Sweet & Sticky Baked Chicken Drumsticks

photo from here: http://www.thecomfortofcooking.com/2011/01/blog-post.html

This is a wonderfully easy and super delicious chicken recipe.  Recently food scientists have begun to tout the virtues of chicken dark meat, such as drumsticks, so cast aside your focus on lean breast meat (which can often be too dry) and give this scrumptious recipe a try.

The chicken is cooked in a very hot oven, so this is a perfect main course when you are looking to warm up your house a bit – as we are want to do these days. Temperatures have dropped into the 60s!

I found the recipe here, via TasteSpotting, although I have modified it a bit.  The photo as well is from The Comfort of Food blog.

Yields 12 chicken drumsticks

Ingredients:

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce

3 garlic cloves, minced

I small-ish onion, minced

12 chicken drumsticks (I used 20, smaller, “Drumets”)

2 Tbsp. sesame seeds

1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions:

Combine the balsamic vinegar, honey, brown sugar, soy sauce, onions and garlic cloves in a large resealable bag (a good one that will not pop open when you are handling it).

Clean up the drumsticks by rinsing well and snipping off any excess skin with kitchen shears. Add the chicken to the bag and seal. Toss and mush it around to mix well, coating all the chicken. Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Top with a cooling rack. (I do not have said cooking rack so I just went commando.)

Remove the chicken from the bag, reserving the marinade, and arrange the drumsticks in the lined pan (on the cooling rack, if you have it). Bake until the skin is caramelized and dark in spots, about 30 minutes. I cooked it for nearly an hour. I wanted a little crisp.

Meanwhile, place the leftover marinade in a small saucepan, uncovered. Bring the marinade to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook over low heat until thick, about 15 minutes.

Use a pastry brush to brush the cooked marinade on the chicken. Return chicken to the oven for 10 more minutes (or longer, as desired). I think you really want some little burnt patches on the skin – to get that BBQ touch.  Don’t worry, it will not dry out.  If you like – brush just a bit more heated marinade on them before serving.

Since I did not use a cooking rack (for lack of one available) I then placed the chicken in a single layer on several layers of newsprint (you could use a brown paper bag) to drain some of the grease (or as Luiz likes to say: “The juice”).

Place the chicken on a serving platter and sprinkle with the sesame seeds and the chopped parsley.

Have napkins at the ready!

I served this with creamy mashed potatoes, steamed green beans and a salad.