Zojirushi NW-YAQ Review: What Pressure IH Does to Rice, and Who Should Pay for It

Last updated: 27 October 2026

The Zojirushi NW-YAQ is the top of the Zojirushi range in Australia and the only Zojirushi here that cooks under pressure. Pressure lifts the cooking temperature above boiling point, which does two things you can taste: white rice comes out softer and more elastic through the centre of the grain, and brown rice finishes in a little over an hour instead of an hour and a half or more. It is made in Japan.

This review works through what the cooker does, how long each menu takes, what pressure changes and what it does not, what living with a locking lid is like, and who should buy the 5.5-cup NW-YAQ10 or the 10-cup NW-YAQ18. Every figure below comes from the Zojirushi operating manual supplied with the Australian model.

1. Who the NW-YAQ is for

The NW-YAQ is a pressure IH cooker: microcomputer control, induction heating of the whole inner pot, and a sealed lid that lets the cooker raise pressure during the cycle. The NW-QAQ below it has the same induction heating without the pressure, and that is the comparison that matters: the YAQ costs more, and the question is whether pressure is worth it to you.

It is, for two kinds of household. The first eats Japanese short-grain rice most nights and cares about texture — pressure is how Japanese makers get the soft, springy grain their top models are known for. The second cooks brown rice, germinated (GABA) brown rice or multigrain regularly, because pressure cuts brown rice to 62 to 69 minutes on the YAQ10, against 85 to 92 on the QAQ and 84 to 105 on the micom NL-GAQ. If you cook plain white rice, are happy with how it comes out of a good IH cooker, and rarely cook brown, the QAQ saves you money. If you want pressure at a lower price and do not mind trading rice quality for a longer menu list, the Tiger JPK-G is the other pressure IH cooker we stock.

2. Functions and cooking times

Ten menus on the panel, and Mixed rice uses the White Regular menu, so the manual lists eleven. Times are Zojirushi's estimates at 230 V, 20°C room temperature and 18°C water, measured from the start of cooking to the switch to Keep Warm. A full pot runs toward the top of each range. The PRESSURE column shows which menus cook under pressure — Congee and Quinoa do not, because they would boil over.

Three things to read from the table. First, pressure does not make white rice faster — 52 to 59 minutes is the same as the QAQ, and the Quick menu is the only way under 45. Second, brown rice at 62 to 69 minutes is the fastest of any cooker we stock. Third, GABA Brown is a three-hour cycle: plan it for the afternoon, or use the timer. For how the YAQ compares with every other model we stock, see the full cooking time table.

There is no steaming basket and no Steam, Slow Cook or Cake menu. The YAQ cooks rice and grains; the manual is explicit that it is not to be used for anything else.

3. What pressure changes

In a sealed pot, water boils above 100°C. The grain cooks through faster at that temperature, and the starch at the centre gelatinises more completely, which is what gives pressure-cooked rice its softer, more elastic bite. Zojirushi uses it in different amounts across the cycle depending on the menu, and the PRESSURE indicator on the display shows when it is on.

White rice. Two settings: Regular and Firmer. Regular is the softer, stickier result most people buy a pressure cooker for. Firmer is for rice you want to hold its shape — fried rice, sushi, bento — and it runs a few minutes shorter. There is no "softer" setting; the water line is the adjustment in that direction. Quick cuts the soak and finishes in 28 to 37 minutes, and the manual notes the texture may be slightly harder.

Brown rice. This is where pressure earns its price. Brown rice needs long cooking to soften the bran layer, and under pressure that takes 62 to 69 minutes on the YAQ10 — 20 to 40 minutes less than the non-pressure Zojirushi models. GABA Brown goes further: it holds the rice at about 40°C for about two hours before cooking, which germinates the grain and gives a noticeably softer result than the Brown menu, at the cost of a three-hour cycle. Multi Grain is for brown rice blended with millet; the manual warns against running it with anything other than brown rice-based blends.

What it does not change. Pressure does not shorten white rice, and it does not improve congee or quinoa, which cook without it. If your household is mostly white rice, the difference between the YAQ and the QAQ is texture, and you will need to care about texture to notice it.

The measuring cup is 180 ml, not a metric cup, and one level cup cooks about two restaurant-sized bowls. Water lines inside the pot are numbered for each menu — fill to the line for the menu you chose, on a flat surface, and adjust by a millimetre or two to taste. The manual says rice can be cooked immediately after rinsing; soaking beforehand softens it.

