How Long do you Bake Chicken Legs – Oven Barbecued Chicken Drumsticks

Serves six

12 thawed chicken legs – small to medium (larger drumsticks will take longer to cook)
2 TBS olive oil
1 TBS coarse salt
2 tsp. black pepper
1 cup BBQ sauce of choice

Heat oven to 400 degrees.
Rinse and pat dry the chicken (make sure it is completely thawed) and place it in a large roasting pan or a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle the chicken with olive oil and season it generously with salt and pepper. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 25 minutes. Reduce the heat to 375.

Remove the chicken from the oven and brush – on both sides and liberally – with barbecue sauce. I like my homemade apple juice bbq sauce but you can use whatever you like.

Place the chicken back into the oven and cook for an extra 10 minutes. Remove from oven and brush both sides one more time. Place in oven for an extra 7 to 10 minutes until the bbq sauce caramelizes and the chicken registers 170 degrees on a meat thermometer placed close to the bone. You can also slice the chicken, close to the bone, and if it is pink cook it for longer. I would cook it in 5 minute increments. Whatever you do, make sure your chicken is completely cooked through before serving. All ovens are different so your times might vary. I served mine with broccoli slaw and sweet potato chips.

Enjoy!

2 chicken legs – CALORIES 345.31; FAT 16.52 grs (sat 4.07; mono 8.14; poly 3.27); PROTEIN 26.07 grs ; FIBER 1.54 grs; CARBS 20.71 grs; CHOLESTEROL 110 mg; IRON 1.67 mg; SODIUM 1514.05 mg; CALCIUM 3.16 mg

Oven BBQ Chicken Drumsticks with Slaw & Sweet Potato Chips

Print the Oven BBQ Chicken Legs Recipe Here

Print the Sweet Potato Chips Recipe Here

Print the Cole Slaw Recipe Here

156 Responses to How Long do you Bake Chicken Legs – Oven Barbecued Chicken Drumsticks

theFrugalChef

December 8, 2010 at 8:02 pm

Thanks Christine! I am happy you like this! I appreciate you coming by. Take care!
asssav

February 15, 2011 at 5:56 am

Great article. Bookmarked!
Vine

March 9, 2011 at 2:00 pm

Thanks, gonna make this tonight :] My first time making chicken :]
theFrugalChef

March 9, 2011 at 2:02 pm

You are welcome! Good luck! Thank you for trying this out.
Mary Ann
Daniel Deyzel

March 14, 2011 at 10:02 pm

Made this for the 1st time for 4 people – GREAT success!
Im a 25 year old guy…if I can do it, anyone can do it!
Thanks for the detailed steps.
theFrugalChef

March 16, 2011 at 4:49 pm

That is so great Daniel! I am happy this helped! Thanks so much for letting me know!
Mary Ann
Anton

April 4, 2011 at 6:37 pm

Thanks so much for this…. i hadnt made chicken in a long time…. and turned out to be FANTASTIC!!!
theFrugalChef

April 7, 2011 at 7:20 pm

Awesome! I am so happy to hear that! Thank you so much for letting me know!
Mary Ann
Diana

April 24, 2011 at 6:17 pm

Can you give the recipe for the brocoli slaw and sweet potatoe chips. I have never heard of either one and both of them sound and look yummy!!!
thanks
theFrugalChef

April 25, 2011 at 7:17 pm

Hi Diana! You can search for both those recipes on the right hand side of the website. You will get both recipes. Thank you so much for coming by!
Mary Ann
Debra

April 29, 2011 at 1:46 pm

Just wondering can I finish off chicken on the grill after I put
Bar-B-Q Sauce on them.
theFrugalChef

April 30, 2011 at 6:13 pm

Oh yum! Absolutely! The chicken will be splendid! Thanks so much for coming by!
Mary Ann
Otto

May 12, 2011 at 2:45 pm

Im trying it!
theFrugalChef

May 12, 2011 at 5:46 pm

Awesome! I hope it comes out perfect! Thanks for coming by!
Mary Ann
monique

May 20, 2011 at 3:33 pm

thanx for the time…….chicken tonight!!!!
theFrugalChef

May 20, 2011 at 7:26 pm

You are welcome! I hope it comes out fantastic!
Mary Ann
James

May 29, 2011 at 4:30 pm

so yummy! Thanks! I used Jamaican BBQ sauce with added honey
theFrugalChef

May 30, 2011 at 6:33 pm

Yum James! That sounds great! Thanks for coming by! Have a fantastic week!
Mary Ann
DANIEL

July 6, 2011 at 4:42 pm

Yeah,,,, so followed exactly to the t. UNDER BAKES THEM. Perhaps you should advise your audience a longer time to cook.
theFrugalChef

July 6, 2011 at 4:45 pm

Of the hundreds, literally, hundreds of people that have let me know how well this has worked for them you are the very first one to state this. Every oven is different and I am sorry your chicken was undercooked. Thanks for coming by and letting me know.
Mary Ann
Monique

July 11, 2011 at 7:35 pm

If I am only cooking 6 drumsticks, it is the same amount of time/temperature?
theFrugalChef

July 11, 2011 at 7:45 pm

Probably. Chicken needs to cook thoroughly in order to not make you sick. Keep an eye on them so they do not over cook. Thanks for coming by!
Mary Ann
Draw2much

