This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
It doesn’t get much easier than this savory Lemon Garlic Roasted Chicken Drumsticks recipe. The marinade is full of flavor and the meat is practically fall off the bone tender and juicy.
Juicy Chicken Drumsticks
My whole family is obsessed with these baked chicken drumsticks. They will eat the leftovers, cold, straight out of the fridge! But for dinner, we like to have them as part of a whole handheld meal with things like Air Fryer Tater Tots, Homemade Baked French Fries, and Corn on the Cob.
Chicken Drumsticks are flavor-packed, juicy with tender meat that, if you cook it right, will practically fall off the bone. I use skinless drumsticks, but you could leave the skin on and let it get a crispy skin if you want.
My latest obsession is this Lemon Garlic marinated Roasted Chicken Drumsticks recipe. The marinade has a ton of flavor so give it as long as you can to marinate. It’s great for prepping ahead of time so all you have to do is put them in the oven.
Ingredients
An overnight marinade makes this chicken practically fall off the bone tender, however, if you don’t have overnight, you could go as little as 30 minutes. Just remember that the longer it marinates, the more tender it will be.
The lemon is subtle and doesn’t overpower the rest of the marinade. You can of course add more lemon juice and even some lemon zest for a more intense punch of lemon. The seasoning is similar to what I use in my simple chicken seasoning, with some added herbs:
- Garlic powder – I use granulated garlic for simplicity, but for a more intense garlic flavor you can use 1-2 cloves of minced garlic.
- Smoked paprika – for an added smoky flavor.
- Dried oregano – or use fresh, just double the amount.
- Kosher salt
- Black pepper
The flavors blend so well together and are what makes this chicken recipe so irresistibly delicious. If you want to forgo the marinade and just season the chicken with this flavor profile, you could certainly do that as well.
How to Bake Chicken Drumsticks
- Marinate – mix up the marinade and pour it into a resealable plastic bag. You could also use a plastic or glass container, but I like to use bags for marinades because you can squeeze out most of the air and really help the sauce permeate the meat. I try to give at least 2 hours for marinating, but if you only have 30 minutes you’ll still get some good flavor.
- Chicken – Obviously we are going with chicken legs here but you can use chicken thighs if that’s what you like. My preference is to remove the skin, but if you’re looking for skin-on crispy baked chicken legs, we do that too.
- Bake – Preheat the oven to 425℉ and arrange the marinated chicken on a baking sheet covered with foil. Roast at high heat for about 25 minutes, then flip over and continue to cook the chicken for about 10-20 minutes more or until the temperature reaches 165℉ on a meat thermometer.
Hot Tip!
When you bring chicken home from the store, prep marinades and place the meat and marinade together in freezer bags. Keep in the freezer up to 3 months, and pull out to thaw in the fridge overnight. As the meat is thawing, it will be soaking up the flavors of the marinade!
How Long Should Drumsticks Be Cooked For?
Chicken drumsticks take a little longer than boneless chicken. I recommend baking chicken legs at 425℉ for 35-45 minutes. The cook time will depend on your oven and the size of the drumsticks. I do flip the chicken about halfway through to ensure even cooking.
Always make sure that the meat is thoroughly cooked to an internal temperature 165℉ . Use a digital meat thermometer close to but not touching the bone. When pierced, the juices should run clear. If they’re pink, it’s not done.
Here’s a handy guide for baking chicken drumsticks at various temperatures:
- 350 degrees: 1 hour
- 375 degrees F: 45-55 minutes
- 400 degrees F: 40-50 minutes
- 425 degrees F: 35-45 minutes
FAQs
You cover something in the oven for one of two reasons: You don’t want it to brown too fast on top or burn, or you want to steam it, like my Chicken and Rice Bake. We don’t want any of those things, so you can bake these chicken legs uncovered.
The term chicken “leg” is often used synonymously with “drumstick,” however, the chicken leg actually has two parts, the drumstick and the thigh.
Serving Suggestions
With its bright lemon flavor, this baked chicken leg recipe lends itself to a lot of citrusy flavors. They will go great with Easy Roasted Veggies, Fresh Corn Salad, or Baked Potato Wedges.
They will also pair quite well with a simple side dish like Olive Garden Salad and Rice Pilaf.
Recipe Notes
- The longer you can marinate, the better. At least 2 hours is best or up to 24 hours.
- Discard any leftover marinade – do not brush onto cooked chicken or re-use.
- Use nonstick foil or spray the aluminum foil with cooking spray. Don’t be afraid to spray it even if you are using nonstick foil.
- This marinade will work with any kind of chicken. For boneless chicken breasts or tenders, the cook time will be much shorter.
- As much as I love chicken skin, I prefer to remove the skin from the chicken legs for this recipe. If using chicken thighs, you can decide whether to leave it on or remove it or use boneless chicken thighs.
Storage and Reheating
Storing leftovers: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days or in the freezer for up to 4 months.
Reheating: Thaw completely if frozen, then reheat at 350 degrees in the oven or air fryer. In a pinch, you can reheat in the microwave. They are also pretty delicious cold, or shredded and added to a salad.
More Delicious Chicken Recipes
- Baked Lemon Chicken
- Chicken Parmesan Baked Ziti
- Honey Lemon Chicken and Green Beans
- Broiled Chicken Thighs
- Easy Oven Baked Chicken Drumsticks
- Chicken a la King
Roasted Lemon Garlic Chicken
Ingredients
- 10 Chicken Drumsticks skin removed
- 1 large lemon juiced and zested
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
Instructions
- Pat chicken dry and place into a 1-gallon Ziploc bag.