4. The ten menus — which ones you will actually use

Most households use three: White Regular for everyday rice, Quick when dinner is late, and Brown or Long Grain depending on what the household eats. White Firmer is worth knowing about if you make sushi or fried rice. GABA Brown is the menu that makes the YAQ worth it for brown-rice households, and the one that white-rice households never press. Quinoa and Steel Cut Oatmeal are useful if you eat them.

Three rules from the manual that save a mess. The Congee, Quinoa and Steel Cut Oatmeal water lines use far more water than the rice lines, so never cook those water levels on another menu, or it boils over through the steam vent — and the cooker does not remember those three menus, so you select them each time. For Mixed rice, ingredients should be 30 to 50 per cent of the weight of the rice and chopped small; place them on top without mixing; and dissolve seasonings in the water rather than adding them to the rice, or they settle and scorch. And for congee with green vegetables, the manual says to add the greens after cooking, not before — they can block the pressure valve.

5. Keep Warm and Reheat

The cooker switches to Keep Warm automatically when rice finishes. There are two modes. Regular Keep Warm holds the rice at a slightly higher temperature, so it develops odours less easily, and is rated to 12 hours. Extended Keep Warm holds it slightly lower, which reduces drying and yellowing, and is rated to 24 hours — the longest in the Zojirushi range, and twice what the micom models allow. You switch between them by pressing MENU while the KEEP WARM light is on. After the rated time the hours display blinks as a warning.

Only white rice keeps well. Brown, GABA Brown and Multi Grain allow Regular Keep Warm only; Congee, Quinoa, Steel Cut Oatmeal and Mixed should not be kept warm at all.

Adjusting the Keep Warm temperature

This setting is in the back pages of the manual, not on the panel, so most owners never find it. The Keep Warm temperature can be raised or lowered in seven steps, from −3 to +3. Raise it if rice develops an odour; lower it if rice dries out or yellows. The setting is kept after you change it, even when the cooker is unplugged.

1. With the cooker plugged in and idle, press and hold MENU for about 3 seconds until you hear three beeps and the current setting blinks (0 by default).
2. Press ▲ or ▼ to choose a setting from −3 to +3.
3. Press MENU to confirm.

Our own habit, and the manual's advice: keep warm as briefly as you can. Fluff the rice as soon as it finishes, portion what you will not eat into containers and refrigerate, then use Reheat or a microwave later. The manual is candid that odours and bacteria can develop during long Keep Warm depending on cleaning, room temperature and how often the lid is opened. If you forget to loosen the rice, the cooker beeps at about 10, 40 and 70 minutes to remind you.

Reheat

Reheat brings kept-warm rice back to serving temperature in about 4 to 8 minutes — most useful after Extended Keep Warm, which holds the rice cooler. Loosen the rice first, and for a small amount add a tablespoon of water per bowl and gather it toward the centre of the pot. It works only while the KEEP WARM light is on, only for white rice, and not if the pot is more than half full (above water line 3 on the YAQ10, line 6 on the YAQ18). Do not reheat twice, and do not reheat rice that has gone cold.

6. The timer

Two preset timers, Timer 1 and Timer 2, each storing a finish time — 6:00 and 18:00 from the factory, so one for breakfast rice and one for dinner. You set the time you want the rice ready, not a delay. The timer is not available on the Quick, Multi Grain or Mixed menus, and the manual says not to set it 13 hours or more ahead, or 8 hours or more in hot weather, because the rice sits soaking in the meantime. The earliest the timer can finish is the menu's cooking time plus a soak: about 1 hour 10 minutes for white rice, and 3 hours 25 minutes for GABA Brown — which is the practical way to use that menu.

7. Living with a pressure cooker

A pressure rice cooker behaves differently from the micom and IH models in three ways, and the manual spends several pages on them.

The lid locks. While the PRESSURE indicator is on, the outer lid will not open; this is by design, not a fault. When cooking finishes the lid stays sealed for a short while until pressure clears, and you wait for the indicator to go off before pressing the open button. If you need to stop a cycle mid-way, you hold KEEP WARM/CANCEL for a second and steam is forced out of the vent — keep hands and faces away from it. The lid also needs a firm push to close until it clicks, and it will not close at all if the inner lid set is missing or a grain of rice is caught in the hooks.

It makes noises. The manual lists them: a fan, a low hum from the microprocessor adjusting heat, a mechanical click as the pressure valve works, a hiss as pressure releases at the end. A loud whistle is the one that matters — it means the pressure valve or safety valve is clogged, and you cancel and clean them.

There are foods it will not cook. Because the steam route can clog under pressure, the manual prohibits beans, noodles and pastes that swell, thick curries and stews, anything with baking soda, large amounts of oil, jams, foods in bags or foil, and green leafy vegetables in congee (add them after). It is a rice and grain cooker, and the manual says so plainly. There is no steaming basket, and the menus above are the whole list.

