Oven baked crunchy crumbed chicken drumsticks. Great seasoning, great crispy exterior, juicy flesh. Tastes like KFC – minus all the calories and grease!
Crunchy crumbed chicken drumsticks
I have a soft spot for chicken legs. Juicier and more flavourful than lean chicken breast, and more economical at that. With the bonus that there’s something extra enjoyable about food that has to be eaten with your hands.
Nobody eats drumsticks with a fork and knife, do they?? Surely not! Way too civilised and way too much meat wastage. There’s no way you can pick the bone clean of every scrap of meat with cutlery!!!
Hands all the way. GRAB and DEVOUR!
Today’s drumsticks are fabulously crunchy all over, and very well seasoned so there’s no need to marinate it overnight. You can make it right now, for dinner tonight. And yours will be as gorgeously golden as you see in the photos as long as you’re generous with the oil spray. Spray, spray, spray!
Ingredients in crunchy crumbed chicken drumsticks
The seasoning
The key to this recipe is a bold flavoured seasoning so there’s plenty of flavour in every bite even though we haven’t marinated the chicken. Here’s what you need – all pantry staples!
The spiciness comes from the chilli / cayenne pepper and a good amount of black pepper. There are adjustments in the recipe to make this kid friendly by either completely eliminating the spiciness or reducing it.
The crumbing
And here’s what you need for the crumb coating.
Chicken drumsticks aka chicken legs. If yours were frozen, thaw thoroughly and pat dry extra well else you will end up with soggy patches.
Egg and flour – the glue for the breadcrumbs. (PS I thought 2 eggs was enough but actually, we need 3.)
Panko breadcrumbs – A Japanese breadcrumb favoured for the extra-crispy coating it gives crumbed foods. You can buy it at most big supermarkets (AUS – Coles, Woolworths, Harris) in the Asian foods section and Asian stores (cheaper!). Substitute with regular breadcrumbs.
How to make crunchy crumbed drumsticks
I like to split the seasoning between the flour and the panko, for maximum flavour effect!
Seasoning – Mix the seasoning in a small bowl.
Season flour and breadcrumbs – Use 1 tablespoon of the seasoning for the flour, then mix the rest in with the panko.
Crumbing (without making a mess!)- Use one hand to coat a drumstick in the flour then shake off excess. Use the same hand to coat the drumstick in egg, then allow the excess to drip off. Still using the same hand, place the drumstick in the panko, then use your other hand to sprinkle with panko. Press to adhere, rotate and coat all over with panko. Place on rack. Marvel at clean(ish) hands!!
Repeat with remaining drumsticks, lining them up so they are evenly spaced.
Spray generously with canola or other oil. I like to use canola oil because it comes out like a foam so I can see where I’ve sprayed. (PS The more you spray, the more golden and crunchy the coating. So don’t hold back!)
Bake for 25 minutes at 200°C/400°F (180°C fan). Flip drumsticks, spray again, then bake for a further 20 minutes or until gorgeously golden and crunchy. Let them cool for 5 minutes – which also gives the crumb a chance to “set” – then dive in!
What to serve with crunchy drumsticks
Gosh, there’s really no rules here. I had them with leftover Supreme Soy Noodles and Smashed Cucumbers on the day I made the recipe video. Certainly not obviously choices but it was still enjoyable! 😂
To keep your life easy, try serving this with what I call two-in-one-side dishes. These are sides that combine plenty of vegetables with starch in one dish so you can just serve that as the side rather than making a side salad plus a starch to fill out a meal.
Some personal two-in-one favourites include:
Purple Rice – made with red cabbage in it (imagine how colourful your dinner plate will be!)
Garlic Butter Rice with Kale – the best way I know to convert kale haters!!
Enjoy! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Crunchy crumbed chicken drumsticks
Ingredients
- 8 chicken drumsticks
- 1/2 cup flour , plain/all purpose
- 3 large eggs , beaten
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs (Note 1)
- Canola oil spray (or other oil)
Seasoning:
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 1 tbsp dried basil
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper or pure chilli powder – Note 2 (omit for kid-friendly)
- 1 1/2 tsp cooking salt
- 2 tsp black pepper (reduce to 1/2 tsp for kid-friendly)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F (180°C fan). Place a rack on a foil lined tray. Spray rack with oil.
- Crumbing bowls – Place the flour, whisked eggs and panko in 3 separate medium bowls (bear in mind shape to fit the drumsticks!).
- Mix Seasoning in a small bowl. Put 1 tablespoon into the flour and the rest in the panko, then mix.
