Unsure of how long to bake chicken legs? You’ve come to the right place if you’re wondering how long to bake chicken legs at 400 degrees or at 375 degrees, or even how to bake chicken legs in general. Cooking chicken legs for the correct amount of time is crucial if you want a delicious meal.
There are various solutions for how long to bake chicken legs. Whether it’s for a big party, a small family BBQ, or you just want to enjoy chicken for dinner, knowing how long to bake your chicken legs is just the beginning in your process to having a delicious meal.
Chicken legs are made up of two parts of the chicken, the drumstick and the thigh. Chicken thighs can be sold in two ways, bone in or bone out.
If you’re looking for delicious recipes that use chicken try crockpot BBQ chicken drumsticks or sticky honey soy chicken.
Difference between chicken drumsticks, thighs, and legs
Chicken drumsticks and chicken legs are often thought to be the same part of the chicken, but they’re not. When talking about chicken legs, they are the entire leg quarter of the chicken. This includes the chicken drumstick and thigh. When slicing your chicken legs into two pieces, you will have the top half which is the chicken thigh, and the bottom part which is the chicken drumstick.
What is the best temperature to cook chicken legs?
The best temperature to cook chicken legs ultimately comes down to how you prefer your chicken. If you’re looking for chicken legs that have crispy skin, 400 to 450 degrees would be best suitable. If you want your chicken skin to be less crispy, 350 to 375 degrees would be best, but this may lead the meat on your chicken legs to become more dry.
How long to bake chicken legs at 400 degrees
When baking your chicken legs at 400 degrees, they should take around 25 to 35 minutes to be ready. The time it takes for your legs to be ready may vary depending on how often you open the oven door, the oven itself, and how crowded your oven is.
How long to bake chicken legs at 375 degrees
When baking your chicken legs at 375 degrees, they will take 35 to 45 minutes. Again, this depends on the oven, how crowded the oven is, etc. To double check and see if your chicken is ready, you can use a thermometer and see if your chicken legs are at 165 degrees. If they are at 165 degrees, your chicken legs are ready to be served.
How long to bake chicken leg quarters at 400 degrees
If you want to enjoy chicken leg quarters, this will usually take around 30 to 35 minutes. To ensure that your chicken is ready, you can use a thermometer and check if the internal temperature is 165 degrees.
How to save leftover cooked chicken legs?
If you know you’re going to have leftover chicken legs and you want to savor your delicious meal, be sure to put them in the refrigerator within two hours of cooking. Labeling your container with dates will also help you know how long you can keep your chicken in the refrigerator. Typically chicken legs are good to keep in the refrigerator for three to four days.
Can I bake frozen chicken drumsticks?
The short answer to this question is yes. You can bake frozen chicken drumsticks, but this will make it more challenging to know if the inside of the chicken has reached the proper eating temperature.
How to cook chicken legs in the oven
If you’re wondering how to cook chicken legs in the oven or how to bake chicken legs in general, there are a couple of steps that you must follow.
First you must prepare your baking sheet with non stick cooking spray before you put your chicken on the sheet.
Next, season your chicken to give it some flavor and to help keep some of the moisture while being cooked.
Once your chicken legs are prepared, put the baking sheet in the oven for half of the time it needs to cook based on how hot your oven is.
When your chicken is half way done, pull the baking sheet out, flip your chicken, and put the baking sheet back in the oven for the rest of the time needed to cook.
Then, when the timer goes off, pull your chicken back out of the oven and get ready to eat your chicken legs.
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