Mafa Chicken

5 from 8 votes
32 Comments

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This mafa chicken is crispy fried chicken perfection! The strong marinade the chicken soaks in gives it the most amazing flavor.

Mafa chicken with Honey Mustard and fried rice.
Featured with this Recipe
  1. Ingredients for Mafa Chicken
  2. Homemade Sauce Ingredients
  3. Steps for Mafa Chicken
  4. More Dipping Sauce Options
  5. Frequently Asked Questions
  6. More Chicken Recipes You Will Love
  7. How to Make Mafa Chicken
  8. Mafa Chicken Recipe

Mafa chicken is a tender chicken covered in a layer of crispy coating filled with flavor! This chicken recipe is known to be a famous Chinese recipe. It is chicken breast dipped in a batter and then deep fried.

It may surprise you to learn that the batter includes tofu! The tofu gives the batter a great texture! When the chicken is done, it slightly resembles the nuggets at Chick-fil-A. However, this recipe is much better. We love to serve it with our honey mustard dipping sauce. The flavors complement each other perfectly!

Ingredients for Mafa Chicken

You will love this mafa chicken recipe! Grab these pantry staples and combine the ingredients for a delicious flavor and crispy outside texture. This mafa chicken is crispy, tender chicken with all the flavor!

  • Soy sauce – This adds a savory and salty flavor to the sauce.
  • Sugar – Sweetness flavor that everyone loves!
  • Garlic – Minced and added into the blender for a delicious
  • Chicken – Skinless chicken breast cut into chicken nugget-size pieces. It is similar to a chicken nugget recipe!
  • Eggs – The egg mixture will hold together the blender ingredients with the flour.
  • Wondra flour – This is a unique flour that gives a soft and thin batter to hold onto the chicken while it is being cooked.
  • Oil – You need oil for frying the chicken. You will cook the chicken in the oil until it is golden brown.
Ingredients for Mafa Chicken including chicken, eggs, garlic, soy sauce, sugar, tofu, and wondra flour.


Homemade Sauce Ingredients

Combine these simple ingredients to make the best sauce for this mafa chicken recipe! Kids to adults love these homemade chicken nuggets dipped in this sauce. You will love the flavor contrast and how they combine to make your tastebuds sing!

  • Honey – Add a little natural sweetness to the special sauce.
  • Mayonnaise – A creamy condiment that has a savory and sweet flavor.
  • Dijon Mustard – A savory mustard with a smokey flavor.
Mafa chicken with Honey Mustard and fried rice.

Steps for Mafa Chicken

We love to make the mafa chicken in large batches to feed our friends and family during special occasions. It is simple to blend the ingredients together and let it get cold. Then deep fry from the fridge. This is a quick and easy chicken dinner everyone loves!

  1. Blender – Blend the batter ingredients thoroughly in the blender until you have a smooth mixture. Cut chicken breasts into chicken nugget-size pieces and marinate in a bowl with the mixture in the fridge overnight.
  2. Seal – If it is cold enough, we keep the chicken in the garage. If you keep it in the fridge put a good seal over the chicken and sauce because this stuff has a strong smell!
  3. Deep fry – Before cooking stir two eggs into the mixture and thoroughly coat each piece of chicken in “Wondra” flour. Deep fry at about 350 degrees until pieces are brown and completely cooked.
Mafa chicken with Honey Mustard and fried rice.

More Dipping Sauce Options

We love dipping this mafa chicken in honey mustard sauce, but it tastes great in a variety of sauces, including:

  • Sweet and Sour Sauce
  • Ranch Dressing
  • Hot Mustard
  • BBQ Sauce
  • Fry Sauce
Mafa chicken on a chopstick with Honey Mustard

“So flavorful and delcious! Yum! Where has this been my whole life? My new favorite!”

-Betsy

Frequently Asked Questions

What do you serve with mafa chicken?

We like to serve this with white rice or fried rice. Or, we serve it with other Asian-inspired dishes like chicken chow mein, mandarin chicken, or egg rolls.

What is Wondra flour?

Another ingredient on the list that you might not be familiar with is Wondra Flour. Wondra Flour is a brand of instant flour that became the household name for this type of flour (kind of like Kleenex and Xerox). Instant flour is finely ground wheat flour. It is pre-cooked and dried. It is perfect for making batter to fry.

Where can I find Wondra flour?

You can find it in the grocery store next to the regular flour. It comes in a small blue container.

Read Next: 35+ Quick and Easy To Follow Dinner Ideas Your Family Will Surely Love

Mafa chicken with Honey Mustard and fried rice.

More Chicken Recipes You Will Love

Chicken is always a favorite protein that we love to cook for dinner! It is a leaner meat that is simple to make. Try it shredded, baked, in the instant pot, or fried. So many options!

