Easy Asian comfort food with BIG flavor: Hawaiian Mochiko Chicken. A big platter of Hawaiian style fried chicken is such a delicious treat! Tender chicken is marinated with soy sauce, garlic, green onion, and sugar. Swapping regular flour with Mochiko Flour creates a thin batter that’s light and crisp. Drizzle with spicy mayo and furikake for the most flavorful fried chicken!
Table of contents
What is Mochiko Chicken?
Mochiko Chicken is a popular fried chicken dish served in Hawaii. A staple at local cafes and diners, it’s often served with rice, mac salad, and coleslaw. Named after one of its main ingredients — Mochiko flour — it is a unique fried chicken with a thin, crispy batter and juicy, savory flavor.
Mochiko Fried Chicken is often topped with a generous drizzle of spicy mayo and sprinkles of furikake. The creamy Asian dressing and Japanese seasoning are so good together!
The combination of Asian ingredients creates an irresistible combination of savory-sweet flavors. Different from regular fried chicken, it is very juicy with lots of savory depth. One of my kids’ favorite dishes!
More fried chicken recipes: Korean Fried Chicken, Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken, and Korean Fried Chicken Sandwiches with Kimchi Mayo.
Whether it’s movie night or game day, I love to make a big batch of Hawaiian Fried Chicken. Juicy, tender chicken that is fried up crispy and crunchy. An easy recipe with BIG flavor. YUM!
What is Mochiko Flour?
Mochiko Flour is a Japanese flour made from glutinous rice flour (also called sweet rice flour or sticky rice flour). It’s the kind of flour used to make mochi — a Japanese dessert that is famously stretchy and chewy
Different from regular wheat flour, Mochiko Flour has a distinctively bouncy and sticky texture. For Mochiko Fried Chicken, the mochiko flour creates a thin and crispy coating.
Despite its name, glutinous rice flour is gluten-free. “Glutinous” refers to the kind of rice used — in this case, glutinous rice, also called sticky rice or sweet rice.
More recipes with Mochiko Flour: Coconut Mochi Cake, Nian Gao (Chinese New Year Cake), Mochi Donuts, Black Sesame Mochi Donuts.
Ingredients:
- Chicken thighs. For flavorful, tender, bite-size of chicken that don’t dry out, I recommend boneless chicken thighs. If you can, keep the chicken skin for extra flavor and crunch.
- Mochiko Flour. Japanese Sweet Rice Flour. Also known as Sticky Rice Flour or Glutinous Rice Flour. The most common brand in North America is Koda Farms Blue Star Mochiko Sweet Rice Flour. Made from short-grain sweet rice, it gives a crisp texture with a stretchy, mochi-like bounce. Look in the baking aisle or international section of your grocery store. *Can be swapped with any other brand of glutinous rice flour.
- Potato Starch. A gluten-free way to add texture and crunch. Can be subbed with corn starch.
- Soy Sauce. Adds lots of umami depth and flavor.
- Sugar. For sweetness.
- Eggs. Adds body and flavor.
- Garlic + Ginger + Green Onions. The essential aromatics add tons of flavor.
- Mirin. Korean/Japanese sweet cooking wine.
For garnis:
- Spicy Mayo. Drizzle all over or serve on the side, as a dip. I use pre-made spicy mayo from the grocery store but you can also make your own at home with sriracha and regular mayo.
- Furikake. A Japanese condiment that includes crushed nori, salt, sesame seeds, and bonito flakes. Adds lots of flavor and texture. A pantry staple that keeps a long time.
How to Make Mochiko Fried Chicken
- Marinate chicken. In a large bowl, combine marinade ingredients. Whisk well. Add bite-size chicken pieces and marinate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.
- Deep fry chicken. Set up a dutch oven with a thermometer. Add 2-3 inches of cooking oil. Heat over medium-high heat until it reaches 370F/187C. Add the pieces of marinated chicken to the hot oil. Cook until golden brown and crunchy. Make sure not to crowd the pan. *The excess marinade can be discarded.
- Garnish. Finish with spicy mayo and furikake. Enjoy!
PRO Tips
- Marinate overnight. If you can, marinating overnight leads to more flavorful chicken. At a minimum, the chicken should marinate for 1 hour. But it will always taste better when it’s overnight!
- Set up a deep frying station. Deep frying at home is so much easier when you have a dedicated space and routine for it. You’ll need a dutch oven, candy thermometer, and metal spider or tongs. A dutch oven with high walls works best to regulate even, stable heat and to ensure the oil doesn’t splash over. Attach a candy thermometer to accurately gauge the oil temperature. A metal spider or tongs makes removal from the hot oil easier.
