I had never heard of a Zojurushi until your post so I went to Amazon to look one up. I was expecting to see some higher priced devices but they weren’t that bad. They also had a instant pot on the same page. Like you there are many different dishes that go great with rice that I love. My father in law spent a few tours in Vietnam and won’t eat anything with rice which I guess I understand. Just like my father wouldn’t allow Spam in our house after his time in WW2.