Chicken drumsticks are quick, easy, delicious and they usually don’t break the bank at the store. I often find family packs of them on sale. When I do, I usually pick up a couple trays and freeze them for later use. For our small family, we can get multiple meals out of one family pack (approximately 14 drumsticks).
If you enjoy cooking for a small crowd, this is an easy meal that everyone will love. Baked chicken is such a versatile meat and is complimented by a variety of side dishes.
I love to serve them with potatoes or rice and a vegetable in the winter and pasta salads or other cold sides in the summer. They’re also great for leftovers, the meat is perfect to put on salads. I bake my drumsticks at 400F so that the skin gets a bit crispy. They take around 40 minutes to bake and the chicken is so juicy and flavorful.
I whipped up this dry rub to test out on my aunt and uncle who came for supper the other night. It’s my favorite way to make chicken drumsticks. I make them fairly often, but always just dump ingredients in and forget to write them down so this time I took some notes to share here!
I preheat the oven and mix up the dry rub, coat them in a little olive oil, then dip them in the dry rub seasoning and bake. These would also be wonderful on the grill or smoker.
The brown sugar really melds the spice flavors together nicely and adds some volume to the rub so you can coat the chicken well. I didn’t have any mustard powder on hand when I made this but I think a dash of that (1/2 tsp or so) would add an awesome tang to this rub.
Chicken Drumsticks
Ingredients
- 1 family pack chicken drumsticks (14 drumsticks)
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 tbsp dried minced onion
- 2 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp seasoned salt
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400℉ and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. You'll want to use a baking sheet with an edge lip so juices don't run off.
- Mix the dry rub ingredients together in a bowl big enough to dip the drumsticks into. (All ingredients except chicken and olive oil)
- There is no need to wash the chicken, pat it dry with paper towels if necessary. Line the drumsticks up on the baking sheet with a little space between them.
- Drizzle them with olive oil, then use your hands or a basting brush to rub olive oil all over each drumstick. A little bit of oil goes a long ways so be sure to not drizzle too much.
- Dip and roll each drumstick into the dry rub and put them back on the baking sheet.
- When all the drumsticks are coated in dry rub, place the baking sheet in the oven and bake the chicken for about 40 minutes. I like to turn the chicken over once halfway through baking so that it browns evenly. Be sure to cook the chicken until the skin is golden brown and the meat is cooked through completely.
- Serve with your favorite sides and enjoy!
