Learn how to bake drumsticks that are coated in garlic butter, nice and crispy on the outside, and tender and juicy on the inside. Healthy, inexpensive, and quick to throw together, these baked chicken drumsticks are perfect for any night of the week.
As a main course, plan on serving about 2 chicken legs per person along with your favorite veggies, potatoes, or pasta. These are also an easy appetizer for game day or potlucks.
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Baked Drumsticks with Garlic Butter
We make drumsticks a lot around our house because they are inexpensive, familiar (in case you have picky eaters!), and go with just about anything. Plus, baked chicken drumsticks are significantly healthier than fried fast food versions.
There isn’t much more to these than seasoning the chicken legs, mixing up a 3 ingredient garlic butter and baking in a preheated oven. These work great as a main course served with your favorite rice, pasta, mashed potatoes or veggie sides.
If you are looking for ideas on what to make with chicken drumsticks, there are plenty of options to choose from . You can try making them with a Mediterranean spice blend, honey soy glaze, or try another oven baked chicken recipe, Buffalo Chicken Drumsticks.
Key Ingredients
- Chicken Drumsticks - if you prefer dark meat, you can substitute chicken thighs that have a similar cooking time.
- Salt and Pepper
- Butter - this should be room temperature so you can easily mix it with the garlic and spread it over the drumsticks.
- Garlic - we like the flavor of fresh garlic for the garlic butter, but you could substitute garlic powder instead.
- Onion Powder - this gives a nice sweet onion flavor to your butter.
- Parsley - fresh chopped parsley adds a nice fresh flavor and a bit of color.
How to Bake Drumsticks with Garlic Butter Sauce
- Prep chicken drumsticks. Remove drumsticks from their package, gently pat them dry with a paper towel, and place them into a large bowl.
- Drizzle with Avocado Oil- Add enough oil to coat the drumsticks
- Season with garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
- Bake. Bake in a preheated 400-degree oven for about 35-40 minutes, or until chicken is golden brown and a digital thermometer reads 165 degrees when inserted into the thickest part.
- Make Garlic Butter Sauce. In a small bowl, combine the butter, grated parmesan cheese, chopped parsley, and garlic powder. Mix.
- Coat the Drumsticks in the garlic butter sauce. You can use a pastry brush to brush on the butter or toss them in a large bowl. Let the drumsticks rest for 10 minutes, then garnish with extra chopped parsley and serve. Enjoy!
Drumstick Recipe Ideas
- Lemon Garlic - add a generous squeeze of fresh lemon juice over your chicken drumsticks just before serving. You could even zest a bit of lemon over the top, too.
- Soy Garlic - for a little more umami flavor, add a couple tablespoons of soy sauce into your garlic butter. You could also add a touch just before serving right over the top.
- Dairy-Free - if you want to make this dairy-free, you could substitute olive oil for the butter. If you go this route, you may want to remove the drumsticks halfway through the cooking and brush the olive oil over them.
Frequently Asked Questions
egrees. The cooking time, however, will vary slightly depending on large or small the drumsticks are.
The only sure way to know is to take the internal temperature using a digital thermometer. Your chicken needs to reach 165 degrees F in order for it to be safe to eat. Be sure you are checking the temperature in the thickest part of the chicken and that the thermometer isn’t touching any pieces of bone.
If you want to make your drumsticks extra juicy, or if you want to add a bit of flavor, you can feel free to use a marinade for your drumsticks. We suggest trying our Rosemary Garlic Chicken Breast Marinade, our 3 Citrus Chicken Marinade or our Lemon Chicken Marinade.
If you are serving them as a main course, we suggest 1 drumstick per child and 2 per adult. For appetizers, it depends on how much else you are serving but generally we would say 1 per person.
Garlic Butter Baked Drumsticks Recipe
Ingredients
Drumstick Ingredients
- 2-3 lbs Drumsticks
- 2 tablespoons Avocado Oil
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Pepper
Garlic Parmesan Coating
- 4 Tablespoons Butter room temperature
- ½ cup Parmesan Cheese Grated
- ½- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 2 teaspoon Parsley chopped for garnish
- ½ teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Remove drumsticks from their package, gently pat them dry with a paper towel and place into a baking dish. Season all sides with salt and pepper.
- In a mixing bowl, toss the drumsticks in a couple tablespoons of avocado oil. Add garlic powder, salt and pepper and combine again.
- Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for about 35-40 minutes, or until golden brown and a digital thermometer reads 165 degrees when inserted into the thickest part of the drumstick.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine the butter, garlic powder, crushed red pepper freshly chopped parsely, and parmesan cheese.
- Coat the drumsticks in the garlic butter sauce. Let rest for 10 minutes, then garnish with more chopped parsley and serve. Enjoy!
Nutrition
More Chicken Drumstick Recipes
- Garlic Parmesan Drumsticks
- BBQ Drumsticks
- Honey Soy Drumsticks
- Simple Oven-Baked Chicken Drumsticks
- Mediterranean Grilled Chicken Drumsticks
- Buffalo Chicken Drumsticks
- More Chicken Recipes
- More Main Dishes
If you are looking for healthy chicken drumstick recipes, try these yummy Baked Garlic Butter Drumsticks. They are nice and crispy on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside and super quick to throw together.
Allison
Delicious! Reminded me of my grandma's recipe. Will definitely make again.
Beth
My son is going to love these. You can't go wrong with garlic, butter, and chicken.