Electric rice cooker cooks bread

Japan's leading household electric producer has just announced the world's first electric rice cooker capable of turning rice into bread, and predicts it will create a fever throughout Asia.

The device can grind a cup of rice into flour, then mix it with water, yeast and other spices and bake it in cakes within four hours, AFP said by Sanyo Electric.

GOPAN bread rice cooker.Photo: AFP.

In Japan, this rice cooker is called "GOPAN" - comes from gohan - rice - and "pan" is bread in Spanish. Sanyo will export this product in Asia from next year, while in the domestic market, the rice cooker will be on the market in October.

"We look forward to bringing this product to Asian countries, China and Southeast Asia, where rice culture is common ," said Liu Yingying, a spokesman.

The retail price of rice cooker is 50-60 thousand yen (about 560-670 USD).

The type of bread without flour is thought to be good for people with allergies. In Japan, although there is a tradition of eating rice, in recent decades, people have been eating a variety of grains such as wheat flour and corn. Home bread making machines are also very popular in the country with sales up to 30% in 2009 alone.