Two smaller habits. Cooking a second pot straight after the first, or right after cancelling Keep Warm, needs 60 minutes of cooling or the cycle runs up to an hour longer; the manual's shortcut is to fill the inner pot with cold water and set it in the body. And the first few uses may smell of resin — the Self-Cleaning cycle in section 10 is the remedy.

8. Drawbacks — who should not buy it

• Price. It is the most expensive rice cooker we sell. If your household cooks mostly white rice and is happy with an IH cooker's result, the NW-QAQ gives you the same induction heating, a steaming basket and Slow Cook for considerably less.
• Nothing but rice and grains. No steaming, no slow cooking, no cake, and a list of foods the manual prohibits outright. The Tiger JPK-G adds pressure to a 20-menu cooker if you want both.
• White rice is not faster. 52 to 59 minutes on the standard menu; pressure helps texture, not speed.
• Two white rice textures, not more. Regular and Firmer. If you want a wider range of settings, that is the QAQ's three-texture menu.
• The lid lock takes getting used to. It will not open the moment the melody plays, and it needs a firm push to close. The manual's safety pages are long for a reason.
• Nothing is dishwasher safe — inner pot, inner lid set, spatula and cup are all hand wash — and the inner lid set has valves to check and clean after every use.
• Weight. 5.5 kg for the YAQ10 and 6.5 kg for the YAQ18, about two kilos more than the micom models.

9. 5.5 cups or 10 cups?

Decide by the smallest amount you cook, not the largest. The YAQ10 cooks from half a cup; the YAQ18 cooks from 1 cup of white rice but needs 2 cups on the Brown, GABA Brown, Multi Grain, Quinoa and Mixed menus. For one or two people, or a family that cooks 2 to 3 cups a night, the YAQ10 is the right size. Choose the YAQ18 if you regularly cook 5 cups or more.

Allow for the lid: the YAQ10 needs 42 cm of clearance when open, the YAQ18 48 cm, so neither fits under a standard overhead cupboard with the lid up. The manual also asks for clearance for steam at the vent, and rules out use on an aluminium sheet, an electric carpet or on top of an induction hob.

10. Cleaning, self-cleaning and parts

After every use: wash the inner pot with a neutral detergent and a soft sponge, lift out the inner lid set by its orange holder and wash and dry it, and wipe the inside of the outer lid, the gasket, the steam vent and the condensation area with a wrung-out cloth. Push the pressure control valve and the safety valve on the inner lid two or three times to check they move freely, and clear any rice from them, the lid hooks and the hook holes with a bamboo skewer — a grain in the wrong place stops the lid closing. Nothing goes in the dishwasher. The air intake and exhaust ducts underneath want a vacuum once a month.

Self-Cleaning. The YAQ has a 60-minute pressurised steam cycle for odours: water to white line 1 (YAQ10) or 2 (YAQ18), hold TIMER for 1.5 seconds, press START. The manual is honest that it reduces odours rather than removing them, and that some cannot be eliminated. It is also the fix for the resin smell of a new cooker.

Parts. The nonstick coating will eventually wear — the manual says this is harmless and does not affect cooking — and the inner pot is a replaceable part: B664-6B for the YAQ10, B665-6B for the YAQ18. The inner lid set, which carries the gasket and both valves, is also replaceable (C262-GR / C263-GR) and is the part to budget for over the cooker's life, since the gasket cannot be replaced on its own. A lithium battery inside keeps the clock and menu settings when the cooker is unplugged; it wears out with use and is replaced by a service agent.

11. Frequently asked questions

12. Verdict

Buy the NW-YAQ for the rice. It is the only Zojirushi in Australia that cooks under pressure, and pressure is what gives Japanese short-grain rice the soft, elastic grain that the brand's top models are known for, and what brings brown rice down to an hour. For a household that eats rice every night and can tell one bowl from another, or that cooks brown or germinated rice regularly, it is the best rice cooker we sell.

Skip it if your household is mostly white rice and you would not notice the texture — the NW-QAQ gives you the same induction heating with a steaming basket and Slow Cook for less — or if you want pressure and a long list of menus, where the Tiger JPK-G does both at a lower price. Between the two sizes, the YAQ10 suits most households; the YAQ18 is for families cooking 5 cups or more.

Zojirushi NW-YAQ10 — 5.5 cups · Zojirushi NW-YAQ18 — 10 cups

We're here to help

If you would like to discuss whether the NW-YAQ suits you, contact us any time, or visit us in Chatswood, Sydney to see it beside the other models.

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