Crispy Baked Chicken Legs are a budget-friendly, family dinner idea made for feeding your crew any night of the week! Just drizzle the drumsticks with oil, add the seasoning, bake, turn, and bake a little more! No fussy cooking method and no marinade required. Just a straightforward, easy recipe that always results in flavorful, juicy chicken legs with crispy, golden-brown skin.
Love chicken? Add Chicken Pot Pie, Chicken Noodle Soup, and Baked BBQ Chicken to this week's dinnertime lineup!
BAKED CHICKEN LEG INGREDIENTS
- Chicken Legs - Drumsticks are always sold bone-in with the skin-on. This equals lots of flavor. And, (lucky for us) it also equals a budget-friendly dinner, weighing in at about $1.20 per pound.
- Oil - You can use avocado oil, canola oil, or olive oil to coat your chicken. Whichever you have on hand will work fine!
- Seasoning - The seasoning mix consists of Kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder.
- Parsley (optional) - Herbs add a nice touch to savory, baked dishes, as well as a pop of color and a little freshness. However, the parsley is completely optional, and if you'd like to leave it off the grocery list, feel free to do so.
HOW TO MAKE CRISPY BAKED CHICKEN LEGS
Prep - The prep work for making crispy Baked Chicken Legs is extremely minimal. You'll start by patting the chicken legs dry with a paper towel. This removes the excess moisture from the chicken and ensures they bake up with nice crispy skin. Then, transfer the drumsticks to a rimmed sheet pan.
Season the Chicken - It's best to combine the seasoning before you add it to the chicken, and allows for a more even distribution of the spices. Combine the Kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder in a small bowl, then drizzle the drumsticks with oil and sprinkle the chicken with the seasoning. If you are using the parsley, add that as well and rub the mixture all over each chicken leg to adhere.
Bake, Turn and Bake Some More - You could put your chicken in the oven and allow it to bake for a total of 35 minutes, undisturbed. However, if you want truly Crispy Chicken Legs all the way around, you'll need to turn them about halfway through the cooking process. The chicken legs will bake for a total of 35 minutes. So bake for 20 minutes, then turn each drumstick and continue baking for 15 minutes more.
BAKED CHICKEN LEGS TEMPERATURE
The best temperature for making Crispy Baked Chicken legs is 375°F. This temperature is high enough to brown the meat, without having to leave it in the oven so long that the chicken overcooks and turns out tough.
HOW LONG TO BAKE CHICKEN LEGS
Drumsticks baked at 375°F will take a total of 35 minutes to cook through.
Not sure if it's done? Dark meat chicken should reach an internal temperature at 180°F. This temperature is best determined via the use of an instant-read thermometer. If you do not have a thermometer, prick one of your baked chicken legs with the tip of a knife. If the juices run clear, the chicken is likely cooked to a safe temperature.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH DRUMSTICKS
You can serve a number of things alongside crispy Baked Drumsticks. Below are a few of our favorite quick-fix options that would pair well with chicken. All of which are easy to make and 100% kid-approved!
Veggie Bake
Shells and Cheese
Cheesy Mashed Potatoes Recipe
Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
Steamed Broccoli Recipe
The Best Steak Fries Recipe
5 MORE CHICKEN RECIPES YOU’LL LOVE
- Baked Chicken Leg Quarters are juicy, flavorful, and tender, but let us not forget the best part — that beautiful, golden, crispy skin!
- BBQ Baked Chicken Quarters are easy to make and perfectly cooked. Simple, baked leg quarters brushed with BBQ sauce!
- Chicken and Dumplings come loaded with chicken, extra dumplings, carrots, and celery! Plus, a seriously easy method for whipping up dumplings in a flash.
- Parmesan Crusted Chicken Tenders feature budget-friendly chicken strips coated in a crunchy Parmesan-Panko crust. Serve them with marinara for dipping as an extra special touch!
- Oven-Fried Chicken Tenders bake up golden and crispy just like their fried counterparts, and you can rest assured — your family will never know the difference.
Easy Baked Chicken Legs with juicy, tender chicken and crispy, golden skin.
- 3 - 4 pounds chicken legs
- 2 teaspoons Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- ¾ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- 2 tablespoons avocado or canola oil
- 2 teaspoons minced parsley (optional)
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Preheat the oven to 375°. Pat the chicken legs dry with a paper towel and transfer them to a rimmed sheet pan, preferably lined with aluminum foil.
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Combine Kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder in a small bowl and stir to combine.
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Drizzle the drumsticks with oil and sprinkle over the seasoning and parsley. Rub all over each chicken leg to adhere.
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Bake for 20 minutes. Then, turn each drumstick and continue to bake for 15 minutes more.
Amy says
This chicken looks perfectly cooked and so tasty, can't wait to try!
Krissy Allori says
Great baked chicken. I loved it and so did my family. I prefer dark meat and my the kids love the chicken legs so it was a win win.
Andrea Metlika says
These are perfect for a busy weeknight meal.
Patty at Spoonabilities says
I love roasting chicken legs. They really are a great, delicious and economical way to feed a crowd. This is a great, simple recipe -- love how the skin gets so with crispy and golden-brown.
SHANIKA says
I love baking my chicken! This recipe looks so flavorful and delicious!