Baked Chicken Legs Recipe
This is an incredibly straightforward chicken drumsticks recipe that you can prepare and bake in no time. Coated in a flavorful three-ingredient barbecue-style seasoning, these drumsticks achieve a perfect crispiness, thanks to the addition of baking powder—a tried and true secret from my Truly Crispy Baked Chicken Wings recipe!
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Servings: 6 people
Ingredients
- 12 chicken drumsticks Note 1
- 4 1/2 tbsp plain/all-purpose flour
- 5 tsp smoked paprika
- 3 tsp baking powder Note 3
- 3 tsp garlic powder
- 3 tsp onion powder
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 1 1/2 tsp cooking/kosher salt
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Oil spray
Instructions
- Preparation: Preheat your oven to 200°C/390°F (180°C for fan-forced ovens). Line a baking tray with foil and place a rack on top to ensure the drumsticks get crispy on all sides (Note 4).
- Seasoning: In a shallow bowl, combine the garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, black pepper, salt, flour, and baking powder. Mix well.
- Coat in Oil: Drizzle the chicken drumsticks with the olive oil. Make sure to pull and stretch the skin to cover as much of the meat as possible.
- Coat in Seasoning: Dip each drumstick into the seasoning mixture, shaking off any excess. Place the coated drumsticks on the prepared rack. Repeat this step with all the drumsticks.
- Spray with Oil: Generously spray the drumsticks with oil to help them crisp up in the oven.
- Bake: Bake the drumsticks for 30 minutes, rotating the tray halfway through cooking. Then, increase the oven temperature to 220°C/430°F (200°C for fan-forced) and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until the skin is golden and crispy. Serve hot and enjoy!
Notes
Alternative Chicken Cuts: You can substitute drumsticks with chicken wings, which have the same cooking time and temperature. Alternatively, use skin-on, bone-in thighs; bake them for 35 minutes at 200°C/390°F (180°C fan) and then for an additional 15 minutes at the higher temperature as per the recipe.
Spice Substitutes:
1. Garlic powder: Use additional onion powder.
2. Onion powder: Use additional garlic powder.
3. Smoked paprika: Use ordinary or sweet paprika. Purpose of Baking Powder: Do not confuse baking powder with baking soda/bi-carb, which is much stronger and will alter the taste unfavorably. Baking powder is the secret to crispier chicken skin, a method proven successful with chicken wings. While it won’t make these drumsticks as crispy as plain-skinned wings, omitting it will result in noticeably less crispy drumsticks. The baking powder itself is tasteless. Tray Preparation: Lining the tray with foil simplifies cleanup. Using a rack helps achieve crispy undersides. If you don’t have a rack, line the tray with parchment paper, turn the drumsticks halfway through, and add an extra 5 to 10 minutes to the baking time to ensure the top becomes crispy. Nutrition Per Serving: This recipe yields approximately 5 servings, with each serving consisting of about 2.4 drumsticks.
2. Onion powder: Use additional garlic powder.
3. Smoked paprika: Use ordinary or sweet paprika. Purpose of Baking Powder: Do not confuse baking powder with baking soda/bi-carb, which is much stronger and will alter the taste unfavorably. Baking powder is the secret to crispier chicken skin, a method proven successful with chicken wings. While it won’t make these drumsticks as crispy as plain-skinned wings, omitting it will result in noticeably less crispy drumsticks. The baking powder itself is tasteless. Tray Preparation: Lining the tray with foil simplifies cleanup. Using a rack helps achieve crispy undersides. If you don’t have a rack, line the tray with parchment paper, turn the drumsticks halfway through, and add an extra 5 to 10 minutes to the baking time to ensure the top becomes crispy. Nutrition Per Serving: This recipe yields approximately 5 servings, with each serving consisting of about 2.4 drumsticks.