- Add enough oil so the chicken can float. The best, most efficient way to deep fry is to add enough oil so the food can float. That way, it won’t stick to the bottom and the oil will fry all the nooks and crannies. Add about 2 inches of oil (grapeseed, vegetable, canola, avocado, or peanut oil all work well) — and you’re set!
- Drain on a cooling rack. When the chicken has finished cooking, transfer to a wire rack fitted over a sheep pan. The elevated rack’s air circulation keeps the chicken crispier than paper towels alone. Excess oil will drip off.
- Double fry for extra crispy chicken. Optional step. After the chicken is finished cooking, deep fry a second time for 1-2 minutes. This will ensure extra crispy and crunchy fried chicken.
Serve with
- For dinner. Make the ultimate comfort food platter with rice, mac salad, and/or coleslaw. Also good with kimchi.
- For parties. Serve piled high on a big platter! Add extra spicy mayo on the side. Tastes good with beer, spring rolls, nachos, and Kimchi Queso Fundido.
FAQ
No, unfortunately, regular flour won’t taste the same. To make Mochiko Chicken, you need Mochiko flour. It creates a thin batter that fries up crispy and slightly chewy. If you use regular flour (all purpose wheat flour), the batter will be too heavy and thick.
Yes, you definitely can. However, I recommend Mochiko Sweet Rice Flour as a nod to Mochiko Chicken’s roots and origins. Mochiko Flour is made by Koda Farms, a Japanese American family farm in California. Easy to find in most grocery stores, it’s a classic staple in many Asian American pantries.
Store leftovers in the fridge, tightly sealed, for 3-4 days. Reheat in an air fryer or oven at 400F until hot and crispy, about 5 minutes. Make sure to shake the air fryer as it cooks.
Yes, Mochiko Chicken is Air Fryer friendly. It won’t taste quite the same as deep-fried, but it’s a doable substitute. Make sure to shake the basket while cooking. A parchment liner also helps to catch drips, but make sure it’s not too close to the heat source.
Yes, this recipe can be pan-fried as well. It won’t get as crispy and crunchy but it’s still very good.
Use a large skillet and add enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan. When the oil is hot, add chicken in one layer, making sure not to crowd the pan. Cook on both sides until crunchy and golden.
More recipes with Mochiko Flour
Hawaiian Mochiko Chicken Recipe
Equipment
- Large Bowl
- Dutch oven
- candy thermometer
- Cooling rack
- rimmed sheet pan
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken thighs (cut into 2-inch strips)
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup mochiko flour (also known as glutinous rice flour, sweet rice flour, or sticky rice flour)
- 1/2 cup potato starch (can be subbed with corn starch)
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 Tbsp Mirin (Japanese/Korean sweet cooking wine)
- 2 green onions, chopped
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 inch ginger, minced
Garnish:
- Spicy Mayo (Hellman and Wazo both make a good spicy mayo. If you don't have access, add 1-2 Tbsp sriracha to 1/4 cup mayo.)
- Furikake
Instructions
- Make marinade. In a large bowl, add Mochiko flour, potato starch, eggs, sugar, soy sauce, Mirin, green onions, garlic, and ginger. Whisk together until well combined.
- Marinate chicken. Add chicken thighs and mix to combine. Cover and marinate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.
- Set up deep frying station. Get ready to deep fry the chicken by setting up a Dutch oven with a candy thermometer clipped to the side. Add 2 inches of oil or enough so the chicken can float while frying.
- Deep fry chicken. Heat oil over medium heat until the temperature hits 350F/175C. Add chicken and fry in batches until golden and crunchy, being careful of oil splatter, about 4-5 minutes. Remove chicken and transfer to a cooling rack fitted over a sheet pan. Repeat until all the chicken is finished frying.
- Garnish. Finish with spicy mayo and furikake. Enjoy immediately!
Sooo yum!! I’ve made this recipe at least 5 times now and it never fails. Definitely a family favorite. The flavor is great and goes well with everything. If I don’t have rice I’ll add it to my salad – fantastic. I wouldn’t change anything about the recipe. Thank you for sharing!
Total hit! My sisters loved it and so did the kids. This recipe is almost effortless, so easy and so delicious! The flavor, the crunch, so good!! Thank you Lis! This is going to be a regular recipe in our family