it easy for seniors to get a fully balanced meal with just the push of the rice cooker button. You can dish it up with a side of cornbread, fresh baguette, or corn on the cob to balance out some of the intense flavors.

Chinese Steamed Egg

Chinese Steamed Egg

Recipe from Red House Spice

Since rice cookers were developed in Asia, it’s no surprise that many rice cooker recipes are Asian. This silky, savory Chinese steamed egg recipe is a satisfying dish that’s perfect for breakfast or even as a snack. The soft and silky egg almost tastes like a custard or pudding, and it is one of the easiest dishes you can make.

All you need to do is beat the eggs, add some water, and steam the mixture in a bowl. You can also add some soy sauce on top with chopped green onions for even more flavor.

This Chinese steamed egg dish is smooth and creamy with a delicate texture that makes it melt in your mouth. 

Final Thoughts

All of these meals, and many others, can be easily made using a rice cooker. Doing so is a powerful approach, saving you time and energy. A rice cooker may also give seniors a sense of independence in the kitchen, particularly if they can’t easily use the stovetop.

There’s a question, though, which rice cooker should you use to make rice cooker meals for seniors? There are countless options on the market, all with their own features.

A good starting point is the Aroma Housewares Rice Cooker. This has rice cooking and steaming functions, allowing you to cook full meals in it. The model holds up to 6 cups of rice, which should be enough for most seniors.

This rice cooker doesn’t have a myriad of functions but doesn’t need them either. Instead, it’s an inexpensive product that does exactly what it is designed for.

There’s also the Aroma Housewares 20 Cup Rice Cooker, for those wanting more features. This one has separate settings for white rice and brown rice, along with a delay timer, keep warm, and flash rice options. It can also function as a slow cooker or steam cooker. There’s even a professional version that offers still more functions.

Finally, you could step things up further and turn to an Instant Pot. An Instant Pot is primarily a pressure cooker and a slow cooker, but there are other functions too, including rice cooking, simmering, and more. It’s the ultimate add-on to your kitchen, making healthy food a breeze to prepare.

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