Oven Baked Chicken Legs
Oven Baked Chicken Legs are simple to make and budget-friendly, made with chicken drumsticks coated in herbs and spices, ready in under an hour!
These oven baked chicken legs are one of my go-to meal prep recipes, made with chicken drumsticks, olive oil, and a mix of herbs and spices. They’re really simple to make with a few pantry staples, and the whole recipe is done in under an hour. Making them perfect for a quick weeknight dinner!
If you loved these oven-baked chicken legs, you’ll also love my Marinated Chicken Drumsticks, and my Italian Dressing Chicken!
Table of contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Budget Friendly – This oven baked chicken legs recipe is so incredibly easy to make and is made using a really budget-friendly cut of chicken, making it perfect for anyone who wants a satisfying dinner without spending a lot.
Flavorful and Juicy – The seasoning on the chicken gives it a really nice savory flavor, while the drumsticks naturally stay moist when cooked at a higher heat.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Chicken. I like to use chicken legs (drumsticks) because they’re easy to prep and budget-friendly. You could also make this recipe using bone-in chicken thighs or chicken leg quarters.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil. I use olive oil because it’s what I always have on hand. You can also use avocado oil, canola oil, or vegetable oil for this recipe.
Herbs and Spices. For the spices, I’m using garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, kosher salt, and ground black pepper. You can leave the cayenne out if you don’t want it to have a kick.
For the herbs, I like to use a combo of dried herbs like oregano, basil, and sage. You can add chopped fresh parsley or fresh chives on top for presentation.
Kitchen Tools
For this recipe, you’ll need a sheet pan with parchment paper, and a medium mixing bowl.
How to Make Baked Chicken Legs
Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk the seasoning and olive oil together until well-combined.
Pat the chicken legs dry with a paper towel and add them to a mixing bowl. Toss until evenly coated in the seasoning.
Place the drumsticks on the sheet pan in a single layer, leaving room between each one.
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Bake for 40-45 minutes, turning over halfway through, or until they reach an internal temperature of 165°F with a meat thermometer.
Season with any additional salt and black pepper as-needed and serve.
Recipe Variations
- Make these baked chicken legs spicy with additional cayenne pepper, hot sauce, chili powder, or red pepper flakes.
- For a bright flavor, add a squeeze of lemon juice and some fresh parsley when they come out of the oven.
- If you don’t have the individual spices in your pantry, you can always use a prepared seasoning blend like lemon pepper, garlic herb, Ranch seasoning, or Italian seasoning.
- Try adding a teaspoon of smoked paprika and dijon mustard or honey mustard to the spice mixture for more flavor.
- Add extra garlic powder and top your baked chicken drumsticks with parmesan cheese just before serving for a garlic parm version!
- This recipe does not focus on making the drumstick chicken skin crispy. If you want to make the chicken skin crispier, add a touch of baking powder to the spice mixture and place a wire rack on the baking sheet..
- Make these in the air fryer by cooking for 20 minutes at 400°F, turning them over in the air fryer basket half way through.
- This recipe is really versatile, feel free to change around the seasoning mixture. Try adding some parsley flakes, ground mustard, smoked paprika, onion flakes instead of onion powder, you name it!
Recipe Tip! If you want your chicken legs to be more crispy, right before taking them out of the oven at the end of the recipe, turn the broiler on for 1-2 minutes. Watch them closely, because the broiler can burn things quickly!
Frequently Asked Questions
The golden rule is to serve a protein with a starch and a vegetable. My personal favorites are Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes or Baked Potato Slices, along with Sautéed Green Beans with Garlic, or Roasted Potatoes with Green Beans. You could also get creative and coat the drumsticks with barbecue sauce and serve them with coleslaw.
Recipe Tip! The chicken is technically finished cooking at 165°F, but because drumsticks are considered dark meat, they get more tender around 175°F.
More Chicken Recipes
- Grilled Chicken Drumsticks
- Air Fryer Chicken Drumsticks
- Baked BBQ Chicken Drumsticks
- Slow Cooker Chicken and Potatoes
Storage
Refrigerate leftover chicken legs for 2-3 days in an airtight container.
Freeze for 2-3 months in a freezer-safe container.
Cooking Tips
- I use a long pair of tongs to flip the drumsticks halfway through the cooking time. Be careful because the oven is very hot!
- If you want these to have crispy skin, use a small amount of baking powder in the seasoning mix and add a wire rack to the sheet pan. This will give the chicken legs more airflow instead of resting in the juices, making the chicken skin crispier.
- Patting the chicken dry with a paper towel before adding the oil and seasoning helps everything stick to the chicken and roast in the oven.
- I like using a baking sheet, but you can also make these baked chicken legs in a baking dish.
- I like to use parchment paper to line the baking sheet because it’s easy, but you can also grease the sheet pan with cooking spray.
- The bake time may change depending on how big the chicken legs are.
Tried this recipe? ⭐ Leave a review and share what worked best for you—your tips help other home cooks get the same delicious results!
Oven Baked Chicken Legs
Ingredients
- 12 medium chicken legs
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried sage
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Equipment
- 1 baking sheet (half-sheet)
- 1 medium mixing bowl
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk the seasoning and olive oil together until well-combined.
- Pat the chicken legs dry with a paper towel and add them to a mixing bowl. Toss until evenly coated in the seasoning. Place the drumsticks on the sheet pan in a single layer, leaving room between each one.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes, turning over halfway through, or until they reach an internal temperature of 165°F with a meat thermometer.
Notes
- The chicken is technically finished cooking at 165°F, but because drumsticks are considered dark meat, they get more tender around 175°F.
- I use a long pair of tongs to flip the drumsticks halfway through the cooking time. Be careful because the oven is very hot!
- I like using a baking sheet, but you can also make this in a baking dish.
- I like to use parchment paper to line the baking sheet because it’s easy, but you can also grease the sheet pan with cooking spray.
- The bake time may change depending on how big the chicken legs are.
Nutrition
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Hey, I want to try this recipe. Are you covering the chicken at all or you’re just baking it as is on the sheet. I have A baking glass dish
Hi Ebony, I am not covering the chicken at all. You can definitely do this in a glass baking dish, too! Let me know how it goes 🙂
Can this be done on a bbq? Thanks, sound great!!
Absolutely! This would be great on a bbq! 🙂
Can I use wings too?
Yes this will also work with wings. I usually boil mine in some water and balsamic vinegar for about 15 minutes, then drain them put them on a baking sheet with the seasoning to finish in the oven for another 15-20 minutes. You might want to check out my Garlic Parm Wings.
Great recipe! I’m a super picky chicken eater and was very glad to have come across your recipe as it’s very hard for me to find chicken recipes that I like. I’ve already made it like a dozen of times. I only add two additional ingredients, cumin and old bay. Thank you for sharing 🙂
This looks amazing! Do you leave the skin on the drum sticks or take the skin off?
I usually leave the skins on but you can make them either way!
I actually made it both ways, some with the skin and some without! So yummy! I think I prefer without the skin though.
Made this tonight and it was delicious!! But the skin wasn’t crispy like everyone else is saying. How do I get the skin crispy?
My family loved it!
So easy and so good, my whole family loves this chicken recipe!
Thank you, I’m glad you like it!!