Baked BBQ Chicken Drumsticks

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Loaded with flavor, these baked BBQ chicken drumsticks are smothered in a homemade spice rub and are easy to make.

Tender and juicy, if you like BBQ chicken, you are going to love these oven-baked chicken drumsticks.

These delicious oven BBQ chicken drumsticks are perfect for dinners, BBQs, and family gatherings. You can even save the leftovers and put them in your Bento box lunch.

Oven BBQ Chicken Legs

The secret to making BBQ chicken legs in the oven is to add the sauce towards the end. This gives you the best baked BBQ flavor and will help keep the sauce from burning.

How To Make Oven Baked BBQ Chicken Drumsticks

This easy recipe makes 4 servings. That is figuring each person gets 2 legs each. Prep time is only 10 minutes and then they are baked in the oven at 400 degrees for about 50 minutes.

You can half, double, or even triple the recipe depending on your family’s needs or how many servings you want.

Supplies Needed

Large bowl – We place the seasonings for the BBQ Chicken Drumsticks into the large bowl and then add the chicken legs to evenly coat them. You can use a Ziplock bag, but we prefer a bowl so we can control how much spice each piece gets.

Rimmed baking sheet – A rimmed baking sheet will help you keep the oven clean. It’ll help keep the sauce or any juices from running off the pan.

Wire rack – I highly recommend a wire rack. Placing the rack on the baking sheet and then the chicken on top will help the drumsticks cook evenly. You also won’t have to worry about them sticking to the pan.

Pastry brush – We use a pastry brush to add the BBQ sauce at the end and will help you control how much BBQ sauce is used.

BBQ Chicken Drumsticks Ingredients

Remember, you can cut the ingredients in half, double, or triple the recipe if you need more than 8 BBQ chicken legs.

• 8 chicken legs
• 2 tsp. garlic powder
• 2 tsp. onion powder
• 2 tsp. smoked paprika
• 1 tsp. kosher salt
• 1⁄4 tsp. black pepper
• 1 c. barbecue sauce

How to Bake BBQ Chicken Drumsticks

1. In a large bowl, mix together the garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt, onion powder, and black pepper.
2. Pat the legs dry with paper towels and place them into the bowl with the seasoning mixture.
3. Pat the seasoning all over the legs, give it a shake, and then pat some more seasoning onto the legs. You want to get them really coated.
4. Refrigerate the bowl with the legs for 30 minutes.
5. While those are in the refrigerator, preheat your oven to 400°F with a rack in the center position.
6. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and place the wire rack on top of the foil.
7. Remove the chicken legs from the refrigerator and gently place them on the wire rack. Let stand for about 10 minutes to get to room temperature.
8. Bake the legs at 400 degrees for 35 minutes.
9. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F.
10. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and brush the top of the chicken legs with barbecue sauce.
11. Return the legs to the oven and bake for 7 to 10 minutes.
12. Remove the baking sheet from the oven. Turn the legs over and brush with the BBQ sauce. Put them back in the oven and continue baking for another 7 to 10 minutes.

An instant-read thermometer should register 165°F when inserted into the center of the legs. If it hasn’t, return the legs to the oven until it does.

How do you get BBQ sauce to stick to drumsticks? In these directions, you will notice that after we have coated the legs with the dry rub, we let it sit in the fridge for 30 minutes. This will help the seasoning stick to the chicken which will also help the BBQ sauce stick when it’s added.

How long does it take to BBQ chicken drumsticks?

These oven-baked chicken legs do take a bit of time, but they are so worth it! Serve them up with your favorite sides and you have a delicious dinner. All together, these BBQ chicken legs take about an hour and 30 minutes.

What to serve with BBQ chicken drumsticks:

• Pasta Salads
• Scalloped Potatoes
• Sauteed Vegetables
• Broccoli Salad
• Potatoes

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