Chicken drumsticks often get overlooked but they are such a great option for easy dinners. They’re economical, simple to cook, and honestly pretty hard to mess up! These Honey Balsamic Drumsticks are a favorite in our house. Drumsticks are seared off and baked in a Dutch oven and then smothered in a rich, sticky honey-balsamic glaze that’s absolute perfection served over hot rice. This is one of those meals that you’ll want to put on repeat all year long.
Ingredients Needed
This is just a preview of ingredients and method, keep scrolling for full printable recipe.
Drumsticks
- Chicken drumsticks – There are different sizes of drumsticks. This recipe is for about 2 – 2 1/2 pounds, and for best results, look for the ones that are about 3-4 inches long and give you 5-6 drumsticks per pound or so. They’re on the smaller side, but not tiny like chicken-wing-size. I don’t really like the giant, meaty ones here. You could also use chicken thighs- bone in and skin on or boneless and skinless. Don’t use boneless skinless breasts or tenderloins. It will hurt my recipe’s feelings. Dark meat only!
- Olive oil
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- Paprika
- Onion powder
Sauce
- Honey
- Balsamic vinegar
- Ketchup
- Garlic
- Water
How to Make Honey Balsamic Drumsticks
- Rinse your chicken in cold water and pat dry with paper towels. If there is any excess fat hanging off, use a pair of sharp kitchen shears to snip it off, but don’t remove all of the skin. That layer is what holds everything to the bone and they’ll fall apart without it. I trim it down about 1/3 of the way from the top, if it needs trimming.
- Whisk up a quick spice rub of kosher salt, black pepper, onion powder and paprika.
- Give the drumsticks a little drizzle of olive oil and then sprinkle with the spice mix. Use your hands (c’mon, be brave) to rub it all in and coat all of the pieces. While you’re doing this, have a large Dutch oven heating up on the stove.
- Drizzle in a little more oil and place your chicken in to sear for a few minutes on each side.
- While chicken is searing, mix up the quick sauce. The chicken will cook in this sauce and soak up a lot of the flavor, and then we’ll thicken it up for the glaze at the end. Start with a big drizzle of honey, add a splash of balsamic vinegar, a squeeze of ketchup, and several cloves of fresh garlic.
- Whisk it up and pour it over the chicken. Use a rubber spatula, or a good set of tongs, to toss the chicken around in the sauce, making sure each piece gets coated. Place a lid on the pan and pop it in the oven. After a few minutes, flip the chicken and put back in the oven.
- The chicken will cook in that sauce and stay super moist and flavorful. When it’s done, carefully remove the drumsticks (they might be falling off the bone) and cover them with foil to keep warm.
- Put your pan on the stove top and bring that sauce to a simmer. You just want to reduce it to a nice glaze-y consistency. It only takes about 5 minutes and you’ll see it thicken up so you can scrape the bottom of the pan like in the picture below and it almost has the consistency of a thin BBQ sauce.
- Toss that chicken back in and get it all coated in the sweet, sticky glaze. You can put them on a platter and drizzle all of the extra glaze right over the top or serve them right out of the pan. We love it with rice so it can sop up the sauce, but it’s great as a lean meal just over veggies. It’s a terrific week night dinner and nice enough to serve to guests (if they’re the kind of guests that don’t mind getting their hands dirty).
Storing and Other Tips
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and enjoy within 3-4 days for best results.
- If using boneless, skinless chicken thighs, they will cook in about half the time of drumsticks or bone-in thighs.
- If your sauce gets too thick after sitting, simply thin with a little chicken broth or water.
- Have a house of sauce lovers? You’ll want to double the sauce here to make sure you have enough to drizzle over side dishes!
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the sauce taste like vinegar?
Nope! Even the pickiest eaters won’t know that’s what’s in there. The sauce is sticky and sweet and the balsamic vinegar provides a slight tang and great depth of flavor.
Can I make this ahead of time?
Sure, but I would recommend using boneless, skinless chicken thighs if you plan on reheating later! Make the recipe all the way through, cool, and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to reheat and eat. You may need to add a splash of water or chicken broth the sauce when reheating as well.
What should I serve these drumsticks with?
Our family loves them with hot white rice and a side of steamed, buttered broccoli. They would be delicious with mashed potatoes, brown rice, or even just alongside some mixed veggies for a lighter meal.
Honey Balsamic Drumsticks
These Honey Balsamic Drumsticks are a fantastic quick-and-easy dinner that everyone will love!
Servings drumsticks
Equipment
Ingredients
For the drumsticks
- 2 – 2 ½ lbs chicken drumsticks 10-12 drumsticks
- 3 teaspoons olive oil divided
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ¾ teaspoon onion powder
For the sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 4 cloves garlic minced or pressed
- 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉.
