Oh my. Love buffalo chicken drumsticks so! This crispy oven baked buffalo chicken drumsticks recipe is easy to make and can be made mild or spicy. Bake chicken drums at 425F for ~ 45 minutes.
Look no further for an easy and delicious baked chicken drumstick recipe! In fact, this buffalo drumstick recipe can also be used with chicken legs, thighs, or wings.
This baked buffalo chicken drumsticks recipe is the perfect little "healthyish" appetizer. We eat some version of this once a week for dinner and then I make chicken bone broth with the bones.
Pair chicken drums with a vegetable, salad, and / or starch and make a complete meal out of it. Or, serve drumsticks with crunchy celery and a tangy blue cheese dipping sauce.
To Spice Chicken Drumsticks or Not to Spice?
Don't like spicy sauce on your baked buffalo chicken? No problem - just eat the crispy baked drumsticks without the sauce! It's seriously that good.
These oven baked drumsticks can be mildly or overtly spicy depending on the cayenne powder and hot sauce used.
If sensitive to heat, skip the cayenne powder in the flour mix and/or buy a mild hot sauce or use less hot sauce.
Gluten Free / Whole30 / Paleo / Low Carb / Keto Buffalo Chicken Drumsticks
Don't have flour or want to use flour or are on a paleo / gluten free / keto / low carb / whole 30 diet? Skip it entirely!
Baked chicken drumsticks without flour are absolutely delicious and crispy and this recipe doesn't necessarily need it.
There are plenty of gluten free flour substitutions. But honestly, this baked drumstick recipe is so good without any flour at all that the flour can just be omitted.
Lined vs. Unlined Sheet Pans When Baking Buffalo Chicken Drumsticks?
Aluminum lined baking sheets create a mess free clean up but some of the chicken skin can get baked on to the aluminum. That makes it harder to get the chicken off (even if you oil the sheet of aluminum).
Conversely, if you cook directly on the sheet pan then there is much more clean up to do. Cleaning sheet pans is not how most of us want to spend our time.
If you bake chicken drumsticks directly on a sheet pan:
- wait a couple minutes for the pan to cool down and the baked chicken will come off easier.
- To clean: Add some water and dish soap to the pan and gently heat it up on the stovetop to loosen up those bits. Scrap it with a sturdy spatula, let it sit 10 minutes and it will be easier to clean.
- OR! Bake some vegetables on the sheet pan (after the chicken comes off) at a lower heat (375F ish) and the water released from the vegetables will loosen up the bits and flavor the veggies. WIN WIN!
Random Baked Buffalo Chicken Drumsticks Thoughts
Have extra hot sauce after tossing the chicken drumsticks in the sauce? Save it. Dip toast or bread in it or add a little cream to create a sauce for a spicy creamy pasta.
Have extra flour leftover? Next time try a little less flour to minimize waste.
Notes: Small party wings or drumsticks will have a reduced cooking time of about 35 minutes or until juices run clear.
Baked Chicken Drumstick Recipe FAQS
Nope - not for this buffalo drumsticks recipe. Bake chicken drumsticks uncovered so that they can get crispy chicken.
Easy. Pre-heat oven to 425F. Mix chicken drumsticks with flour (optional) and favorite spices. Bake for ~ 40-45 minutes or until crispy. Toss with hot sauce mixed with butter and salt. Recipe below.
Yup! Gluten free folks can omit the flour entirely or toss with their favorite gluten free flour. I prefer to leave off the flour entirely when accommodating gluten free, keto, paleo, whole30, and low carb diets.
Serving Suggestion
Serve this easy Oven Baked Buffalo Chicken Drumsticks recipe with a side dish or two to make it a full meal.
You May Also Like
If you like baked chicken drumsticks then you may also like these other finger food appetizer recipes.
Things In My Kitchen:
- Baking Sheets - 13 x 18 and two of them to boot. Perfect for roasting drums or wings. One sheet pan will hold ~3 pounds of drums.
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Baked Buffalo Chicken Drumsticks
EatSimpleFood.com
Oh my. Love them so. Spicy, crispy, and healthy baked buffalo chicken drumsticks recipe with some crunchy celery and tangy blue cheese.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 6 (3 each) 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Ingredient List Chicken:
- 3lb (~20 pieces) chicken wings/drumsticks
- ⅔ cup flour (all purpose or gluten free)
- ¾ tsp ground paprika
- ¼ tsp ground cayenne
- ½ tsp salt
Ingredient List Sauce:
- 3 Tbsp unsalted butter
- ⅓ cup hot sauce
- ¼ tsp salt
- ⅛ tsp garlic powder
Optional Side Ingredients:
- 1 head of celery, cut into chunks for dipping
- blue cheese dressing for dipping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F.
For Chicken:
- Dry off chicken with a paper towel and add to a large bowl.
- In a small bowl or large ziploc bag mix: flour, paprika, cayenne and salt.
- Toss chicken with flour mix.
- Shake off any excess flour from the chicken and throw away.
- Roast (uncovered) on an aluminum lined and oiled baking sheet ~40-45 minutes or until crispy and internal temperature reaches 165F and juices run clear. Turn to broil in the last 3 minutes if you want them a little crispier.
For Sauce:
- Combine all ingredients in a small pan, bring to a boil, and simmer uncovered ~ 8 minutes or until ingredients are blended and thickened. Stir occasionally.
- Transfer cooked drumsticks to a bowl and coat with hot sauce. Serve with cut celery sticks and blue cheese dressing. Happy finger lickin' chicken eatin'! Beckie
Notes
- Don't have flour or want to use flour or are on a gluten free diet? Skip it entirely! Absolutely delicious without it too 🙂
- Lined vs. unlined baking sheets? Either works but an aluminum lined baking sheet makes for easy clean up.
- If you bought small party wings or drumsticks reduce the cooking time to about 35 minutes or until juices run clear.
- Have extra hot sauce after you've tossed the chicken drumsticks? Save it. Dip your toast or bread in it or add a little cream to create a sauce for a spicy creamy pasta.
- You may have extra flour leftover. Next time try a little less flour to minimize waste.
Nikki says
Excellent recipe. Disappeared quickly!
beckie says
Thanks Nikki!
Karena says
We made these for our Super Bowl Party!!!! Everybody raved! So yummy!!!!
Bishop says
These were really good! Would recommend.
Abby says
Please note my previous message was meant to be a private message. Didn't mean to be rude but just wanted to tell you my initial reaction in case others would feel the same. Your recipes look great! Thanks
Beckie Hemmerling says
Hi Abby, thank you for your comment. I never received your other message but I assume it was constructive feedback :). I appreciate you reaching out to clarify even though I'm not sure what it was! I'm gonna assume it's about baking on aluminum foil, because that's general feedback that health conscious people give. If that's the case, please back chicken directly on the sheet pan, but always double check parchment or silicone for the highest heat it can be baked at. If that's not the case, please feel free to give the feedback on the post or email me at beckie@eatsimplefood.com - cheers!