A family-friendly and crowd pleasing recipe, these juicy Honey Garlic Oven Baked Chicken Drumsticks are ready to become your next go to easy dinner. The marinade is a sweet and savory combination of soy sauce, honey, and garlic that you can whip up in just minutes.

Easy dinners like this are always good to have ready to go in your back pocket. The marinade takes just a few minutes to throw together and the flavor is rich- savory and a little sweet! Drumsticks are also super cost effective.

My biggest tip for cooking drumsticks is cooking them a little longer than you think they need. With white meat you never want to overcook because you don’t want it to dry out or get tough. But dark meat, especially bone in and skin on, benefits from the longer cooking time to get tender and flavorful.

Rather than the standard temperature of 165° F for chicken, I like to go to 180°f or even 185°f. The result is so tender and almost fall off the bone.

Serve these alongside Instant Pot Cilantro Lime Rice for an easy side dish. If you need a steak marinade, check out this Flavorful Skirt Steak Marinade next.

Ingredients

Chicken drumsticks: You can choose to leave the skin on or remove it. I like to leave it on for extra flavor and it seals the juices in.
Soy sauce: For saltiness and rich flavor, soy sauce is a great base for lots of marinades.
Sesame Oil: This adds the nuttiness to the marinade. Be cautious, as it is a very strong flavor.
Oil: Any neutral oil, such as avocado oil.
Honey: I like the combination of honey and soy sauce for the sweet and salty flavor it gives. If you prefer, you can use brown sugar instead.
Lime Juice: I like a bit of lime to add acid and and bit tanginess.
Garlic: The garlic cooks down along with the chicken and softens in both texture and taste. I like a lot of garlic in this recipe (what else is new). Feel free to use more of less depending on your tastes.
Green onions: Save some extra for sprinkling over top when serving.

How to make juicy oven baked chicken drumsticks

Step 1. Combine marinade ingredients in a small bowl.

Step 2. Pour over top of chicken drumsticks, making sure they are evenly coated. Keep in bowl or place into a ziploc bag to ensure they are fully covered in the marinade.

Refrigerate for at least an hour and up to overnight.

Step 3. When you are ready to cook, preheat oven to 400 F. Place chicken drumsticks into a baking dish along with any of the remaining marinade.

Step 4. Bake for 1 hour, flipping them halfway through. The internal temperature of the chicken should reach 180-185 degrees when using a meat thermometer.

Serve as is, or place under the broiler on High for 3-4 minutes to crisp up the skin. Be sure to watch closely to avoid burning.

Recipe Tips

As mentioned, drumsticks benefit from a longer cooking time to become more tender and flavorful. They will be cooked as early as 40 minutes, but keeping them in longer elevates the taste an texture.
You could prepare the marinade ahead of time and refrigerate for up to 48 hours before pouring it over your meat.
If you want a bit more crisp to the skin, you can place them under the broiler for a few minutes after baking. Just be sure to watch carefully, they go from golden to burnt quickly.

More Baked Chicken Recipes

If you try this Honey Garlic Baked Chicken Drumsticks Recipe please leave a star rating and let me know how it goes in the comments below. I love to hear from you.