- Rinse chicken, pat dry. Drizzle with 1 teaspoon olive oil, toss to coat. Add seasoning mixture and use hands to massage into all pieces.
- Heat large dutch oven (or heavy oven-proof skillet with an oven proof lid) to medium heat. When hot add 2 teaspoons olive oil and use a brush to make sure it’s distributed over the entire surface of pan. Brown chicken 2 minutes per side (in batches if necessary.)
- While chicken is searing, whisk sauce ingredients together and add to pan. Gently toss chicken to coat. Cover pan and bake for 20 minutes, flip chicken pieces and baste with sauce and return to oven for 20 minutes more. Remove chicken from pot and cover to keep warm.
- Bring sauce to a boil and simmer for 4-5 minutes until thick and glaz-y. Return chicken to pan and gently toss in glaze. Let sit for a few minutes before serving, so glaze will thicken and chicken won’t burn your mouth!
Notes
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and enjoy within 3-4 days for best results.
- If using boneless, skinless chicken thighs, they will cook in about half the time of drumsticks or bone-in thighs.
- If your sauce gets too thick after sitting, simply thin with a little chicken broth or water.
- Have a house of sauce lovers? You’ll want to double the sauce here to make sure you have enough to drizzle over side dishes!
Nutrition
Serving: 1drumstick, Calories: 153kcal, Carbohydrates: 6g, Protein: 14g, Fat: 8g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Trans Fat: 0.03g, Cholesterol: 70mg, Sodium: 224mg, Potassium: 193mg, Fiber: 0.1g, Sugar: 5g, Vitamin A: 100IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 13mg, Iron: 1mg
Calories: 153kcal
Cost: $12
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Questions & Reviews
Did these on the grill instead of oven (too hot outside!) and they were amazing. Put on grill after rub on indirect heat so grill was at 350. Split sauce into 1/3 for basting chicken on grill and then heated rest to thicken and spread on chicken before serving. Grilled for 40-45 min. Perfect, crispy skin and fall of bone tender. My toddler ate 2 and my hubby was still talking about the sauce the next day. Loved it!!
Overheard at dinner: “this chicken is awesome!” Thanks for a crowd-leaser(all 4 kids and the 2 adults)!
I made these last night (yum!) and when I put the first one on my son’s plate my daughter started to beg him to switch with her. She wanted the drumstick! She was shocked to find out they were ALL drumsticks! Thanks for the great dinners we’ve been having around here!
Yours look so crispy and saucy. Mine didn’t turn out that great. I followed the recipe and They were falling off the bones and my kids loved them but the sauce didnt stick to them and you couldn’t even eat the skin it was too slimy.. so once we peeled the skin back there wasn’t much flavour..any suggestions?
Thanks
You do need to trim the skin and especially remove large pieces of fat. The skin that’s left shouldn’t be thick, it just holds the chicken to the bone. The sauce is super thick and sticky once it’s reduced, so you may have not cooked it enough if you found it wasn’t glazing the chicken. I’d try cooking it longer until it’s like a nice thick bbq sauce.
I made these last night and they were delicious. Since our toddler is boycotting chicken at the moment, I will probably add some red pepper flakes – or another spice – to the sauce to kick it up the next time I make them. I cut the recipe in half with no problem.
I read the post and found all the ingredients available in my kitchen. I followed the steps, I surprised, chicken got ready in the specified time. It was sooo good and delicious. My little kid liked it much. Thanks.
I made these tonight with thighs (pregnant me can’t handle chicken on the bone) and they were amazing! The husband and the 2 year old ate them up.
Thanks!
This might be a repeat question, but I will phrase it in a different way 😉 We have an event scheduled with many guests. I like the idea of these drums, but would need to make them a day or two ahead of time. In your opinion/experience, would they get too dried out if I cooked them completely, then reheated them the day of the event? Once reheated, I would have them in a chaffing rack to keep warm.
And the second repeat question phrased differently is: I don’t have time to purchase a dutch oven. How about a casserole dish with lid?
Thanks for you advice (and congrats on your news!)
I don’t think they’d get dried out, but I do think they’re better fresh. My kids will eat the leftovers of this reheated, but I find the sauce sometimes separates and the chicken doesn’t taste quite the same. I’d probably go for something else if you need to make a lot, AND ahead of time.
These look so good! We love drumsticks (better known as caveman food) around here too. Thanks!
These were delicious! I work full time and I really struggle to have energy and motivation to get dinner on the table. After I read your post I knew I had to try them last night. This was easy to prepare and with two quick sides, veggies and rice, I had a homemade meal and my family was thrilled! Thanks so much for another home run!
I’m so happy Angie- glad you enjoyed them!