Mustard Chicken Legs

Mustard chicken legs in air fryer come out fall off the bone tender with crispy chicken skin too. You can increase the timing a bit with air fryer chicken leg quarters too. It’s our kids favorite meal ever.

We are going to focus on chicken with a honey mustard sauce on them today. Preferred cooking method is the air fryer but will share how long to bake along the way too. Both ways turn out tender inside but crispy skin on the outside with this killer sauce. One of our favorite easy air fryer recipes we make often.

With that you’ll just need to brush this mustard sauce on halfway thru after they have defrosted for a bit. Then it will stick nicely and not slide all the way off. That would be no good. Left as is it is it’s great but you can make air fryer honey mustard chicken with a bit of maple syrup too. Leave that out if you wanted to but it is a nice duo.

Mustard Sauce for Chicken Legs

The dijon mustard will give you a bit of a kick, a little spicy but not overwhelming flavor with a tad of vinegar flavor to it.

Maple syrup and honey provides the sweetness you want but you could use one or the other. keep in mind that honey will cause it to brown more than the other though so add closer to the end so it becomes more golden brown and not too dark.

Olive oil and seasonings will coat the outside to add flavor before starting this process. You could use avocado oil instead if you wanted.

Honey Mustard Chicken with Frozen Chicken

You are going to cook 2 lbs chicken legs that are fresh or thawed is what you want with the cook time below. If you needed directions for Frozen Chicken Legs in Air Fryer you would want to follow that and just brush the sauce on for the last 3-4 minutes to get crispy a bit and then serve.

Can you use chicken leg quarters?

If you want to keep the legs and thighs together you can but would need to increase the timing according to our Air Fryer Chicken Leg Quarters recipe. Adding the sauce the last few minutes is helpful for longer cook times so it doesn’t burn.

How Long to Cook Mustard Chicken Legs in Air Fryer

You are going to need 20-25 minutes to cook the meat all the way thru with this method. Cook time varies depending on how large and/or thick they are until it reaches 165F in the thickest area.

How Long to Bake in the Oven

If you wanted to bake Fall off the Bone Chicken Drumsticks in Oven you would need to follow the temperature and cook time in that post, or for baked chicken leg quarters, instead which is close to 40 min. In that case you will want to line a baking sheet or baking dish with aluminum foil, then place a wire rack on top for best results so the hot air can rotate properly around each piece.

For either baking chicken drumsticks at 400 in the oven or air frying them you’d use the same sauce ingredients you see here. Multigrain mustard would be the same as Dijon, depends on how it is labeled. You will need to dry meat and skin off with paper towels so this sticks well, that is a very important step for success.

Tips

Make note that these baked chicken legs will turn browner if you air fry them than baked because of the syrup. Not that it changes the flavor at all but it will brown quite a bit so don’t worry if that is what you see. I have a way to tame that down if you brush it on halfway thru instead of right at the beginning. Go ahead and try both.

If you don’t want them to turn out as browned you can cook legs alone with olive oil sprayed on top for the first 10 minutes, then flip and brush mustard sauce on now, then bake for remaining 10-15 minutes.

With Chicken Thighs

If you wanted to make crispy chicken thighs instead you could follow the directions in this link. We first use a cast iron pan for this to get the skin crispy and browned, then transferring it to the oven to cook thru. If you want a larger piece of dark meat that works quite well, and they’re pretty cheap if you use bone-in skin on.

With Chicken Breasts

This is how long to cook chicken breast in oven at 350 so it is moist in the center but the skin is golden brown. You will want to brush this honey mustard sauce on halfway thru so it bakes on nicely but doesn’t get too deep and blackened. I use bone in for these as well as they are the cheapest and with the skin on maintains a lot of moisture too.

Instant Pot Method

Now we have also made Instant Pot honey mustard chicken. If you do have a pressure cooker you can use this recipe as well. It comes out very tender but not crispy at all. Still good but different texture. Typically I work with boneless skinless chicken but when I want a sauce to really stick on I want all that good stuff stick on still.

You could make Pan Fried Chicken Legs first and then have the sauce ready to just brush on when those are done alternatively. A great choice if you like really crunchy crispy skin!

There are many quick and easy chicken recipes on our site. This air fryer or baked honey mustard chicken recipe is just one of our faves that is done in about 30 minutes. With a simple side dish or just enjoyed as is as a high protein meal that is low carb and keto friendly I assure you it will be a fave at your house too.

Can you reheat cooked chicken drumsticks?

Yes but keep in mind it will dry out more than it was fresh. The best way to add moisture is to pour more sauce over the top and then microwave for 1 minute or you can reheat chicken in air fryer too. You can mix up some more of this sauce or add 1 tbsp of chicken broth per piece. Bbq sauce works well with this to add flavor and get it tender again.