I wonder if you have noticed that the electric rice cooker at home, especially the inner liner, has scratched and stuck to the pot after "long wind and frost"?

Not surprisingly, it is believed that the rice cookers in many families will inevitably appear the bleak scene in the above figure after long-term use. Although the idea of replacing the over aged rice cookers at home has also been moved, due to the face of their parents, they dare not "do it" for a long time. So the question is, will scratching the inner bladder affect our eating health?

Is the falling off of liner coating harmful to human body?

Like ordinary non stick pots, the inner liner of rice cookers at home also has a non stick coating, which is generally made of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), commonly known as Teflon.

Generally speaking, the scratched coating will produce debris, which may be inadvertently eaten with rice. But at present, the regular Teflon has been non-toxic and harmless. It is not toxic to eat it with food. Don't be too alarmed.

Therefore, if the coating is scratched, it will actually lead to the gradual expansion of the damaged area of the inner tank of the electric rice cooker, which is easier to stick to the pot, and the difficulty of cleaning will also increase. And if the cleaning is not complete, there will be some invisible food residues hidden on the inner tank, so as to breed bacteria.

In this case, we will see that the inner container covered with rice grains is vigorously scrubbed by parents with steel ball. The harder parents rub, the faster the coating falls, the more sticky the pot, so as to fall into a dead cycle.

At the same time, there is a health problem that will follow. Because the inner tank coating is damaged, it will make food easier to zoom and produce acrylamide and other substances that may cause cancer to humans.

In addition to ensuring that cooking does not stick to the pot, the coating also plays a role in protecting the underlying metal substrate. At present, the main base material of electric rice cooker liner is mostly aluminum alloy. If it is still used after the coating falls off, aluminum may be dissolved.

Price is the key to determine the material of the liner?

After reading this, you may have a question: will the more expensive rice cooker coating be more wear-resistant?

At present, the inner layer of electric rice cooker sold on the market is generally sprayed with two layers, one is wear-resistant layer and the other is PTFE non stick layer. Some high-end products will use three to four layers to make the coating more firm, and the natural price will be more expensive.

For example, some high-end rice cookers will add a PFA powder coating. Although it is essentially an organic fluorine coating like Teflon, it has fewer pores, is more resistant to salt water corrosion and has a long service life.

In addition, some of the current high-end rice cooker products still use more wear-resistant and high-temperature resistant ceramic coatings. Using the non stick performance of ceramics, scratch resistance and wear resistance, it also increases the far-infrared heating performance of the electric rice cooker, makes cooking faster, and the hardness of the inner tank is 3 to 4 times that of the ordinary inner tank. But the disadvantages are obvious. The non stick performance will decay rapidly with the number of cooking times.

Generally speaking, regular rice cooker products are strictly tested, but the more expensive the price, the higher the requirements will be. Therefore, the service life of high-end liner will be longer. However, as long as it is guaranteed to be purchased through formal channels, the quality will be guaranteed.

If the liner coating is damaged, can it still be used?

It has just been mentioned that the coating plays a protective role. However, as a household appliance with high daily use frequency, it is inevitable that the liner coating will be damaged after long-term use. Can it continue to be used?

If the coating falls off seriously, as shown in the picture, it is recommended to replace it! Although the precipitation of heavy metals is a long-term process, it can't take this risk. More importantly, the damage of the coating will also affect the heat conduction of the inner tank, resulting in pot sticking or uneven heating.

However, if you don't consider replacing the rice cooker for the time being, you might as well try the following methods to prolong the service life of the rice cooker at home as much as possible.

First of all, in the ordinary use process, try to avoid the use of metal shovels, and try to use supporting heat-resistant silicone shovels or wooden shovels. When flushing, do not directly flush the hot pot with cold water, because cold and hot trading may also lead to accelerated coating falling off.

If the coating has been scratched and damaged, do not cook food containing more acids frequently for a long time to avoid chemical reaction with the inner aluminum alloy.

Finally, when cleaning, try to avoid using sharp cleaning items such as steel ball. Generally speaking, sponge or soft cloth and detergent are enough.


To sum up, if you continue to cook after the inner liner of the old rice cooker is scratched, it will not affect human health in a short time, but it is recommended that friends buy another one. When selecting rice cookers, you can choose ones with slightly higher prices within the budget. Of course, no matter how expensive the rice cooker is, it actually has a service life. If you want to prolong it, it is more important to use and clean it correctly.