Description

This Baked Chicken Legs recipe offers crispy, flavorful chicken drumsticks seasoned with a blend of garlic, onion, paprika, and spices, then oven-baked to juicy perfection. Perfect for an easy weeknight dinner or meal prep, this method ensures tender meat with a beautifully crisp skin without frying.

Ingredients

Scale

Chicken

8 skin-on chicken drumsticks (approx. 2 pounds total weight)

Seasoning Mix

1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon smoked or sweet paprika
1 tablespoon sea salt (reduce to 1 teaspoon if preferred less salty)
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon dry mustard (optional)

Oil

3 tablespoons olive oil

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Instructions

Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper for easy cleanup.
Prepare Seasoning Mix: In a small bowl, combine garlic powder, onion powder, smoked or sweet paprika, sea salt, black pepper, and optional dry mustard. Mix thoroughly with a fork to blend spices evenly.
Add Olive Oil: Pour olive oil into the spice mix and whisk or stir well until a seasoned oil mixture forms.
Bring Chicken to Room Temperature: Allow the chicken drumsticks to sit out for a short time to come to room temperature. This helps ensure even cooking.
Coat Chicken: Using a pastry brush or clean hands, evenly coat each chicken drumstick with the spice and oil mixture, covering all sides for full flavor.
Arrange on Baking Sheet: Place the seasoned chicken legs on the prepared baking sheet in a single layer, spacing them apart so air can circulate and skin crisps evenly.
Bake Initially: Bake the legs for 30 minutes at 400°F on the middle rack of the oven.
Brush & Crisp: After 30 minutes, spoon or brush the oil that has accumulated on the tray over the drumsticks. Continue baking for an additional 5 to 10 minutes until the skin becomes crispy and golden.
Check Doneness: Use an instant-read meat thermometer to ensure the internal temperature of the thickest part of the drumstick reaches at least 165°F to guarantee safe consumption.
Serve: Remove the chicken from the oven and let rest briefly before serving hot and enjoying the crispy, juicy flavors.

Notes

You can substitute chicken thighs or whole chicken legs (quarters) with skin-on for best results, as skin helps keep meat moist and crispy.
For extra crispy skin, pat the chicken dry thoroughly with paper towels before applying the oil and spice mixture.
Feel free to customize the seasoning blend with your favorite spices or premade blends like Cajun, lemon pepper, Old Bay, barbecue, or jerk seasoning.
This recipe can also be adapted for air frying: use only 1 tablespoon olive oil, toss chicken in seasoning, spray with olive oil spray, and air fry at 400°F for 10 minutes, flip, then cook another 10 minutes.
Do not cover the chicken while baking as this will steam rather than roast the skin, preventing crispiness.
Be careful not to overcook to avoid dry, tough chicken—use a thermometer for accuracy.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 2 chicken drumsticks
Calories: 320
Sugar: 0.3g
Sodium: 700mg
Fat: 22g
Saturated Fat: 3.5g
Unsaturated Fat: 17g
Trans Fat: 0g
Carbohydrates: 1g
Fiber: 0.5g
Protein: 28g
Cholesterol: 120mg