The Best Chicken Leg Recipes

Best chicken leg recipes baked in the oven, air fryer, pressure cooker, slow cooker, boiled or deep pan fried chicken legs. How to cook drumsticks to tender perfectly.

Recipes for Chicken Legs in Oven

We will stick with the oven to start with and share how long to bake chicken legs at 400 degrees. Sometimes you see instructions for 425 but a bit lower and slower will get the meat more tender which is nice. Then if you are a crispy chicken skin fan you can brush on some sauce and turn it up for the last few minutes.

Now if you love legs and thighs together we have also included instructions on how to cook chicken leg quarters for you too. Many times these are so cheap I just can’t pass them up at the store. AND you get both types of meat so everyone gets their fave.

Drumsticks in Pressure Cooker

Instant Pot chicken legs need the same thing at the end since you won’t get any crisp this way. The broil setting actually does a better job in just 3 minutes or so. I like adding bbq sauce so it kinda’ caramelizes on the outside and bakes right on with all the bold flavors.

Chicken Drumstick Recipes

Butterflied chicken legs are another fun one you should try if you haven’t yet. Basically you slice it down to the bone and pull open the sides so it lays flat. Why would you do this? Well it bakes or air fries a bit faster and since it is open you get more crunchy texture all the way around.

Now when it comes to boiled chicken legs as you might expect there will be no crisp. This is a great way to do it though if you don’t care about that. When I make tacos and just want shredded meat this is my go to. It literally falls off the bone when done and is really cheap meal everyone loves.

You can then crisp when done if you wanted with a bbq. I mean I prefer start to finish grilled chicken drumsticks but you could throw them off after boiling.

Frozen Chicken Leg Recipes

Our most popular way to do this with the best overall texture would be our air fryer frozen chicken legs. You of course get the insides tender but the outside is the game changer for these. You can add sauce if you like but most times that isn’t even necessary.

If you don’t care about the crunch I would suggest Instant Pot frozen chicken legs that literally fall off the bone. The all time tenderest protein made this way. The outside will remain soft unless you broil or air fry them at the end but if you don’t eat the skin anyway that won’t matter right?

You can in fact do both with our Ninja Foodi chicken drumsticks instructions. Pressure cook first for the ultimate tender and then air crisp them after they are sauced. All in the same pot!

Air Fryer Chicken Leg Recipes

Our mustard chicken legs are fantastic with a sauce that is tangy and you can make sweet with a bit of honey too. If you want to make it like fried but without submerging it into a bunch of oil you can do so with just some seasoned flour y’all. Of course sauce can be brushed on at the end but “plain” is just as good.

Roasted chicken legs in air fryer of any kind really are out of this world delish and crunchy as ever. You can marinate them for a few hours or overnight beforehand or just use salt and black pepper. There are tons of variations as far as that goes. Make them spicy with some cayenne pepper, smoked paprika and garlic powder to be killer.

An easy 30 minute meal that even my teens can make themselves after school. Any cut works in this machine really well, including chicken wings airfryer style. Biggest tip I have for this method is to make sure the outside is dry, just use paper towels. Then brush with olive oil and seasonings like onion powder, salt and pepper. That is it. 😉

How to tell if chicken drumsticks are done with a thermometer?

As you know with poultry and pork you will need to ensure that the middle is done, and no longer pink. With beef you can have it rare but not with this. If you are using an air fryer make sure you sit them in a single layer so the hot air can circulate properly, same goes with any other cooking method really.

You will want an instant read thermometer for this. Remove from the heating source and place in the thickest part of the meat to test. If you have leg quarters you’d want to insert into the chicken thigh instead of the leg for the most accurate read. Internal temperature needs to be 165 degrees.

Realize that when you take them out and allow your pieces to rest the temp. will rise another 5 degrees or so too. SO you could remove at 160 F and typically you’ll be safe, but no lower than that. If you wanted to increase the heat to get crispy skin I would increase the temp at 160 so it doesn’t dry out.

Easy Chicken Leg Recipes

Slow cooker chicken legs rounds out our chicken recipes for this category. Looks like this when done, great for shredded chicken or just if you want tenderest meat ever.

What is the Best Way to Cook Chicken Legs

If you have kids they might think lollipop chicken legs are fun. Just a different look but brings fun to a meal. I have just a basic step by step below. Seasonings are subjective but these work well for us as just basics. If you haven’t tried this in your Cosori I would start with this one and go from there.

• 6-8 chicken legs
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp pepper
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp Old Bay

Start by gently rinsing chicken legs and dry with paper towels. Put in a bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and massage into skin, then sprinkle on seasonings so each is seasoned.

• Preheat air fryer to 380 F for 5 minutes.
• Spray basket with non stick spray and lay in a single layer. Air fry for 15 minutes.
• Open basket and flip over. If you want to brush on a sauce do so now. Then air fry for another 10-15 minutes or until thickest part reaches 165 F.

Chicken Legs on a Smoker

And then we come to the Traeger y’all. If you love to cook outside during the warmer months this is the bomb. You have got to try smoked chicken drumsticks y’all. Last but not least you should check out mock chicken legs too. Using ground meat with a stick it’s a kid fave.