These sheet pan chicken drumsticks and potatoes are easy, healthy, and damn delicious. The aromatic spices and citrus flavors in the lemon garlic seasoning come together to give melt-in-your-mouth chicken. Here is a quick and easy dinner with baked chicken legs and potatoes for busy weeknights.
Why you’ll love these baked drumsticks and potatoes
Who doesn’t love an easy low-calorie dinner with sheet pan chicken legs and potatoes? The garlic and herb seasoning takes about 5 minutes to prepare.
Add variation by throwing in some sweet potatoes. Marinate and roast in the oven.
Pair them with a simple salad like beet orange salad or Italian quinoa salad. Dinner gets done in about 40 minutes!
It is as easy as my honey garlic lemon pepper chicken thighs.
This baked chicken legs and potatoes recipe is my favorite since it checks all the boxes:
- Full of flavor from lemon herb seasoning.
- Simple ingredients you always have in your pantry.
- Uses less oil than frying or searing, like the panko chicken breast recipe.
- Can be made ahead and hence qualifies for meal-prep.
- Fewer pots & pans to clean-up. (Similar to my spicy smashed potatoes recipe.)
This is yet another of my hands-free, quick & easy dinner recipes like the baked thin-sliced chicken breasts and tandoori chicken and Kerala chicken curry with coconut.
Watch how to make roasted chicken legs and potatoes
Ingredients
Chicken
Use bone-in, skin on chicken drumsticks, thighs or legs (quarters with thigh and drumstick attached). You can also use the garlic and herb seasoning for marinating and roasting whole chicken.
Lemon garlic seasoning
- Lemon and garlic: One of the best flavor combos that work for chicken. You get extra “lemony” flavor from the zest.
- Spices:
- chili powder- use according to taste, this recipe is moderately spicy.
- ground coriander
- ground cumin
- paprika- I recommend smoked paprika, but regular one is fine, too.
- Herbs: Dry oregano and thyme for that delicious Mediterranean flavor.
- Olive oil for its fruity flavor.
How to make baked chicken legs and potatoes- step by step
(You can find the exact measurements and instructions in the printable recipe card at the end of this page.)
How to marinate chicken drumsticks and potatoes
- Prepare the chicken legs: Clean and make a few cuts across each chicken drumstick. Season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Garlic and herb seasoning: Add all the ingredients to the chicken and rub the marinade thoroughly, reaching beneath the skin, too. Allow them to marinate in the refrigerator for a minimum of 2 hours.
- Add potatoes: Take the chicken legs out of the fridge 30 minutes before cooking. Chop the potatoes and sweet potatoes into wedges and add to the chicken legs. Mix until all potatoes are coated with the marinade.
How to roast chicken and potatoes
Arrange the chicken drumsticks and potatoes (along with sweet potatoes) on a sheet pan. (Remember to line it with parchment paper so cleaning becomes much easier.)
Bake at 230°C/ 446°F for 30 to 35 minutes. You don’t have to flip the chicken or the potatoes.
The potatoes get a little more browned on one side, it’s fine with me. (you can safely consider the pictures below as proof that it turns out fine.) So, unless you’re very particular about roasting the potatoes evenly, you can forget about the potatoes and chicken for the next 30 minutes.
Make this a complete chicken leg sheet pan dinner
I like to serve this one pan roasted chicken and potatoes with a simple egg and lettuce salad. Make the salad while you wait for the oven to do its job.
To double up on the Mediterranean flavors, pair them with feta paprika dip.
Now you’ve got an amazing high-protein chicken leg sheet pan dinner! No frying, boiling, or even switching on your stove. Make it a keto dinner by swapping carrot and turnip wedges for potatoes and butter for oil.
If you’re looking for yet another chicken and sweet potato recipe, you’ll love lemon balsamic chicken thighs with rosemary sauce.
Common questions about sheet pan chicken legs
How do you keep chicken from drying out in the oven?
