<p>Upcoming freshman (living in Trojan Hall, gah); I was wondering if a rice cooker and a kettle were allowed in the dorms? Honestly they're safer than a microwave, which can catch on fire. ><</p>
<p>technically they’re not allowed–no small appliances (or large ones, I suppose) are allowed beyond the mini-fridge & microwave they supply. But I didn’t have a problem with my toaster and I had a friend with a blender who was fine too. And my RA had an espresso machine in his room… I think as long as you put them away/out of sight during inspections, you should be fine.</p>
<p>You mean an electric kettle, I’m assuming?</p>
<p>A rice cooker will be hard as it will probably set off fire alarms. There is ALWAYS rice in both dining halls; no need to make your own! If you really need rice, bring a tupperware container and a backpack to the dining halls, fill it with rice, put it in your bag and bring it back to your room.</p>
<p>Bah, did NOT think of the fire alarms. >< Thanks for the headups. I really disliked the rice I sampled at the dining halls but heck, I’ll probably do what you suggested…And yeah, an electric kettle…Wouldn’t that cause the same problem though?</p>
<p>if you want korean style rice get the single-serving microwavable kind (햇반) from the hannam chain grocery story (SW corner of vermont/olympic).</p>
<p>Oooh yeah, I forgot about microwave rice. That’s probably your best bet!</p>
<p>An electric kettle…I mean, it’s the same sort of “hazard” (maybe use it in the bathroom?). If you’re careful, I don’t think it’ll be as much as a problem as a rice cooker would be. You can easily defend needing to have access to hot water to your RA and the room inspectors; defending a cooking appliance would be much more difficult.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that places like Trojan Grounds that are open 24/7 have hot water you can use for tea, etc.</p>
<p>If you don’t need large quantities of hot water at one time, just get a good mug and heat the water in the microwave. Should be fairly safe.</p>
<p>I used to have a rice cooker that could cook regular rice by putting it in the microwave…bit cheaper than buying single serve but takes time to get it right.</p>