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The left-arm quick was withdrawn from the Champions League T20 due to a rib injury, but is poised to return for the match in Sharjah.
And Australia captain George Bailey - standing in for injured regular skipper Michael Clarke - is backing "strike weapon" Johnson to make an impact in the three-match series, which will be followed by Tests in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
"He's been training, building up his loads. He should be good to go," Bailey told reporters.
"He's nice to have. He adds something that little bit different.
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"The beauty of Mitch is that he does something very few people in the world do. It's a real strike weapon for us.
"He can get something out of a wicket that no one else can.
"In many respects that's when he's at his best. He can change a game quickly. He can get you back into a game quickly.
"I think particularly in these conditions he will be very valuable."
Australia beat Pakistan in a one-off Twenty20 international in Dubai on Sunday after Shahid Afridi's side were restricted to 96 for nine and the tourists got home for the loss of four wickets with six overs to spare.
Glenn Maxwell took three for 13 and David Warner smashed a quickfire half-century in a comfortable victory and Maxwell hopes that was the sign of things to come.
"I think that's what we were aiming to do, was really put our front foot forward, put a dent in Pakistan and make it hard for them to come back for the rest of the time that we're here, so to start a series like that, where it's a really dominating win," he said.
"I think we won with six overs left, is a great way to start a tour, and if we keep our foot on the throat the whole way through the tour and stay on top of the opposition it shows what you're really here to do and it's something we haven't done in an away series for a while.
"Going back to the India tour a couple of years ago where we were the other way around, where India just stood on us the whole way through that series, it was tough to come back from, so hopefully we can do that to Pakistan and go home with six wins."
Pakistan will be out to prove they can cope without spinner Saeed Ajmal, who is suspended due to a suspect bowling action, while all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez is out of the ODI series due to a hand injury.
Captain Misbah-ul Haq knows filling the void left by Ajmal will not be easy, but knows Pakistan must not dwell on his absence.
"It's really difficult to fill Ajmal's gap because he has been the number one or two bowler in the one-day rankings, but if Ajmal is not there we must try to fill his gap and move forward," he said.