In this recipe for roasted chicken legs and potatoes, the lemon in the marinade and the fat in the skin help keep the chicken juicy. If you prefer to cook chicken legs without skin, try this recipe for baked hariyali chicken drumsticks or easy oven-baked tandoori chicken. In those recipes, yogurt is used in the marinade which helps keep the chicken from drying out.
How long does it take to bake chicken drumsticks?
Chicken drumsticks take about 30 to 35 minutes to cook at 230°C/ 446°F. Baking at high temperatures ensure that they are browned on the outside and soft on the inside.
Should you bake chicken covered or uncovered?
Bone-in, skin-on chicken legs can be baked uncovered on the baking sheet, they still turn out moist and juicy. The chicken breasts (boneless, skinless) have less fat in them and are likely to dry out if cooked uncovered. If you’re cooking chicken breasts, use this recipe for easy baked chicken breasts to ensure you get perfectly juicy chicken.
Do you flip chicken legs when baking?
In this recipe for baked drumsticks and potatoes, you don’t have to flip the chicken. They get cooked and browned perfectly without flipping midway during cooking. For the drumsticks to cook evenly, you only have to ensure that they are at room temperature when you place them in the oven.
How do I know when chicken drumsticks are cooked?
You’ll know the drumsticks are cooked when they’re no longer pink at the bone. Another way to check is using a meat thermometer. The internal temperature of the cooked chicken should reach at least 74°C/ 165°F.
Sides to serve with one pan roasted chicken & potatoes
- Spaghetti arrabbiata
- Beet and orange salad
- Balsamic quinoa salad
- Quinoa salad with roasted pumpkin
- Balsamic roasted brussels sprouts and carrots.
More chicken recipes
Baked Chicken Legs and Potatoes Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
Chicken drumsticks and potatoes
- 12 pieces chicken drumsticks skin on
- 2 potatoes
- 2 sweet potatoes
First seasoning
- 1.5 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
Lemon garlic seasoning
- 10-12 cloves garlic minced
- 1.5 teaspoons chilli powder (reduce according to your spice level)
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 large lemon juice and zest
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
Preparing and seasoning the chicken
- Clean the chicken drumsticks. Make a few cuts across the flesh of each drumstick.
- Season the drumsticks with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Allow them to sit for 30 minutes in the refrigerator, while you prepare the lemon garlic marinade.
Garlic and herb seasoning
- Mince garlic, zest the lemon and extract the juice. Mix all the spices and herbs together.
- Add the mixed spices and herbs, lemon juice, zest, garlic and 2 tablespoons of oil to the chicken. Toss well, until all the chicken legs are coated with the marinade, ensuring that you reach the parts beneath the skin.
- Leave the chicken to marinate in the refrigerator for about 2 hours up to overnight. Remove them from the fridge 30 minutes before cooking. This will allow them to reach room temperature.Preheat the oven to 230°C/ 446°F. Meanwhile, prepare the potatoes.
Potatoes and sweet potatoes
- Chop the potatoes and sweet potatoes into thick wedges. Add them to the chicken legs with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and toss thoroughly.
Roasting chicken legs and potatoes
- Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Arrange the chicken pieces, potatoes and sweet potatoes in a single layer. (note 1)
- Drizzle the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and place in the oven. Let it roast for 30 minutes. No flipping is required. Check after 30 minutes, if the chicken has browned. If not, allow 5 minutes more.
Video
Notes
- You may need 2 sheet pans to fit in all of the drumsticks, potatoes and sweet potatoes. It is better to spread them in a single layer so the edges crisp up. It’s okay if they are placed close together, but don’t let them overcrowd.
- Regular paprika may be used in place of smoked paprika.
- Some varieties of sweet potatoes cook faster than potatoes. In that case, chop the sweet potatoes into larger wedges.
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This recipe has been adapted from the Mediterranean dish.
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