- In a small bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients. Pour over chicken and seal the bag, squeezing out as much air as possible. Massage marinade into the chicken. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or preferably overnight. (If all you have is 30 minutes, that’s fine – just remember the longer the marinade time, the more tender and juicy the chicken).
- When ready to cook, let chicken come to room temperature (about 20 minutes). Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Arrange chicken on a foil lined baking sheet. Bake, uncovered, for about 20-25 minutes. Flip chicken pieces and cook another 10 minutes, or until chicken reaches an internal temp of 165 F and is no longer pink.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
- The longer you can marinate, the better. At least 2 hours is best or up to 24 hours.
- Discard any leftover marinade – do not brush onto cooked chicken or re-use.
- Use nonstick foil or spray the foil with cooking spray. Don’t be afraid to spray it even if you are using nonstick foil.
- As much as I love chicken skin, I prefer to remove the skin from the chicken legs for this recipe. If using chicken thighs, you can decide whether to leave it on or remove it or use boneless chicken thighs.
- Bonus tip: When you bring chicken home from the store, prep marinades and place the meat and marinade together in freezer bags. Keep in the freezer up to 3 months, and pull out to thaw in the fridge overnight. As the meat is thawing, it will be soaking up the flavors of the marinade!
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer Kristin Maxwell of “Yellow Bliss Road” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. For accurate calorie counts and other nutritional values, we recommend running the ingredients through your preferred online nutritional calculator. Calories and other nutritional values can vary depending on which brands were used.
What paprika? Sweet or smoked?
Smoked paprika.
I only had made it once and husband loves it so much, we have to have it once a week now. And this recipe does not get any easier.
Nice! Awesome feedback Laura, thank you for stopping by.
Delicious!!! My husband isn’t fond of lemon, but enjoyed this recipe. Will definitely prepare it again.
This recipie was quick easy and delicious. We have been looking for something to change up the BBQ Chicken Routine and this is it. I have a family of 6, kids from 7-17 all enjoyed this. I will be adding it to my Freezer Prep list. Just pop the marinade and chicken in a bag. Wright on the bag the baking time and we will have light bright chicken dinner ready to go all summer long.
Nice! Thanks for the awesome feedback Stephanie.
My whole family loved it! Made it along with corn salad and oven roasted veggies.
Nice! Thanks for stopping by Sabitha.
I’m making this recipe tonight,it looks delicious so Im excited to taste this lemon garlic chicken.I know it will be fantastic tasting.Thanks
Your so welcome Judy! Let us know with some feedback of your thoughts on the recipe.
Thanks for stopping by.
K.
lovely recipe, easy to follow, very tasty. Thank you Kristin 💕
You are so welcome Marylin! Thanks for stopping.
Hi Kristin! Thank you so much for this amazing recipe!!! It was so easy and turned out amazing! My family loved it!!! I’ve tried so many recipes like this and they never seem to turn out good. The chicken turned out so flavorful and crisped up so nicely!
Thank you again!
You are so welcome Emmalena! Awesome feedback, thanks for stopping by.
Kristin, this looks absolutely delicious and just what I’ve been looking for! Only one person in our family like dark meat though. Hate to not follow recipes as written, but dying to try. Do you think this would work with white meat as well and would I need to make more marinade given breaststroke are larger? Any suggestions? Thank you!
Hi Kim, yes this would work with any type of chicken. It makes a lot so would work for probably 3-4 pounds of boneless, skinless breasts. For bone-in it would depend on how large they are, but probably 2-3 pieces.
Lemons are not in season right now in my part of the world so kicked this up a notch and marinated in fresh passion fruit juice. Can you say “Puckerup buttercup”. Was really good. Thanks for this great recipe.
You are so welcome Taylor! Great idea to use passion fruit. Thanks for stopping by.
I love your recipes. Thank you for this wonderful site.
Your so welcome Taylor! Thanks for stopping by.
Can I use this on pork chops bone in baked in oven ?
Yes you could use this marinade for pork.
Very good. Never thought I would like baked chicken without the crispy skin :).
Thanks for the recipe
You are so welcome Darlene! Thanks for stopping by.
Very fond of your recipes. Thank you.
You are so welcome Lois! Thanks for stopping by.
This is so easy. I can’t wait to try these chicken legs. All of your recipes I have tried are great.
Nice! Thanks for stopping by Rebecca.
Made this tonight, but instead of baking we BBQ’d. It was delicious!
Nice! Thanks for stopping by Jessica.
This recipe is so simple and so delicious. Highly recommended!
Hi Margaret, thanks for the awesome feedback.
We made this and we LOVED it !! Thank you for such a simple yet tasty recipe…
Much love from India!
Thank you Dupps! Thanks for stopping by all the way from India!
OMG. I wish I found this recipe a long time ago before we grew tired of eating chicken drumsticks all the time. We stock up on a lot of chicken drumsticks mainly because they’re super affordable and well, you can easily feed more people if we have unexpected guests on that day. This is soooo amazing and I could eat this over and over! However, I’m so going to try this marinade out with different kinds of citrus – example, orange, lime, and etc to experiment! 🙂
Different kinds of citrus would be fabulous! Also this marinade will work with any kind of chicken, even boneless.
That’s great to know & thank you for the tip!! I’m going to make them again today, yay!
So excited and i love love the recipes on your website!! Stay safe & healthy! xo
Thank you Daniella, you too.
Chicken is in marinade now but the marinade does not seem to be nearly enough for 10 drumsticks. I am hopeful that it will be tasty as it certainly looks good and has all of my favourite seasonings.