A sticky glazed chicken drumstick is hard to resist. Let me show you How to Make Lollipop Chicken Drumsticks, the most flavorful chicken drumstick ever, and the easiest to eat. Obtaining the lollipop shape takes a little practice, but once you've done it a few times, it becomes second nature. So, grab a sharp knife, a pair of kitchen shears, a paper towel, and let's get going.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Chicken drumstick lollipops are easier to eat than full drumsticks for good reason. With the skin, small bone and tendons removed, all that remains is meat and skin. The little extra work is well worth the effort. Works for chicken winglettes too!
- A seasoned chicken lollipop is a fun appetizer or meal. Kids will love them.
- You can cook the chicken meat on a gas, charcoal or pellet grill. They can also be baked, broiled or fried. I bake mine in the oven. I like how crispy the skin gets when the drumsticks cook upright.
- Lastly, two words: crispy skin.
Ingredients
For the full recipe with quantities, see the recipe card at the end of the post.
INGREDIENT NOTES
- Chicken - obviously, the best choice for this recipe would be chicken drumsticks. You can also use the drummette sections of the chicken wing.
- Sauce - this is up to the cook to decide, but I like my Korean Barbecue Sauce. Any barbecue sauce will work. Use your homemade barbecue sauce for BBQ chicken drumsticks.
- If you prefer not to use sauce, brush with olive oil and season with chili powder, garlic powder, salt and black pepper.
- Garlic cloves and lemon halves are optional - they do add flavor and color.
Recipe FAQ'S
“Chicken lollipop” refers to chicken wings trimmed to expose the bone and remove the skin. To achieve the lollipop chicken leg-type appearance, the meat on the chicken wing or leg gets partially cut from the bone and pushed down, a technique known as “frenching.”
"Frenching" is preparing a piece of meat for cooking by removing meat from the end of the bone. It is done for ease of eating and aesthetic reasons.
Expert "Frenching" Instructions
Wear gloves. Use a sharp chef's knife. Wash and pat the legs dry.
Use your knife to cut to the bone all the way around the lower part of the leg.
Use paper towels to help pull the cut piece off. Pull up and over the bone.
Use kitchen shears to cut tendons that keep the piece attached.
Remove the end piece and discard. Wipe the leg clean of any remaining tissue.
Pull the skin down over the broadest part of the drumstick.
Lay the leg on the cutting board and cut off the angled part of the leg.
Remove the part you cut off and wipe the clean bone with paper towels.
Place the leg bone end up to see if it sits upright. If not, cut again to correct.
When all the legs are "frenched," move on to the cooking steps below.
Step-by-Step Instructions Cooking Instructions
French the chicken drumsticks until you have exposed bones. Refer to video.
Baste with any sauce you like. I used a soy sauce based Korean BBQ sauce.
Arrange the lollipop pieces in a baking pan. Cover the bone with foil if desired.
Add garlic and lemon if desired. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 30 minutes.
Remove from oven and baste. Place the chicken meat on a sheet pan.
Bake on sheet pan to get the chicken skin crisp and the meat cooked through.
Use a meat thermometer to be sure the meat is at least 165 degrees.
Plate with the bottom of the drumstick down. Best eaten hot!
Looking for More Tasty Chicken Recipes?
Here are a couple of my favorites using the dark meat chicken thigh and chicken breasts too.
Equipment
- Large bowl for drumsticks
- Grill grate or oven
- Sharp chef's knife
- Aluminum foil
- Paper towels
- Pastry brush
- Sheet pan
- Baking pan
Perfect Pairings
We love these Lollipop Chicken Drumsticks with Korean Barbecue Sauce served with a bowl of fragrant Jasmine rice. Check out my Korean Barbecue Dipping Sauce Recipe. I think it is the best but you can use any sauce you like.
Equipment
- Large bowl
- grill grate or oven
- Sharp chef's knife
- Aluminum foil
- Paper towels
- Pastry brush
- Sheet pan
- Baking pan
Ingredients
- 6 chicken legs
- 3 tablespoons barbecue sauce
- 2 cloves garlic
- ½ lemon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Wash and pat the drumsticks dry with paper towels. Place in large bowl.
- "French" the chicken drumsticks until you have exposed bones. Move on to the next step if you don't plan to "French" the drumsticks.
- Brush with any sauce you like. I used a soy sauce based Korean BBQ sauce. I actually just dipped my drumsticks in a small bowl of sauce. CAUTION: Do not reuse this sauce since it was in contact with raw chicken. Use fresh sauce for basting during cooking.
- Arrange the lollipop pieces in a baking pan. Cover the bone with foil if desired. Add a couple of garlic cloves and a cut lemon if desired.
- Bake in 350 degree oven for 30 minutes. Remove from oven. If you like crispy skin, remove the drumsticks from the baking pan and place them on a baking sheet.
- Bastes generously with sauce.
- Return to oven for 10-15 minutes turning pan midway to ensure even browning.
- The internal temperature of the meat should be at ;east 165 degrees.
- Plate with the bottom of the drumstick down. Best eaten hot!
Geetanjali says
Made these last night and everyone of my family loved these.
Mary says
That makes me happy to hear. Thank you!
Jan says
everyone loved them, though we added quite a few spices to them
Mary says
I am glad you enjoyed them! I like a lot of spice but keep it dialed down a bit because hubby does not love heat like I do.
erinkatescreations@yahoo.com says
Love it!
Giangi Townsend says
Easy and super delicious. Making it again this weekend as we cannot get enough of it.
Geetanjali says
These chicken lollipops were easy to make, perfect for parties. Loved these.
Rupali says
What a fun recipe and so delicious! I am making for this for my next dinner party again!
nancy says
these Lollipop Chicken Drumsticks are super juicy and tasty
Nora says
I'm in love with this recipe! Super easy to make, with just a few ingredients! It turned out perfectly! Thank you so much!
Zen says
These chicken lollipops look so good! They're the perfect finger food for a party, must make it next time I have people over!
Tina says
This is my first time hearing about lollipop chicken. I’m sure this will be a great hit!