Great for Daily Use! The “Tiger Kamado” Warms Both Your Rice and Family Bonds

The “Tiger Kamado” allows you to cook rice using nothing but a newspaper—no electricity or gas required. Released to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Tiger Corporation, this product ensures you can enjoy delicious rice while camping or even during a disaster. We spoke with the project leader, Mr. Murata, about the unique features of this product and the passion that went into its development.

Enjoy hot, delicious rice without electricity or gas

The Tiger Kamado is a product that cooks delicious rice using only a newspaper as fuel, requiring neither electricity nor gas. You can cook anywhere from 1 to 5 rice cups of white rice. Because the amount of newspaper and the timing of adding it are precisely set, following the correct method results in rice cooked as perfectly as if it were done in a programmed electric rice cooker.

The Three “Magics” of the Tiger Kamado

While the word “Magic” (Mahou) is in the Japanese product name, there are three main “magics” that this product performs:

The Magic of Cooking with Just a Newspaper If you don’t subscribe to a newspaper, you can substitute milk cartons. We recommend these two options because their sizes and materials are generally standardized, making them a consistent fuel source.

The Magic of Surprisingly Delicious Flavor By reproducing the structure of a traditional stove (kamado), we have achieved a texture that brings out the natural sweetness and firmness inherent in the rice.

The Magic of Easy Maintenance Soot or dirt on the inner pot can be removed simply by wiping it with a damp sponge. The number of newspaper sheets is calculated according to the amount of rice to prevent the heat from becoming too intense, creating a structure where soot and food rarely stick to the pot.

Adults are often skeptical at first, asking, “Can you really cook rice with newspaper?” but they are invariably surprised when they see the actual result.

On the other hand, children don’t have the preconceived notion that “rice must be cooked with electricity,” so they ask, “Where was the magic?” Our corporate mission is “Creating new essentials for the dining table with ideas filled with warmth.” I hope that cooking rice with newspaper becomes a new “essential” or norm for children, rather than just magic.

Experiencing the satisfaction of mastering a tool—something electricity can’t provide

I wanted to ensure that the Japanese tradition of “using fire” and the practical knowledge of rice cooking—often described by the rhythm “start gentle, then finish strong”—are passed down to the future rather than letting them fade away.

Opportunities for children to use fire are decreasing. Since Tiger originally began product development aiming to reproduce rice cooked in a traditional kamado, this product can be seen as a return to our origins.

We initially envisioned this product being used during power outages caused by disasters or in outdoor scenes like camping. However, we have customers who say, “It cooks better than I imagined, so I use it every day.” Some bought it as a disaster preparedness item but felt anxious about using it for the first time in an emergency. Upon testing it, they found the rice so delicious that they wanted to use it in their daily lives.

Rice that you take the time to cook yourself has an exceptional taste. Furthermore, I believe the process of timing the flame and adding newspaper offers a “satisfaction of mastering a tool” that you simply cannot get from pushing a button.

A child’s “sense of accomplishment” leads to “Joyous Harmony”

In the past, my parents’ home didn’t have an electric rice cooker; we cooked rice using an aluminum pot and a gas fire. After joining Tiger, I bought a rice cooker through an employee sale and brought it home. When I ate the rice cooked electrically for the first time, I was moved. I felt like I had finally become a capable adult and was helpful to my family. That moment, I believe, was a true instance of Joyous Harmony.

I want children to experience cooking rice themselves.

Looking back, children used to have specific roles in daily life, such as cooking rice or heating the bath. Each of these tasks provided a sense of accomplishment. Today, I feel that children build their success experiences in areas slightly removed from family life, such as studying or sports. In that sense, the form of Joyous Harmony may have changed. That is why I want children to gain a sense of accomplishment within their immediate family life through the experience of cooking rice with the Tiger Kamado.

I love seeing the surprise when they taste the cooked rice.

As part of our efforts to help people feel this sense of accomplishment, we regularly participate in regional disaster prevention events. When we visited the area affected by the Noto Peninsula Earthquake, we had parents eat rice cooked entirely by their children. At that time, I deliberately didn’t explain the product in detail. I imagined the children going home and proudly explaining the “how-to” experience to their families. The scene where a family gathers around rice cooked by the children, smiling and saying “It’s delicious,” is exactly what we mean by Joyous Harmony.

I love watching the transformation from anxiety—”Can we really cook rice with this?” or “Can the kids do it alone?”—to surprise the moment they taste the rice. However, that surprise is a special experience only for the first time. I hope that by using it repeatedly, it becomes a familiar sight, leading to the peace of mind that “even if a disaster strikes, we won’t struggle for a warm meal.”

Continuing to create products where you can feel “Warmth”

Moving forward, even if it doesn’t involve cutting-edge technology, I want to create products that allow customers to feel new realizations, emotions, and warmth. Of course, this is based on whether I would want the product myself and whether I would recommend it to someone I know.

For example, I am currently conceptualizing a bottle that allows you to drink at your preferred temperature at any time. I can’t share the details just yet, but please look forward to the day it reaches your hands.