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The Complete Guide to Steaming Vegetables in Your Rice Cooker

Most rice cookers come with a plastic steamer basket that gets shoved in a drawer. Here is how to use it to perfectly steam broccoli, carrots, and fish.

By Mia Nakamura •

How the Steamer Basket Works

If your rice cooker came with a plastic or metal basket that sits inside the rim of the inner pot, you have a steamer.

You can use the steamer in two ways:

  1. Simultaneous Cooking: Steaming vegetables in the basket while rice cooks in the water below.
  2. Standalone Steaming: Putting a little water in the pot just to generate steam for the basket.

Standalone Steaming Guide

  1. Add 1.5 cups of water to the inner pot.
  2. Place the steamer basket inside. Ensure the water does not touch the bottom of the basket.
  3. Add your chopped vegetables to the basket.
  4. Close the lid and press the “Steam” button. (If your cooker only has a Cook/Warm switch, just press “Cook”).
  5. Use a kitchen timer. The rice cooker will not know when the vegetables are done. It will keep boiling until all the water is gone.

For more on this topic, see our guide on Rice Cooker Steaming Guide: Vegetables, Fish, Dumplings & More.

Steaming Times

Start checking at these intervals. Vegetables should be cut into uniform, bite-sized pieces.

For more on this topic, see our guide on How to Use Your Rice Cooker Timer (Delay Start) Properly.

  • Broccoli / Cauliflower florets: 5 - 7 minutes
  • Carrots (sliced): 10 - 12 minutes
  • Green Beans: 6 - 8 minutes
  • Asparagus: 4 - 6 minutes
  • Zucchini / Squash: 5 - 7 minutes
  • Spinach / Leafy Greens: 3 - 4 minutes
  • Fish fillet (salmon, tilapia): 8 - 10 minutes (ensure it reaches 145°F internally)

Simultaneous Cooking (Rice + Veggies)

This is the ultimate one-pot meal, but timing is critical. Vegetables cook much faster than rice.

The Rule: Do not put the vegetables in at the beginning.

  1. Start your rice normally.
  2. Set a separate kitchen timer based on the vegetable you are cooking. For example, if cooking broccoli (which takes 6 minutes), set a timer to go off 6-8 minutes before the rice is scheduled to finish.
  3. When the timer goes off, quickly open the lid, drop the steamer basket of vegetables in, and close the lid to preserve heat.
  4. Let the cycle finish. Both rice and vegetables will be done at the exact same time.