Mochiko Fried Chicken + Garlic Sriracha Aioli (VIDEO)
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Ever since I went to Hawaii I’ve been craving this Mochiko Fried Chicken – so of course I had to develop my own recipe! The chicken is so crispy, juicy, and pairs perfectly with a homemade garlic sriracha aioli!
Check out the Mochiko Fried Chicken recipe video!
A Note from CJ
Mochiko Fried Chicken – Island Style!
Mochiko Chicken takes me right back to the many plate lunches I had in Hawaii! If you want to have an island-style meal at home, serve it with a side of Hawaiian Macaroni Salad, Chicken Katsu (with Homemade Tonkatsu Sauce), Coconut Shrimp, and homemade Thai sweet chili sauce!
Went to the store for the Mochiko flour just for this recipe! Super yummy!! The garlic sriracha aioli was chefs kiss 👩🍳
Ingredient Tips
- mochiko flour – this is a type of sweet rice flour that is often used for making mochi, as a batter for fried chicken, or other Japanese sweets and desserts.
- chicken – I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs; you could use chicken breast but I prefer thighs because they’re juicier.
- MSG – I use msg as an optional flavor enhancer.
- sake – I haven’t found a substitute for sake that I love, as I find that it has a distinct flavor profile that is hard to replace in a recipe. You can try sherry, mirin, shaoxing wine, rice vinegar, or even chicken stock.
How to Make Mochiko Fried Chicken
Marinate Chicken – Trim chicken thighs of any excess fat and cut into 2″ pieces and set aside. In a mixing bowl, combine grated garlic, soy sauce, sugar, white pepper, sriracha, sake, cornstarch, msg if using, mochiko flour, and egg. Whisk together until thoroughly combined (refer to video for batter consistency). Add the chicken to the marinade and mix well. Cover and place in the fridge to marinate for at least 4 hours but ideally overnight.
Dredge Chicken and Make Aioli – In a large bowl, combine flour, cornstarch, white pepper, and salt. Working a few pieces of chicken at a time, add them to the dry batter and press them in to fully coat the chicken pieces. To make the garlic-sriracha aioli, combine mayo, sriracha, grated garlic, salt and sugar. Serve with the chicken, top with furikake seasoning, and enjoy!
Fry Chicken – In a dutch oven or heavy bottomed pot, heat oil to 350F over medium high heat. Fry the chicken in batches for 4-5 minutes or until golden brown and crisp. Use a thermometer here to ensure the oil temp does not drop below 325F. If it does, remove chicken and fry in smaller batches. Remove chicken from oil and immediately season with kosher salt.
My Pro Tip
CJ’s Storage Tips
Store any leftover Mochiko Chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. The chicken will soften as it sits – this is normal. If you want to restore some of the crispiness, you can reheat in the airfryer at 375F for 5-7 minutes. If you don’t care about restoring any crispiness, you can reheat in the microwave until warmed through.
If you tried this Mochiko Fried Chicken or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below!
Mochiko Fried Chicken (VIDEO)
Ingredients
Chicken
- 1 lb chicken thigh, cut into 2" pieces
- 2 cloves garlic, grated
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1/2 tbsp sugar
- 1/4 tsp white pepper
- 1/2 tbsp sriracha
- 1 tbsp sake
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/4 tsp msg, optional
- 1/4 cup mochiko flour
- 1 egg
Dredge
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
- 1/2 tsp white pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
Oil
- 2 quarts neutral oil, for frying; I used avocado oil
Instructions
- Trim chicken thighs of any excess fat and cut into 2" pieces and set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, combine grated garlic, soy sauce, sugar, white pepper, sriracha, sake, cornstarch, msg if using, mochiko flour, and egg. Whisk together until thoroughly combined (refer to video for batter consistency).
- Add the chicken to the marinade and mix well. Cover and place in the fridge to marinate for at least 4 hours but ideally overnight.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, cornstarch, white pepper, and salt. Working a few pieces of chicken at a time, add them to the dry batter and press them in to fully coat the chicken pieces.
- To make the garlic-sriracha aioli, combine mayo, sriracha, grated garlic, salt and sugar. Serve with the chicken, top with furikake seasoning, and enjoy!
- In a dutch oven or heavy bottomed pot, heat oil to 350F over medium high heat. Fry the chicken in batches for 4-5 minutes or until golden brown and crisp. Use a thermometer here to ensure the oil temp does not drop below 325F. If it does, remove chicken and fry in smaller batches.
- Remove chicken from oil and immediately season with kosher salt.
Video
Notes
- mochiko flour – this is a type of sweet rice flour that is often used for making mochi, as a batter for fried chicken, or other Japanese sweets and desserts.
- chicken – I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs; you could use chicken breast but I prefer thighs because they’re juicier.
- MSG – I use msg as an optional flavor enhancer.
- sake – I haven’t found a substitute for sake that I love, as I find that it has a distinct flavor profile that is hard to replace in a recipe. You can try sherry, mirin, shaoxing wine, rice vinegar, or even chicken stock.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This Mochiko Fried Chicken recipe was originally published in March 2023, and updated in February 2026.
Made this and it came out so good!
One of my favorite dishes
Went to the store for the Mochiko flour just for this recipe! Super yummy!! The garlic sriracha aioli was chefs kiss 👩🍳
Just came back from Oahu and already missing the plate lunch. Always mochiko chicken or loco Moco for me! Mac salad, too!
Spectacular flavors!
Just made this recipe everything about it is on point!! Will be remaking this again.
Thanks for trying it and the great review! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
It’s good to know that using chicken thigh is juicer and doesn’t dry out as easily. My kids like fried chicken, and I’m hoping to take them to a restaurant for my son’s birthday. I’m hoping that I can find a local restaurant for us to visit.
I hope you give this recipe a try!