12 Cup Rice and Grain Cooker vs Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer: which is safer?
Instant Pot 12 Cup Rice and Grain Cooker is the clear pick. Zojirushi Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer carries a failing PFAS grade, and we never recommend buying a failing product.
Our pick
Instant Pot
12 Cup Rice and Grain Cooker
PFAS grade
Overall grade
Verdict
Hazard flags
Material
Confidence
PossibleStainless steel corrosion and metal leaching
PossibleSilicone gasket degradation and off-gassing
PossibleBacterial growth in water reservoir or seal cavities
Zojirushi
Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer
PFAS grade
Overall grade
Verdict
Hazard flags
Material
Confidence
PossibleTeflon-type coating fume risk (thermal decomposition)
ReportedCoating degradation and flaking
LikelyUnspecified non-stick chemistry identity
Where these two actually differ
- We flag Stainless steel corrosion and metal leaching, Silicone gasket degradation and off-gassing and Bacterial growth in water reservoir or seal cavities on the Instant Pot and not on the Zojirushi.
- We flag PTFE fume risk (thermal decomposition), Coating degradation and flaking and Unspecified non-stick chemistry identity on the Zojirushi and not on the Instant Pot.
- The Instant Pot is Stainless steel pot with no nonstick coating where the Zojirushi is Stainless steel inner pot, aluminum heating plate, non-stick inner surface (coating unspecified), which is most of the difference in these two grades.
- The gap is 40 points, wide enough that this is not a close call, and the Instant Pot is the one to buy.
Both products run through the same public rubric, which covers materials, coatings, brand disclosure, lab findings, and recalls, plus a beyond-PFAS hazard analysis. Grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests. How grades work →
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