Baked Chicken Drumsticks With Garlic Butter | Primavera Kitchen (2024)

FAQs

Do you bake drumsticks covered or uncovered? ›

No, you should not cover it. You want the skin to brown and the chicken roasted, not steamed, so you should leave it uncovered. However, if the drumsticks need more than 30 minutes in the oven and seem to be darkening too quickly, loosely cover them with foil and keep cooking until they are cooked through.

Bake chicken legs in the oven.

Roasting at high heat, flipping halfway through, will get them crispy — a.k.a. just how we want them.

Can you cook chicken with butter instead of oil? You have to cook chicken at a lower temperature if you bake or pan-fry chicken using butter instead of oil. This is because butter has a lower scorching temperature. Your chicken will cook more slowly, but it's also likely to be juicier and full of more flavor.

For properly cooked chicken, if you cut into it and the juices run clear, then the chicken is fully cooked. If the juices are red or have a pinkish color, your chicken may need to be cooked a bit longer.

We have found that baking chicken drumsticks at 400°F gives the best results for juicy, moist dark meat with crispy skin. You'll know they are done when they reach an internal temperature of 165°F when tested with a digital meat thermometer in the thickest part of the drumstick without touching the bone.

What Is the Best Temperature to Bake Chicken Drumsticks? For juicy, flavorful chicken with golden skin, it is best to bake chicken drumsticks at 400°F. At this high temperature, the chicken will be done in about 30 minutes.

Given the fact that drumsticks and thighs are dark meat and won't dry out as easily as breasts, the range from 350 to 450 degrees is okay for baking them. 350 to 375 is generally best for breasts. The best answer to these questions? Simply check the chicken for doneness using an instant read thermometer.

If you can't get an accurate reading, you can tell if chicken drumsticks and drumettes are finished cooking by looking at the meat on the skinny side of the leg. The meat should shrink up, and you should be able to see a lot more bone than you could when you started cooking.

Many people opt for boneless, skinless chicken breasts for ease, but you can bake any cut of chicken in foil. Chicken breasts work well with the foil treatment, as steaming keeps the meat juicy and it cooks quickly even with the addition of veggies or starches. Chicken tenders would be a great cut to bake in foil, too.

Finally, any large but shallow baking pan will work, whether it's your 9″ by 13″ cake pan or your favorite casserole dish. Shallow sides are best so that your chicken browns instead of steams.

What is the best pan to cook chicken in the oven? ›

A sheet pan has the advantage of lower sides, which lets more of the chicken skin crisp. Or try roasting in an oven-proof skillet, cast-iron or otherwise.

Rubbing the chicken with a little olive oil before baking helps add moisture to the chicken and also helps the seasonings stick to the breast. Keep the seasoning simple. I use a very simple seasoning of salt and pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and chili powder or paprika.

Place the seasoned drumsticks on a single layer of a greased, foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Bake at 425ºF (218ºC) for about 35 minutes. Cook for 25 minutes until the surface is golden brown, then flip and brown the other side for about 10 minutes.

Color is not a reliable indicator of safety or doneness. Safely cooked poultry can vary in color from white to pink to tan. All poultry should reach a safe minimum internal temperature of 165 °F (73.9°C) as measured with a food thermometer.

We're baking these chicken legs at 425 degrees. If our oven isn't good and hot, the chicken skin won't get crispy and no one wants rubbery chicken skin! The meat should reach 165 degrees in about 45 minutes and then your chicken legs are ready to devour!

When chicken is covered while baking, it traps steam and moisture within the dish, resulting in juicier results. The covering helps prevent excessive evaporation and keeps the chicken moist throughout the cooking process. Preventing dryness. Chicken tends to dry out more quickly when exposed to direct heat.

If you're in a hurry, you'll want to know how long you bake chicken at 400°F: Follow step 1 above, then bake the chicken pieces, uncovered, in the 400°F oven 25 to 30 minutes, until no longer pink or until chicken is done (using baked chicken temperatures above).

Chicken can be safely cooked on an aluminum pan or sheet tray. However, to prevent sticking and potential taste changes with acidic ingredients, consider using parchment paper as a lining. Ensure you don't expose the aluminum to extremely high temperatures to avoid warping or damage.

You can also get a nice crust on chicken by starting it out in the oven: follow your recipe, or heat the oven to between 400° to 450°F, place a rack in the top third (the hottest part) of the oven, and slide a pan of chicken pieces in, skin side up. The skin will be crisp by the time the chicken is cooked through.