American
BBQ Chicken Drumsticks
Drumsticks roast until the skin renders, then get a thin coat of a quick homemade barbecue sauce. The sauce goes on late so the sugar does not burn.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 45 min
- Total
- 55 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- Easy
Why you’ll love it
- Drumsticks are inexpensive and hard to overcook.
- The sauce is ketchup, vinegar, brown sugar, and spices you can name.
- A rack or a spaced-out pan keeps the bottoms from steaming.
- They are good hot or at room temperature.
Ingredients
Ingredient amounts scale. Oven temperature and cook time do not. Salt, spices, and leaveners are a starting point after you scale. Taste and adjust.
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Instructions
- 1
Heat the oven to 425°F. Pat the drumsticks dry. Toss with salt, paprika, and pepper.
- 2
Arrange them on a foil-lined sheet pan with space between each one.
- 3
Roast 30 minutes.
- 4
Stir the ketchup, vinegar, brown sugar, Worcestershire, chili powder, and garlic in a small bowl.
- 5
Brush the drumsticks with half the sauce. Roast 10 minutes. Brush with the rest and roast 5 to 8 minutes more, until the thickest part is 165°F and the sauce is tacky.
- 6
Rest 5 minutes before serving.
Pro tips
- Dry skin browns. If the drumsticks are wet from the package, pat them longer than you think.
- Sauce only at the end. Early sauce turns black and bitter.
- Check near the bone. That is the last place to cook through.
Easy substitutions
- Ketchup
- Tomato paste loosened with 2 tablespoons of water, then sweeten to taste.
- Drumsticks
- Bone-in thighs, same timing.
- Brown sugar
- Honey, 2 tablespoons.
Storage and reheating
Storage
Refrigerate up to 4 days.
Reheating
Heat at 375°F for 12 to 15 minutes, until hot in the center.
Nutrition
Estimates per serving, using standard ingredient averages and rounded to the nearest gram. This is not a lab analysis, and it shifts if you change brands or add sides.
- Calories
- 340
- Protein
- 32 g
- Carbs
- 14 g
- Fat
- 16 g
- Fiber
- 0 g
Budget friendly · Oven · High Protein
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From the kitchen
Kitchen tools we love
Practical tools these recipes actually use. This is not a review roundup, and these are not paid placements. If affiliate links are added later, they will be labeled and disclosed.
A heavy 12-inch skillet
Most of the chicken and steak recipes are written for one pan that holds heat. Stainless or cast iron both work.
An air fryer with a real basket
The air-fryer recipes expect a single layer. A crowded basket steams instead of browning.
A half-sheet pan
Drumsticks, potatoes, sausage, and carrots all use one. A dark pan browns faster than a very shiny one.
A sharp chef’s knife
These recipes do not need a specialty blade. A sharp 8-inch knife is faster and safer than a dull one.
A large cutting board
Big enough that the onion and the raw chicken are not sharing the same puddle.
Dry cups and a liquid cup
Desserts in particular expect level dry measures and a separate cup for milk.
An instant-read thermometer
Use it for poultry, pork chops, and meatloaf. Color is a weak guide.
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