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This Hawaiian Haystacks recipe was one of my favorites as a kid, with a homemade chicken gravy served over rice with tons of toppings, like cheese, tomatoes, veggies, and crunchy chow mein noodles.
Hawaiian Haystacks was a staple at our house.
I loved this meal as a kid, and I'm sure many are familiar with it–maybe it's a Utah thing? It's not actual “Hawaiian” food. We start with steamed rice and top it with a chicken gravy, and tons of toppings like pineapple, veggies and chow mein noodles.
My recipe is different because we ditch the canned soup and make our own chicken gravy. It's super easy (were talking dinner done in less than 30 minutes) and the flavor is so much better. The best part about Hawaiian Haystacks is everyone can customize with the toppings they want–dinner winner!
Try my other 30-minute recipes, like Instant Pot Fettuccine Alfredo, Air Fryer Chicken Tenders, Baked Tacos, and Hamburger Gravy.
How to make Hawaiian Haystacks:
Make Sauce: In a large saucepan, whisk together milk, cornstarch, butter, chicken bouillon paste, spices, and water. Season raw chicken with salt and pepper, and bring the sauce to a low simmer and add the chicken. Simmer until chicken is cooked and sauce is thickened. If using cooked chicken, stir in after the sauce is thickened.
Cook Rice and Chop Vegetables: Steam rice, slice tomatoes and olives, grate cheese, and chop all vegetables and any other desired toppings.
Assemble: Scoop rice and set it as the base on your plate. Pour some chicken gravy over the top, then sprinkle on desired toppings. Enjoy immediately!
Hawaiian Haystacks
Equipment
- saucepan
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups milk, , cold
- 3 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 3 Tablespoons butter
- 2 teaspoon chicken bouillon base, or cubes or powdered
- Salt and pepper, , to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 cup water
- 3 cups chicken, uncooked, or cooked
- Hot cooked rice, , for serving
Topping Ideas:
- Pineapple
- Chow mein noodles
- Green onion
- Shredded cheese
- Sliced olives
- Tomatoes
- Toasted Coconut
- Peas
- Celery
- Bell peppers
- Slivered almonds
Instructions
- Prepare rice according to package instructions.
- Make Gravy: In a small saucepan whisk together milk, water and cornstarch. Add butter, bouillon, salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic powder. Bring to a low boil, stirring frequently. If using uncooked chicken, season it with salt and pepper and add to the pot, Reduce heat and cook until chicken is cooked through and sauce has thickened to gravy consistency. If using leftover cooked chicken, stir it in at the end.2 ½ cups milk, 3 Tablespoons cornstarch, 3 Tablespoons butter, 2 teaspoon chicken bouillon base, Salt and pepper, ½ teaspoon onion powder, 1 cup water, 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- To serve, add a spoonful of rice to a bowl. Pour chicken gravy on top. Add desired toppings.Pineapple, Chow mein noodles, Green onion, Shredded cheese, Sliced olives, Tomatoes, Toasted Coconut, Peas, Celery, Bell peppers, Slivered almonds
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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This recipe was originally shared March 2020. Updated August 2022 and January 2026.
A family favorite!!!!!!! We have this a few times a month.
Please tell me what is Hawaiian about this. I was born and raised in Hawaii and have never seen such a mess in my life.
Kate, don’t knock the recipe until you try it. I appreciate the author posting the recipe. It probably isn’t authentic Hawaiian food, it;s not meant to be. It’s just the name. It’s really very good, and one of our favorites.
Kate, this is really good and not a real Hawaiian dish, it is just the name. It is fun and everyone loves it…Try it!
Very good!! Boiled the chicken then diced & added to the sauce. No leftovers, everyone loved it! Thank you!!
Made this but with pork instead of the chicken. I used vegi stock instead. we added pineapple and cherries. very good recipe. Will keep in our monthly rotation.
Good homemade recipe for Hawaiian Haystacks. HOWEVER, I would recommend cutting the garlic powder by half or more. We love garlic, but that and onion powder were all we could taste and ended up having to add a can of cream of chicken to tone it down.. it helped only a little.
If I make again I’ll probably just give a dash of garlic powder, or better yet, use real garlic.
So yummy! We loved it. Any chance you know what the serving size is?