Huli Huli Chicken: Tropical Teriyaki Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken

Huli huli chicken! So fun to say and even more fun to eat. Bursting with sweet and tangy tropical flavor and dripping with a thick caramelized sauce, this is guaranteed to become a solid family favorite.

It’s popular with kids and adults alike because who doesn’t like the taste combination of sweet and savory, tangy and zesty? It’s like teriyaki sauce on a tropical vacation. So delicious, you’ll literally be licking your fingers. And it’s not just tasty, it has quite an illustrious past…

What is Huli Huli Chicken?

Huli huli chicken sounds so playful but this is one chicken dish with a seriously noble history. It was created in partnership between a naval intelligence officer, Ernest Morgado, and a chicken farmer using Morgado’s mother’s teriyaki-like sauce recipe. Seeing how popular it was, Morgado started cooking up huli huli chicken at fundraisers.

That quickly caught on and schools and charities also began selling huli huli chicken to raise funds. It’s estimated that over the years, huli huli chicken has raised millions of dollars for charity.

How many chicken dishes have that kind of legacy?

As for the name, huli means to turn around, to reverse. Legend has it that as the chicken roasted on a grill, people would shout “huli!” when it was time to rotate the chickens to baste and cook the other side.

That caught on as well. The Pacific Poultry Company, founded in Hawaii by the two men, trademarked “huli huli” in the 1960s.

So remember that when you’re feasting on this tropically delicious chicken – you’re biting into something that has changed lives.

Why Huli Huli Chicken is the Best

Once you try huli huli chicken, it’ll quickly become a regular feature in your life. Here’s why…

The perfect flavor. It’s sweet, savory, and tangy – a combination of flavors that is instantly addictive.

So, very easy. The marinade takes about 2 minutes to make. The marinade time itself might be long but just stick it in the fridge and you’re good to go. As for the cooking time, it’s like 10 to 15 minutes, tops. So little effort for so much flavor.

Great for meal prep. The perfect thing about this huli huli chicken recipe is that it’s ideal to make large batches in advance and stick in the fridge and freezer to eat throughout the rest of the month.

And healthy, too. Huli huli chicken is so delicious, it feels like you’re eating something naughty. But it’s actually a healthy, protein-rich, fairly low-calorie meal.

Huli Huli Chicken Ingredients

For such a flavorful dish, huli huli isn’t complicated. It’s a fairly simple mixture of the sweetness of pineapple juice, the tang of ketchup and vinegar, the complementary combo of garlic and ginger, and the additional sweetness and caramelization of sugar.

The rice wine, or sherry, adds a depth of flavor that isn’t absolutely necessary but makes a big difference.

Here’s what you’ll need:

Chicken

Any type of chicken works well – thigh, breast, or either of the two cut into pieces. That being said, my personal favorite is chicken thigh. It’s juicier, more tender, and impossible to mess up by overcooking.

Pineapple Juice

Pineapple juice is an absolute must for huli huli chicken. It’s what gives it that delicious hint of tropical flavor, after all.

Just keep in mind that it needs to be canned pineapple juice – NOT fresh! Never use fresh pineapple to marinade chicken. Fresh pineapple contains a natural enzyme called bromelain that will break down the chicken, leaving you with a mushy, chalky texture that is frankly pretty gross. Ask me how I know!

Canned pineapple juice, on the other hand, is exposed to high levels of heat in the canning process which destroys bromelain so it won’t have the same effect.

Ginger and Garlic

The interplay of ginger and garlic add so much flavor to this dish. Use fresh ginger pieces and garlic cloves if you’ll be blending the marinade. If you use minced garlic and ginger, you can simply mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.

Tomato Ketchup

Any tomato ketchup works well. I’m using the 50% less sugar and salt Heinz ketchup for this recipe and it doesn’t take away from anything.

Soy Sauce

How much soy sauce you use is up to you but I find that using too much makes it taste too similar to teriyaki sauce and obscures the more tangy tropical flavors. So start small – like 2 to 3 tablespoons and taste test before you add more.

Another note on soy sauce – it’s one of the only ingredients in huli huli chicken that isn’t naturally gluten free. So use a gluten-free soy sauce if you need it or substitute with tamari sauce or coconut aminos.

Shaoxing Rice Wine

This Chinese rice wine isn’t an absolute necessity but it adds a complexity and depth that you’ll find hard to live without once you’ve had it. Not just for huli hulli chicken – if you do any type of Chinese cooking at home, it’s worth investing in a bottle of the stuff.

The only downside is that it’s not gluten-free. For a gluten-free alternative, use dry sherry instead. Or substitute with chicken or vegetable stock.

Another substitute is worcestershire sauce – although it’s not gluten-free. It’s not an exact substitute, mind you, but it can mimic the vinegary saltiness in a pinch.

Vinegar

I always use apple cider vinegar in this recipe because I love the taste. But you can also use rice vinegar or even red wine vinegar.

Brown sugar

Light brown sugar, dark brown sugar, or regular sugar or even honey will do just fine.

Smoked Paprika

Just a pinch of smoked paprika adds a brighter, smokier flavor that’s lovely, especially since I’m not using any chili in this recipe. If you want to make it straight up spicy instead, opt for chili flakes instead.

Salt and Pepper

Because salt, and especially pepper, are always welcome in this recipe. Taste and adjust as necessary.

How to Make Huli Huli Chicken

Huli huli chicken is as simple as it gets. You make the marinade, add it to the chicken (save some for basting!) and then cook it up when you’re ready.

Here’s the step-by-step process…

Make Huli Huli Marinade

Mix everything – pineapple juice, ginger, garlic, ketchup, soy sauce, Shaoxing rice wine, vinegar, sugar, paprika, and black pepper – together.

