Grilling Chicken Drumsticks - The Art of Drummies

Super easy, never fails, grilled drumsticks for the whole family. Just wash, dry, spice and cook over medium high heat. Then you will have crispy goodness for all.

The "art" of the grilled chicken legs (drumsticks)... that is what I have been working on for several weeks. All the recipes I looked at said things like until "fluid runs clear" or 30 minutes over medium high heat. I need more precise. Plus overnight marinades and lots of other magic cooking stuff. Not good for me.

My mistakes or at least the ones I remember. First I cooked them to 165 just like I love chicken breast. They weren't done. They were tough and stringy. Then I went to 180-190, yep just the right temp. But I cooked it too fast on high heat. Burnt skin. Char is good, burnt is bad. I tried several spice mixes and settled on the one below. Just some kosher salt, pepper, garlic powder and cayenne pepper (but not too much of kids but just enough for taste for adults).
Rating

An easy and tasty 5.

Notes: 

• DO NOT SKIP THE WASH AND DRY or you will not have crispy skin.
• Check the cut joint area for loose parts. You may be handing this to a child and don't need loose bone aspirated.
• You must use a thermometer to be sure you get to 185 plus. Do not guess.
• Spice as you want. I frequently add the Cayenne but if you have little ones, skip it.
• Scale to any amount you need 
• Skip the seasoning and brush with your favorite BBQ sauce the last 5 minutes to make great  BBQ drumsticks. 

Update: (June 23, 2012) rbeland asked a question in a comment below. Specifically, what temp on the grill surface? Well I did a test cooking tonight on my new super-duper Weber which is a much "hotter" grill then my previous grill. I chose a surface temp of 450 which is what I estimated was the surface temp of my old grill. To get that stable temp on my Weber, the burners were at about 50%. The drummies were done in 32 minutes and were great. I now use a done temp of 190+ and they are fall off the bone tender with great skin. I have update the description to reflect there facts. 

Preheat grill to get a surface temp of about 450. That is medium high on a standard gas grill and medium on a hot gas grill. Clean and oil. You must wash the drummies under running water and pat dry if you want crispy skin.

Trim of excess skin and any loose bones/tissue especially in the joint area.

Mix spices. 1 T kosher salt, 1 t pepper and garlic powder and 1/2 t cayenne pepper. You can also use my 7:2:2 spice mix. You may want to skip the cayenne if cooking for little ones.

Sprinkle chicken on all sides. Let rest at room temperature until grill is ready.

 

Check grill temp if possible and place chicken on grill.

Flip every 7-8 minutes until internal temp of  190 degrees. About 30-35 minutes.

 Let rest for 10 minutes before serving. They are way too hot anyways.

The Art of Drummies - Grilling Chicken Drumsticks

by Dan Mikesell June-26-2011

Super easy, never fails, grilled drumsticks for the whole family. Just wash, dry, spice and cook over medium high heat. Then you will have crispy goodness for all. .

Ingredients

• 6 Chicken drumsticks
• 1 T kosher salt
• 1 t black pepper
• 1 t garlic powder
• 1/2 t cayenne pepper

Instructions

1) You must wash the drummies under running water and pat dry if you want crispy skin. Trim of excess skin and any loose bones/tissue especially in the joint area. 2) Now preheat grill to get a surface temp of about 450. That is medium high on a standard gas grill and medium on a hot gas grill. Clean and oil. 3) Mix spices. 1 T kosher salt, 1 t pepper and garlic powder and 1/2 t cayenne pepper. You can also use my 7:2:2 spice mix. You may want to skip the cayenne if cooking for little ones. 4) Sprinkle chicken on all sides. Let rest at room temperature until grill is ready.5) Check grill temp if possible and place chicken on grill. 6) Flip every 7-8 minutes until internal temp of 190 degrees. About 30-35 minutes.7) Let rest for 10 minutes before serving. They are way too hot anyways.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 30 mins Total time: 40 mins Yield: 6 drumsticks

Updated

May 27 2013

Dan Mikesell