- Crumb – Pat drumsticks dry with paper towels. Coat in flour (shake off excess), then egg (let excess drip off). Place in panko and rotate, pressing to adhere all over, including the handle. (Note 3 for mess-free hands technique!)
- Spray – Place drumstick on the rack. Repeat with remaining chicken. Spray very generously with oil.
- Bake 25 minutes. Turn drumsticks, spray again with oil. Bake a further 20 minutes until golden brown and super crunchy!
- Serve Eat and enjoy the CRUNCH!
Recipe Notes:
- Honey mustard sauce: Mix together 1/3 cup whole-egg mayonnaise, 2 tbsp dijon mustard, 2 tbsp honey, 1 – 2 tsp lemon juice (sub vinegar), salt and pepper.
- Pink sauce – 1/2 cup (100g) sour cream + 3 tbsp ketchup
- Ketchup, BBQ sauce or other store bought sauce of choice
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
Dozer on move day. He was delighted to have so many new targets for treats – and he was rather successful, actually!
The seasonings were so good! Didn’t have panko so I subbed with crushed cornflakes, but worked really well, great crunchy crust. Served with sweet potato fries, green beans and Nagi’s KFC gravy, which I may have swiped a slice of bread to mop up the remnants at the end!
(Cooked drumsticks in AF for 8 mins at 200 then 12 mins at 160 then rested).
Hi Nagi,
Tried this tonight and it was fantastic. Curious to know can you replace the grill rack with parchment paper? My crumbling was sticking to the grill rack.
It’s nice one to taste
I did cut way back on the cayenne and the black pepper, so not hot. THIS IS THE BEST NOT FRIED CHICKEN! My husband is from Alabama (deep South USA) and always begs me to make fried chicken. This recipe made him VERY HAPPY.
Hi Nagi—I love the way you flavor things and clearly communicate instructions. Any chance of posting some air fryer recipes? Just received one.
Spicy (even with kids pepper option), but I loved them, just a heads up that’s all who don’t like spice. Everytime I make them (and I’ve done them maybe 5 times – I double up the seasoning and store it for the next time, when usually I am rushing or making last minute dinner and can’t be bothered mixing all the herbs & spices. It’s a lifesaver.
Yum!! My daughter isn’t a huge fan of drumsticks so we tried with boneless thighs instead. Followed the recipe exactly but cooked the thighs for only 10 minutes each side, while the crumb could have had a touch more, it was still delicious.
Next time I’ll try with bone in cutlets so we can cook them a little longer.
We served with Nagi’s KFC like potato and gravy and some steamed greens. Great meal we can’t wait to have again.
This crumb was fantastic
I made the amount equivalent of about 50 servings into a container ready to use on anything crumbed. Great on lamb cutlets
These were friggin delicious. I made them this week and doing it again next week. Soooo delicious and crunch and juicy. Flavours were spot on!
Will the crumbs adhere to the drumsticks if I remove the skin? I have never liked eating the skin, so I always peel the coating off crumbed chicken, but this sounds so tasty I would like to leave the coating on when I eat it.
Just made the crumbed crunchy chicken drumsticks which were delicious. This will be my go to for crunchy chicken which isn’t fried. Thank you Nagi
I made this dish this week. My whole house smelled of KFC but this is the healthy version. We had coleslaw and my 12 year old daughter made gravy from RecipeTinEats. It was a ‘healthy KFC’ dinner. 😉
Tried this tonight. Absolute Winner
WOW Nagi just cooked this crunchy crumbed chicken with the honey mustard sauce and it was magnificent. This is going to become another favourite.
I can never go wrong with your recipes you make me a better cook thank you so much
Made these drumsticks for supper. They were perfectly delicious. Also crumbed some zucchini as a side.
Made these drumsticks last night. Made eight, we were going to have them over two days – yeah right! They were so delicious they went in one go, hubby having one more than me. Tip re coating and not getting in a mess worked perfectly. Thanks Nagi
Hi Nagi, did these for part of my Mother’s day lunch and everyone loved them. Will be our go to for drumsticks from now on, and the Mayo honey mustard sauce was yummalicious also. Thanks Nagi 😊
Made these last night.
An unmitigated failure!
I followed the recipe to the letter, but found I had nowhere near enough of the breadcrumbs. The resultant sticky mess stuck to me but not the chicken. Most of the rest stuck to the wire rack. Not my greatest culinary accomplishment!😱
Just made this for dinner! Massive hit all round. Made the kid friendly version and served with buttered corn on the cob. Will definitely make again x
kid friendly version for us but loved it