July 18, 2011 at 8:58 pm

Simple, easy, and delicious! Thank you for this great recipe! I don’t like drumsticks, but my husband does. He said these came out great and would definitely eat them again.
theFrugalChef

July 20, 2011 at 12:46 pm

Great! Thank you very much for the message! I am happy these came out great for you!
kristen

July 21, 2011 at 4:19 pm

do you leave the skins on?
theFrugalChef

July 21, 2011 at 6:12 pm

I do but you can go ahead and remove them is you want. Thanks for coming by!
kristen

July 26, 2011 at 12:42 am

Thanks for the recipe! I used a digital thermometer to know when they were cooked, and they turned out perfect! Extremely moist and tender, with great flavor!
Dee

September 25, 2011 at 11:00 am

I wondered if when placing the chicken on the baking sheet do you put it skin side up or down and do I need to grease of put tinfoil on the baking sheet prior to putting on the chicken?
theFrugalChef

September 26, 2011 at 7:43 pm

Hi Dee!
You do not need to place these skin side down. Go ahead and place some foil on the baking sheet to facilitate clean-up. Thanks for coming by!
Mary Ann
Krystal Wagoner

October 17, 2011 at 5:18 pm

I’m making this tonight!! Looks delicious!
theFrugalChef

October 17, 2011 at 5:33 pm

Hi Krystal!
Thank you for giving this a try! I hope it comes our wonderful! Have a spectacular week!
Mary Ann
Fire Fighter Mike

October 18, 2011 at 9:40 am

Hey, I am a father of 3 little kids and the wife is gone at work, SO. Thanks to your website I am able to answer a lot of cooking questions. THANK YOU. I am Pre-Heating the oven now for my chicken drummies. Working at the Fire Department I like to bring food to work.
theFrugalChef

October 18, 2011 at 1:11 pm

Hi Michael!
You are so welcome! I am happy that the website helps out! Thank you so much for giving it a try. Good luck with your chicken! Thanks so much for coming by!
Mary Ann
Jana

October 23, 2011 at 9:17 am

Dear Frugal Chef,
I’m wanting to try out your chicken tonight, but I am cooking off of my yacht for hunting clients in Alaska and my oven starts at 400 degrees. Do you have any tips for me in regards to my different degree settings? The chicken should reach 160 degrees inside to be considered fully cooked…. right?
Thank,
Jana
theFrugalChef

October 23, 2011 at 1:39 pm

Hi Jana!
Go ahead and cook the chicken at the 400 degrees. Just make sure you flip them halfway. The chicken should be between 165 to 170 degrees to be cooked. Good luck! I hope this works out for you. What a beautiful setting to have some BBQ chicken tonight! Have a great week!
Mary Ann
nick

October 26, 2011 at 1:08 pm

Making this right now…crossing my fingers/toes. I just recently learned how to operate the oven properly. Will let you know how it turns out. The only thing I’m afraid off is I can’t really tell when the legs are done.
theFrugalChef

October 26, 2011 at 3:06 pm

Hi Nick!
No worries! This will come out perfect! If you have a meat thermometer insert it into the deepest part. If it registers 165 to 170 you are golden! If you do not, go ahead and cut one open. If you have no pink or red the chicken is ready. Good luck!
Mary Ann
travis

December 6, 2011 at 2:48 pm

Thank you killer info
theFrugalChef

December 10, 2011 at 5:48 pm

Hi Travis!
You are welcome. Thank you for coming by!
Mary Ann
Jshores

December 11, 2011 at 12:05 pm

Not even close to the correct cooking time. Needs at least another thirty minutes.
theFrugalChef

December 11, 2011 at 7:05 pm

Hi there!
Thank you for coming by. 60 to 62 minutes to cook chicken drumsticks is way too long. Either the drumsticks you are cooking are huge or your oven is very slow. Have a great week!
Mary Ann
Kayla

December 21, 2011 at 3:14 pm

iu have a question what if i already put the oven on 350 degrees?
theFrugalChef

December 22, 2011 at 4:01 pm

Hi Kayla!
I hope these came out great for you! I am sure they did. You just had to cook them for a little longer. Thank you for coming by!
Mary Ann
kim1974

January 7, 2012 at 8:21 pm

I followed your recipe to the exact minutes and then I left them longer and it was undercooked!! Thanks again though! I will keep trying!!
theFrugalChef

January 8, 2012 at 3:20 am

Kim!
I am sorry to hear this! Maybe you need to set the oven a little higher next time. Ovens are all so different. Thank you for giving these a try. I hope next time they work better for you!
Mary Ann
Amber

January 9, 2012 at 2:27 pm

Going to try this in just a bit! I’ve always put the bb
Amber

January 9, 2012 at 2:28 pm

oops! Hit enter to soon. I was trying to say I’ve always put the bbq sauce on first and then cooked them all the way through, but always have burnt bbq sauce. Looking forward to trying it this way! Thanks for the super simple directions!
Amber

January 9, 2012 at 4:50 pm

UPDATE!: My chicken turned out Puuuurfect! Again, thanks for the great information. This is going in my recipe book!
theFrugalChef

January 9, 2012 at 6:09 pm

Thank you so much for letting me know Amber! I am so happy this worked for you! I hope you have a wonderful week!
Mary Ann
Jessica

January 18, 2012 at 4:06 pm

MaryAnn this was absolutley terrific! I’d like to do this using chicken breast, any suggestions on the cooking variations? Thank you.