If you’re using minced garlic and ginger, you can combine everything in a bowl. If you’re using fresh ginger nubs and/or garlic cloves, toss everything in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth.

80/20 the Marinade

Combine the chicken with about 80% of the huli huli marinade in a large bowl or a Ziploc bag. Make sure all of the chicken is covered. Poke some holes in the chicken with a fork to help the marinade seep in.

Again, use only about 80% of the marinade sauce. Keep the rest to baste the chicken with when we cook it.

Why a separate sauce for basting? Purely hygienic reasons. The last thing we want is to cross-contaminate the chicken as it’s ready to serve. Setting aside fresh, never-touched-raw-chicken sauce ensures all the sauce you apply on the chicken as it’s cooking is safe.

Is marinating necessary? You might be tempted to skip the marinade process. We’re basting it, after all, is the marinade really necessary? YES! I’ve tried it with and without the marination step and the latter wins, hands down.

It’s not just the flavor – it’s the tenderness, too. The salts and acids in the marinade do a lot to transform the texture of the chicken.

How long to marinate the chicken? The ideal marinade time is between 6 to 24 hours. So if you can prep in the morning, it’s great by dinnertime. Or you can leave it in the fridge to soak up the marinade overnight and it’ll be perfect for lunch.

But if you’re short on time, aim for at least a couple of hours of marinade time. To offset the length of marination, be sure to poke little holes in the chicken with a fork and get more surface area on the chicken. You can do this by butterflying chicken breast or slashing chicken thigh so it’s one long piece. This way, you can get away with just a couple hours – 2 to 3 – of marinade time.

Oh, and the shorter the marinade time, the more generous you should be with the basting.

Cook and Baste

Coat the BBQ grill, a grill pan or skillet with a neutral oil. Preheat it to medium-high heat and then place the chicken on the hot grill.

Cook the chicken for 4-5 minutes on one side. Flip and cook the other side for 4 – 5 minutes.

Baste with the fresh, reserved huli huli marinade. I like to drizzle it onto the chicken fillets and then use a basting brush to glaze the chicken instead of double-dipping into the fresh marinade.

Flip and do the same to the other side, letting each side cook for just a minute or two between turns. Repeat. And repeat again.

The total cooking time is about 15 minutes – about 10 minutes to mostly cook the chicken through and then about 5 minutes to baste-flip-baste-flip. It’s virtually impossible to overcook chicken thigh so continue to baste-and-flip until your get the level of glaze and char that you want.

Top the huli huli chicken with green onions, if you want, and serve. Enjoy!

Should I throw away the used marinade? You can. But there’s so much delicious marinade leftover once you remove the chicken. What a waste. Especially since you can toss it in a sauce pan and bring it to boil on the stove top. It needs to be maintained at a full, rolling boil for about 5 minutes or until it reaches a temperature of 165°F (75°C). That’s the temp that kills foodborne bacteria so you want to get it there to be safe.

Use the sauce for extra basting OR just throw in the grilled chicken and let it simmer for a couple more minutes.

Want to Bake it Instead?

If you want a more hands-off method, you can definitely bake huli huli chicken instead. There’s no baste and flip involved so you can use the time to grill a plate of pineapples instead!

Here’s what to do:

Chicken breast: Preheat oven to 450°F (232°C). Place chicken breasts on a baking sheet or foil sheet and bake for 15 to 20 minutes. The thicker the breasts, the closer you’ll get to 20 minutes. Brush with the reserved marinade and serve.

Skin-off, boneless chicken thighs: Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Place chicken thighs on a baking sheet or foil sheet and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Broil on high for an extra 2 to 3 minutes for a little charring. Brush with the reserved marinade and serve.

Skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs: Preheat the oven to 425°F (218°C). Place chicken thighs, skin down on a baking sheet or foil sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Baste and turn the chicken over and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes.

For crispier skin, turn the broiler to high and broil for an additional 2 to 5 minutes. Brush with the reserved marinade and serve.

What to Serve with Huli Huli Chicken

Huli huli chicken, as delicious as it is, is made so much better by having the right sidekicks. Here are the best things to eat with huli huli chicken…

Grilled Pineapples

This is the number one recommendation. Even people who don’t like fruit with food can’t seem to resist the combination of grilled pineapple and huli huli chicken.

Fresh pineapple works as well but grilling it intensifies the sweetness and flavor and minimizes that prickly taste that is the only downside of fresh pineapple. The perfect win win.

Rice

Fragrant jasmine rice, basmati rice, even short or medium grain rice – all rice goes well with huli huli chicken. Use what you have.

Note: The one rice that tops it all is coconut rice. Coconut rice – or even coconut lime rice – is heavenly paired with huli huli chicken.

Pineapple Fried Rice

Why not just combine the two above and serve huli huli chicken with a side of pineapple fried rice? It’s easy to whip up and makes the perfect side dish.

You can even go with a low-calorie, low-carb version of pineapple fried rice to make a meal that feels like a cheat meal but definitely isn’t.

Cole Slaw

A superbly zesty, refreshing side dish to serve with huli huli chicken is the humble cole slaw. But Hawaiian-style, of course. This gingery-lime cole slaw recipe is the best complement.

Hawaiian Rolls

They’re fluffy, they’re moist, and they’ve got a subtle hint of pineapple flavor that makes them the perfect side dish to serve with huli huli chicken.

If you can’t get Hawaiian rolls and don’t want to make them, use regular rolls instead. Use pieces of the roll to sop up huli huli sauce and spread a little pickled pineapple compote on it as well. Result? Out of body levels of deliciousness.