#FrannyCooks : Sausage and Mushroom Rice with Tiger Tacook Rice Cooker

Just tonight, I came across a funny joke. It goes like this:

Me: I'm good at multi-tasking

God: Here, have twins.

I must admit that I have said this line way too many times during job interviews from the time that I've graduated from my university up until my days in the Lion City. Funny thing is, I don't recall telling this to my current boss when she interviewed me last year. Can't really remember why I didn't but well, my plate has been overloaded from the day my twins came into this world and I think that will remain that way up until they probably graduate from college or when I retire..whichever comes first. Thankfully though, being a multi-tasker is normal in today's world. Gone are the days when we have the luxury to do one task at a time. In order to get things done while keeping your sanity intact, you just gotta hustle all day, every day. 

I got to thank technology for making our lives easier. Not wanting to sound like a tech-crazy millennial but it's true! We now have equipments, gadgets and appliances that can help us get the job done in record time. Just recently, Paul and I were invited to the demo of Chef Kai San of Tiger Philippines where he made 3 yummy dishes using a variety of Tiger kitchen appliances. One that stood out was his Japanese Cheesecake which was made using a rice cooker. Yes. A real, fluffy and yummy cake from a rice cooker. Indeed, we can make more things than just cook rice in a rice cooker. The Tiger Tacook Rice Cooker (Php. 10,000) can make congee, rice, steam your meat and bake simple cakes too. 

My family has been long time users of Tiger from our lunch boxes which we brought to school, to our water bottles and even our current rice cooker is also the slightly older version but very similar to the Tacook Rice Cooker as it has multiple functions took like make porridge, various types of rice and more. 

Here's what you get together with your Tiger Tacook Rice Cooker -- recipe book, user manual, a rice paddle, measuring cup, orange cooking plate and the 220v electric cord. 

Now, it's time to test the capabilities of the Tiger Tacook Rice Cooker. I've always been dreaming of making something like the Hokkien Kiam Peng or the Claypot Chicken, Mushroom and Sausage Rice of Hong Kong but I wasn't so sure how. It was just fate that I chanced upon my cousin S' Instagram story where she made a super simple Sausage and Spareribs Rice for our niece J which prompted me to send her a message asking her for the recipe. She just told me that she made use of 5 ingredients -- rice, spareribs, mushrooms, sausage and soy sauce. She mixed them all together and tadah! Hong Kong-style Claypot Rice which our niece apparently enjoyed. 

You all know how picky little L can be so hearing this challenged me to try my own version in hopes that my twins will like it. I wasn't able to buy spareribs so I made added Chinese mustard greens (kua tsai) instead to teach my kids to eat veggies. I also got a pack of store-bought siomai (siu mai) to go with the rice so it will be one complete meal all together. 

Thus, presenting my very own Sausage and Mushroom Rice using the Tiger Tacook Rice Cooker.

Here's what you'll need:

- 3 cups of uncooked rice, wash this thoroughly 

- Chinese mustard leaves (kua tsai), cleaned and chopped

- 3 pcs Chinese sausage, chopped into bite-sized pieces

- 5-6 pcs of shiitake mushroom, re-hydated in water and chopped into bite-sized portions

- 5 tbsp light soy sauce

- 1/2 cup minced garlic 

- pepper to taste 

- store-bought sio mai / or any dimsum that you like 

Do this in 7 steps:

1) Add all ingredients except for the pepper into the inner lid 

2) Add 4.5 cups of water (ratio is 1:1.5)

3) On the orange cooking plate, assemble your siomai and make sure not to cover any of the steaming holes for better and safe cooking 

4) Put both inner lid and cooking plate inside the rice cooker and close the lid. 

5) Press "synchro-cooking" and then "Start". Wait for 60 minutes for the magic to happen. :) 

6) As soon as the rice cooker beeps, carefully open the top lid and lift the cooking plate out. Give the rice a quick fluff and add a bit of black pepper to taste. 

7) Bon appetit! 

The Tiger Tacook Rice Cooker is available at select department stores like SM Homeworld, Robinsons Department Store, Landmark and via the official Tiger online store and in Lazada too.