If you need the smoky, candy style of barbecued rooster however don’t need to use the grill, strive oven-baked BBQ rooster drumsticks. They’re the right answer.

Oven Baked BBQ Hen Drumsticks
Are you craving one thing crispy but juicy and smokey? Then, strive our oven-baked BBQ rooster legs. A easy but flavourful recipe that brings the style of summer time to your kitchen without having a grill!
It has simply the best steadiness of tangy, candy, and savory flavors. These drumsticks will fulfill your style buds whereas maintaining cleanup easy.
Additionally, the oven-baking technique gives you tender, juicy meat with a fantastically caramelized crust.
Crispy Pores and skin, Juicy Hen Legs
Oven-baked doesn’t should imply soggy pores and skin. Inserting a wire rack on prime of a lined baking sheet permits air to flow into across the rooster, serving to it crisp up fantastically.
Additionally, the rooster drumsticks are baked at a excessive temperature, which supplies it a crisp outdoors whereas sustaining the meat’s juice and internal tenderness.
Whereas I’ve written about other ways to get pleasure from your rooster legs, comparable to making Crispy Airfryer Fried Hen Drumsticks and Airfryer rooster drumsticks. One other method to get pleasure from your rooster legs is by making them into oven-baked BBQ Hen legs with out grilling.
This recipe can also be straightforward to customise. You’ll be able to tweak the sweetness or the spice degree of your BBQ sauce to fit your household’s preferences. In the event you get pleasure from an additional kick, strive including a pinch of cayenne or pink pepper flakes to the marinade. You may also swap out apple juice for pineapple juice to discover new taste combos.

Marinate for Most Taste
The sauce I used on this recipe could be very easy however scrumptious. It contains on a regular basis pantry objects like ketchup, apple cider vinegar, mustard powder, and onion powder. This creates a well-rounded taste profile that’s tangy, candy, and barely smoky.
The apple juice provides a refined fruity be aware, whereas brown sugar gives the right sweetness to caramelize underneath excessive warmth.
To take your drumsticks to the subsequent degree, allow them to marinate for a minimum of one hour. The longer the rooster sits within the marinade, the deeper these BBQ flavors penetrate. When you have time, marinating in a single day will make the meat much more tender and flavorful.
I’ve additionally written particularly about how one can make my all-purpose barbecue sauce in just some steps.
Components in your Oven-baked BBQ Hen Drumsticks
BBQ Sauce:
- Apple cider vinegar: Provides acidity, which balances out the sweetness of the sauce and acts as a pure preservative in your home made BBQ sauce.
- Worcestershire Sauce: Provides a deep, savory umami taste which reinforces the general style of the sauce, giving it depth.
- Ketchup: Provides a flavorful base in your sauce. You may also use tomato sauce instead.
- Brown sugar: Balances the acidity within the sauce and permits the caramelization of your meat.
- Mustard powder: Offers a zesty kick to your BBQ Sauce.
- Onion powder: Provides a savory and barely candy taste.
- Salt: enhances the flavour of the sauce.
- Recent black pepper: Offers a refined spiciness and sharpness that balances sweetness and acidity, giving the sauce a savory, well-rounded kick.
- Apple juice: Provides pure sweetness and delicate fruitiness to your BBQ sauce.
Hen:
- Hen drumsticks: Its bone-in construction helps retain moisture, whereas the meat absorbs all of the flavors of the BBQ sauce.
- Salt: Enhances the general taste of your rooster and attracts moisture from the rooster pores and skin.
- Pepper to style: Contributes a light spiciness that enhances the smoky, tangy flavors of the sauce, giving the rooster a well-rounded, zesty kick.
Non-obligatory Garnishes:
- Recent parsley or cilantro: Each herbs add a burst of shade and taste that contrasts properly with the smoky, tangy BBQ sauce.
- Lemon wedges: Balances the sweetness of the sauce, giving the dish a well-rounded, tangy end.
How you can Make Oven-baked BBQ Hen Drumsticks
- Pat the rooster drumsticks dry with paper towels. This helps the pores and skin crisp up. Rub the salt and pepper evenly over the drumsticks, making certain they’re effectively coated. Put aside.
- Add all of the BBQ sauce elements in a big bowl and blend effectively to mix.
- Spoon half of the BBQ sauce into a big Ziplock bag. Add the rooster legs to the bag. Shake the bag till the rooster is effectively coated. Place it within the fridge for a minimum of one hour to marinate.
- When prepared, preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper for straightforward cleanup, and set a wire rack over the baking sheet. This permits for even cooking and crispy pores and skin.
- Place the drumsticks on the wire rack brush with any leftover marinade within the bag. Bake for about 20 minutes. Flip the rooster over. Spoon and brush extra marinade on it. Bake for an additional half-hour or till the rooster reaches an inside temperature of 165°F (74°C).
- Change to broiler/grill on excessive. Spoon and brush extra sauce over the rooster. Place it underneath the grill or broiler for 2-3 minutes. This may give it a crispy, sticky end. Simply watch it carefully so it doesn’t burn.
- Take away the drumsticks from the oven and allow them to relaxation for about 5 minutes earlier than serving. Garnish with freshly chopped parsley or cilantro for added freshness. Serve with lemon wedges if desired.