How to Make Mafa Chicken

Mafa chicken with Honey Mustard and fried rice

Mafa Chicken

5 from 8 votes
This mafa chicken is crispy fried chicken perfection! The strong marinade the chicken soaks in gives it the most amazing flavor.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Marinating 8 hours
Total Time 8 hours 30 minutes
Course Dinner, Main Course
Cuisine Asian
Servings 6

Ingredients

Batter:

Dipping Sauce:

Instructions

  • Blend the batter ingredients thoroughly in the blender til you have a smooth mixture. Cut up chicken breasts into chicken nugget-size pieces and marinate in the above mixture in the fridge overnight.
    Marinade blended for mafa chicken
  • If it is cold enough, we keep the chicken in the garage. If you keep it in the fridge put a good seal over the chicken and sauce because this stuff has a strong smell!!
    Chicken marinating in a large bowl
  • Before cooking stir 2 eggs into the mixture and thoroughly coat each piece of chicken in “Wondra” flour. Deep fry at about 350 degrees until pieces are brown and completely cooked.
    Pieces of chicken tossed in marinade and wondra flour

For the dipping sauce:

  • Mix mayonnaise, honey, and mustard. Chill and serve.
    Mafa chicken with Honey Mustard and fried rice

Notes

We love dipping this Mafa Chicken in honey mustard sauce, but it tastes great in a variety of sauces, including:
  • Sweet and Sour Sauce
  • Hot Mustard
  • BBQ Sauce
  • Fry Sauce

Nutrition Information

Calories: 608kcalCarbohydrates: 25gProtein: 66gFat: 26gSaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 232mgSodium: 1246mgPotassium: 1042mgFiber: 1gSugar: 22gVitamin A: 170IUVitamin C: 4.1mgCalcium: 115mgIron: 2.5mg

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About the author

Emily Walker

Emily lives in Meridian, Idaho, with her husband, Beau, a physician assistant, and her three incredible children: a son and two daughters. Travel is one of her favorite ways to experience new cultures and cuisines, and she has a love for all things Disney.

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Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Wow, I will be using this recipe more often. Crispy, breaded chicken is a favorite. You can’t tell there’s tofu, which my kids will never know!

  2. Are you from treasure valley? Or family from treasure valley? Just wondering because I thought this recipe came from the treasure valley my dad has been making it for years let me know 🙂

    1. Yes! Emily and Erica live in Treasure Valley, and our parents live there as well. It’s a beautiful place!

    2. My family used to own the East Side Cafe in the late eighties/early nineties. We still serve Mafa Chicken in our restaurant today – Far East Restaurant in Ontario, just blocks from the old East Side location. My mother learned the original recipe from the founders of the East Side.

  3. 5 stars
    I’m confused about the 2 eggs. Do they go into the marinade before the chicken is refrigerated, or right before it’s breaded?

    1. You stir the eggs in right before you bread them. It’s better to let it marinade without the eggs.

  4. I have to know where your husband is from cause there is only one place I know that make mafa! Your recipe is slightly different than what I do but similar!

      1. LOL I lived in Payette and Fruitland area in the 80’s and 90’s. We used to get Mafa Chicken at the Eastside Café in Ontario. Never found it since. This recipe is amazing. My family loves it.

        1. That is crazy you have heard of Mafa! That is probably where the Original idea came from lol small world!

        2. Idaho Native – I would get mine from Orphan Annie’s in Caldwell – sadly they closed and I am looking for a replacement. There is a restaurant in Mt. Home that does Mafa Shrimp, when I asked if they could do chicken they said no. So it must be premade or frozen. Sad. I will be trying this recipe. Thanks for sharing!

      2. I’m from Weiser! My mom used to make the best Mafa Chicken when I was young. I recently got her recipe box from my dad….but sadly no mafa chicken recipe. I searched the web and cracked up when I saw your recipe…..it was humorous because I follow your site and have made many of your recipes. I lived in Maui and love love love your Hawaiian recipes. Thank you so much for sharing your recipes. My son and I love cooking together on these cold rainy Pacific Northwest nights. Go Wolverines!!!!

  5. This sounds great! Do you use the silken tofu that’s on the regular shelf, not refrigerated? Or is it the refrigerated stuff in water? I think the texture could be way wrong if you don’t use the right kind of tofu. Thank you!

    1. Thank you so much for this nice comment! That is totally our goal. We want to make delicious recipes that remind you of home. 🙂

        1. We love Weiser! Emily’s husband Beau is from Weiser. This recipe came from his family.

    1. Wondra flour is what makes it so light and crispy and good! You can use all-purpose but it won’t be as tasty!

  6. A family secret recipe and it tastes better than Chick-fil-A?! I absolutely will be trying this out this weekend. So glad they let you share!