Baked Chicken Drumsticks
by Sommer Collier — last updated on Oct 14, 2024 
This Baked Chicken Drumstick Recipe is a sweet and spicy one! Sticky and addictive, these baked drumsticks are perfect for parties and mid-week meals!
Spicy Sweet Chicken Drumsticks
These Sweet and Spicy Baked Chicken Drumsticks are addictively delicious. Sweet and sticky. Crispy and tender. Spicy, savory, and popping with ginger and garlic flavor.
Our Drumstick Recipe is loaded with zesty Asian flavor and a kick of fiery heat.
It’s a MUST-MAKE chicken drumsticks recipe. Perfect for holiday parties, neighborhood potlucks, and game nights because you can prepare a TON of drumsticks at once, and they are so inexpensive to buy. You can’t go wrong with these baked drumsticks!
What Ingredients You Will Need For This Dish
- Bone-In Chicken Drumsticks
- Flour – all-purpose or GF baking mix
- Cornstarch
- Salt
- Pineapple Juice
- Brown Sugar
- Soy Sauce
- Rice Vinegar
- Grated Fresh Ginger
- Minced Garlic Cloves
- Sriracha Sauce
How To Bake Chicken Drumsticks
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line two rimmed baking sheet pan with aluminum foil, spray with non-stick cooking spray, and set aside.
Mix the flour, cornstarch, and salt together in a large bowl. Using paper towels, pat dry each drumstick and roll them in the flour mixture for a light dusting. Then lay them out on the baking sheets, evenly spaced.
Bake the drumsticks for 30 minutes, flipping once.
In the meantime, pour the pineapple juice and all remaining ingredients into a sauce pot. (If you are sensitive to heat, add 1/4 cup Sriracha; if you really like spicy food, add 1/2 cup.) Bring the sauce to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for 30 minutes.
Then pour the sauce over the drumsticks evenly. Roll the drumsticks around in it to coat, and place back in the oven, uncovered.
Bake the chicken legs for another 20 minutes, until the sauce is thick and sticky and the drumsticks are well coated. Serve warm.
See the Recipe Card Below for How to Bake Chicken Drumsticks. Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do leftovers last?
You can store leftover chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days.
What side dish can I pair with this recipe?
The sticky glaze goes with most of your favorite side dish recipes… dishes you would pair with regular chicken breast recipe. For example, melted butter mashed potatoes, chopped salad, or green beans, and other vegetables. You serve it with irresistible Asian side dishes like 9 layer Asian salad, sweet and spicy roasted broccolini, kung pao brussels sprouts, or hibachi fried rice!
What do I do if my sauce is runny?
Make sure not to cover your chicken with foil. It will steam the chicken making it hard for the glaze to stick. (This is a no-cover recipe.) Also, don’t skimp on the simmer time for the glaze. This will reduce the glaze to the right consistency.
Can I add other spices to the glaze?
No other spices are needed to create a bold spicy-sweet flavor. However, if you love to experiment with spices, consider adding smoked paprika, black pepper, onion powder, or dried herbs.
Other chicken recipes you might like:
- Kung Pao Chicken Skewers
- Thai Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce
- Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese
- Honey Sesame Chicken
- Oven Fried Chicken
- Lemon Rosemary Basil Chicken
- Chicken Cordon Bleu
- Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken
- Chicken Soup In The Crockpot
- Crispy Baked Garlic Parmesan Chicken Wings
- Air fryer Chicken Drumsticks or Chicken Thighs by The Big Mans World
Check the recipe card below for the prep time, total time, and nutrition information including calories, carbohydrates, protein, sodium, and fiber percentages. Also make sure to share this recipe on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
Spicy-Sweet Baked Chicken Drumsticks Recipe
Ingredients
- 20 chicken drumsticks
- 1/3 cup flour (any variety for GF)
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 3 1/2 cups pineapple juice
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons fresh grated ginger
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4-1/2 cup Sriracha sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line two rimmed baking sheets with foil, spray with non-stick cooking spray, and set aside.
- Mix the flour, corn starch, and salt together in a bowl. Using paper towels, dry each drumstick and roll them in the flour mixture for a light dusting. Then lay them out on the baking sheets, evenly spaced.
- Bake the drumsticks for 30 minutes, flipping once.
- In the meantime, pour the pineapple juice and all remaining ingredients in a sauce pot. (If you are sensitive to heat, add 1/4 cup Sriracha; if you really like spicy food, add 1/2 cup.) Bring the sauce to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Then pour the sauce over the drumsticks evenly. Roll the drumsticks around in it to coat, and place back in the oven, uncovered.
- Bake another 20 minutes, until the sauce is thick and sticky and the drumsticks are well coated. Serve warm.
I love all the fun names you came up with. These drumsticks would be fantastic for any night, but I’d love to have these on the table for Halloween and tell them I’m feeding them Amputee Appendages and see what their reaction is ;).
Ahh! That black cat is cracking me up (In a freaked out scary, lol, kind of way) :)
These chicken drummies look great! Great easy recipe – loving the pineapple juice and sriracha!
My husband will love these! We had some sweet and spicy wings last night that were so good, he was nudging me the whole time saying “you need to blog these”. Can’t wait to try them!
I’m picking up chicken legs stat!
my mouth is quite literally watering over here – sticky and crispy and yummy. feed me.
I was scrolling through my Google account and I saw the photo of your baked chicken drumsticks! Holy amazing they look delicious!!! I have to make these, but i know they won’t look as pretty as yours!
Baked chicken legs is one of our favorite meals – and I love this sauce!
Bwa ha ha! Not to far at all! I think the names are all great. But the look of those shiny sticky chicken legs is even better. Yum!
That sauce–I want it on everything! And what the what is that creepy cat thing in your pictures? It’s so cool!
LOL!!! Hayley, I couldn’t resist putting in my black cat decorations. :)
That sauce! Oh my!
These look great! I love the combination of ingredients in the sauce…
I have few meat cravings, but baked chicken is one of them. What an awesome recipe you have here.
And I know you have a sinister side… I could tell from the moment I met you ;-)