Rant: My $5 thrift store rice cooker changed how I meal prep

I was spending way too much on those instant rice packets because I kept burning regular rice on the stove. Picked up a beat up rice cooker at Goodwill in Austin for $5 a few months back, cleaned it up, and it works perfect. Now I buy a 20lb bag of rice for $12 and it lasts me over a month. Has anyone else found a cheap appliance that actually saved you money in the long run?

3 comments

3 Comments

mileslane8d agoProlific Poster

Oh man that's a solid score! Did you have to do much to clean it up or was it just a quick wipe down? I ask because I passed on a thrift store rice cooker once cause the heating plate looked all scratched up and I wasn't sure if that would mess with how it cooked the rice even.

theas288d ago

Oh gosh, I wish it was just a quick wipe down! I'm not gonna lie, I spent a solid hour scrubbing the heating plate with a baking soda paste (because I saw it on a random YouTube video and figured, why not). The scratches on mine were pretty light though, so it didn't mess with the cooking. I figure most thrift store finds need a little elbow grease, which is my polite way of admitting I'm too cheap to buy new stuff.

felixm297d ago

The $5 rice cooker thing sounds cool and all, but I gotta wonder if scrubbing that heating plate for an hour with baking soda is really saving you money when you factor in your time. Like @theas28, you might be undervaluing your own labor a bit there. I mean, you can grab a brand new basic rice cooker at Target for like $15 on sale sometimes. Is saving that extra $10 really worth an hour of scrubbing and worrying if it's gonna mess up your rice? Not saying thrift store stuff can't be a steal, but sometimes the hassle isn't worth the tiny difference in price.