Incessantly Requested Questions
How do I steadiness the sweetness in my BBQ sauce?
In case your BBQ sauce is just too candy, add extra vinegar or lemon juice to steadiness the flavour. If it’s too tangy or bitter, enhance the sugar or honey. Tasting and adjusting as you go is vital to attaining the best steadiness.
Can BBQ sauce be used as a marinade?
Sure, BBQ sauce can be utilized as a marinade, however it’s greatest to apply it to meats for a brief interval (1-2 hours) earlier than cooking. The sugar within the sauce might burn if left on for too lengthy, so I like to recommend making use of it in the direction of the top of cooking or after grilling.
Ought to I flip the rooster legs whereas baking?
You’ll be able to flip the rooster legs midway by way of baking (after 20-25 minutes). This ensures a fair cooking and uniform crispiness.
Can I exploit frozen rooster legs for oven-baked BBQ rooster?
You’ll be able to bake frozen rooster legs, however they’ll require further time. Bake on the similar temperature (400°F) however enhance the cooking time by 10-Quarter-hour. Make certain the interior temperature reaches 165°F (74°C).
How you can know when the Hen leg is completed
Hen is completed when it reaches an inside temperature of 165°F (74°C). The cooking time melts connective tissue, making the meat fall-off-the-bone tender.
Why are my BBQ rooster legs soggy?
This occurs when there’s extra moisture on the pores and skin earlier than baking. To keep away from your rooster legs getting soggy, make sure you pat them dry earlier than baking, keep away from overcrowding your rack, and use a wire rack, which might forestall your rooster from sitting in its juice and make sure the crispiness you need.
Recommendations on making your Oven-baked BBQ Hen Legs
- Seasoning the rooster legs generously enhances the flavour and creates a flavorful crust.
- When you have time, marinate the rooster legs for a minimum of half-hour or in a single day) in your fridge.
- Use a wire rack over the baking sheet as a substitute of a baking pan to bake with a view to enable scorching air to flow into across the rooster legs, which ensures cooking and crisping of the pores and skin on all sides
- Give the rooster 5 minutes to relaxation after baking. This locks within the juices and prevents dryness.
Ideas for making the BBQ Sauce
- In the event you use tomato sauce as a substitute of ketchup in making your BBQ Sauce, you might need to add a bit of water or broth to skinny it out since tomato paste is thicker than ketchup.
- If you wish to hold your BBQ sauce longer, you may retailer it in an hermetic container in a freezer for as much as 3 months.
- If you’re grilling, apply BBQ sauce within the final 10-Quarter-hour of cooking to keep away from burning the sugar within the sauce, and you’ll want to pat them dry earlier than baking to keep away from extra moisture that may forestall the pores and skin from crisping.
How you can pair Oven-baked BBQ Hen Legs for Serving
Listed here are some scrumptious concepts:
Extra Scrumptious Hen Recipes

BBq sauce:
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 4 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tsp mustard powder
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper recent
- 1 cup apple juice
Hen:
- 10-12 rooster drumsticks
- salt and pepper to style
Non-obligatory Garnishes:
- Recent Parsley or cilantro chopped
- Lemon wedges
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Pat the rooster drumsticks dry with paper towels. This helps the pores and skin crisp up. Rub the salt and pepper evenly over the drumsticks, making certain they’re effectively coated. Put aside.
-
Add all of the BBQ sauce elements in a big bowl and blend effectively to mix.
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Spoon half of the BBQ sauce into a big Ziplock bag. Add the rooster legs to the bag. Shake the bag till the rooster is effectively coated. Place it within the fridge for a minimum of one hour to marinate.
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When prepared, preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper for straightforward cleanup, and set a wire rack over the baking sheet. This permits for even cooking and crispy pores and skin.
-
Place the drumsticks on the wire rack brush with any leftover marinade within the bag. Bake for about 20 minutes. Flip the rooster over. Spoon and brush extra marinade on it. Bake for an additional half-hour or till the rooster reaches an inside temperature of 165°F (74°C).
-
Change to broiler/grill on excessive. Spoon and brush extra sauce over the rooster. Place it underneath the grill or broiler for 2-3 minutes. This may give it a crispy, sticky end. Simply watch it carefully so it doesn’t burn.
-
Take away the drumsticks from the oven and allow them to relaxation for about 5 minutes earlier than serving. Garnish with freshly chopped parsley or cilantro for added freshness. Serve with lemon wedges if desired.
Energy: 150.1kcal | Carbohydrates: 12.5g | Protein: 11.5g | Fats: 6g | Saturated Fats: 1.6g | Polyunsaturated Fats: 1.3g | Monounsaturated Fats: 2.4g | Trans Fats: 0.03g | Ldl cholesterol: 58mg | Sodium: 362.6mg | Potassium: 241.6mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 10.3g | Vitamin A: 133.2IU | Vitamin C: 1.2mg | Calcium: 18.3mg | Iron: 0.6mg
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