Allergy-friendly Mochiko chicken
I struggle to cook enough vegetables for my family. There’s one main reason for this: I’m really picky about my vegetables. They have to be cooked to their ultimate , maximum deliciousness potential, or else I feel like they’re just not worth cooking. I didn’t like vegetables until I learned to cook them the way I like, and often this takes time. Properly roasting broccoli, charring my green beans, blistering my shishito peppers - it takes time and risks setting off the smoke alarm, which is tough for my kids.
So when there’s an opportunity to prepare a delicious vegetable — QUICKLY — I’m all about it.
We have a delicious, sweet-savory batter that we use to marinate our chicken thighs, and then use the leftover batter to quickly coat a vegetable (green beans, asparagus, broccoli, brussels and carrot slices come to mind first) and then fry it. So quick! So easy!
Fried veggies are better than no veggies…right?
Check out my reel for this dish on my Instagram: @TheAsianAllergyMom
So this is Mochiko chicken, named after the sweet rice flour Mochiko flour. I buy it at HMart, and it looks like it’s also sold in select grocery stores. My BFF, whose body is in California but whose heart is in Hawaii, showed me this recipe knowing I would love it. And I LOVE IT.
A word about the egg substitute we’re using here, Just Egg. It is made in a facility with eggs. This is a dealbreaker for many, but I encourage you to take a look at their profile on Spokin as well as their own FAQ about cleaning procedures and make whatever decision you need for your family. And here we go!
Mochiko chicken
Serves 4
Ingredients:
1/3 cup Mochiko flour
1/3 cup corn starch
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup soy sauce (or tamari)
2 eggs (or 6 TBS Just Egg)
6 cloves garlic, minced
About 1.75 lbs (one package) of boneless chicken thighs, trimmed of excess fat and cut into about Chick Fila nugget-sized pieces
Canola or vegetable oil for frying
1/2 lb green beans or other vegetable
Directions:
In a large bowl, combine Mochiko flour, corn starch, sugar, soy sauce/tamari, eggs/Just Egg, garlic. Stir to combine. Add chicken pieces and stir to coat. Marinate for 30 minutes or a few hours.
Prepare large baking sheet with two layers of paper towels.
In a large skillet, fill halfway with oil and turn on medium heat.
When shallow-frying, it is important to wait until the oil gets hot enough before you put your chicken in, or it will not cook properly. To test if oil is hot enough, use a fork or chopstick to place one drop of batter into the oil. If it sizzles, the oil is hot enough. If not, wait a little longer and do the test again.
When oil is hot enough, use tongs or chopsticks to gently place pieces of chicken into hot oil, making sure they are not touching. Do not crowd the pan. For a 12.5” skillet, I don’t put more than 12 pieces of chicken at a time. After bottom browns (2-3 minutes), flip them over gently to let them continue browning on the other side (2 minutes). Using a slotted spoon, pick up chicken pieces, letting excess oil drip back into the pan. Place chicken pieces on baking sheet with paper towels. Repeat with following batches until all chicken is cooked.
While the last batch of chicken is cooking, place your vegetables in the remaining batter and stir to coat. Just as you did with the chicken, place the vegetables into the hot oil one by one, so they aren’t touching and aren’t crowding the pan. Flip after a few minutes, then when they’re done, place them on the baking sheet.
Serve with rice.
Allergens: soy, wheat
For wheat-free, use tamari
