Chicken lollipop drumsticks are a popular party food, appetizer or main course. They are SO much less messy to handle than regular chicken drumsticks, and great with a variety of dipping sauces.
Why You Will Love This Recipe
With just a few minutes doing some butcher trimming, you can have chicken lollipop drumsticks your family will clamor for.
Savory marinated chicken drumsticks are trimmed into lollipop shapes, so they're easy to pick up and eat. Marinating makes these chicken drumsticks juicy and tender. You can use any marinade you love. These savory chicken lollipops are:
- Economical. Chicken legs are a budget friendly cut of meat.
- Easy. Lollipopping chicken drumsticks (or chicken thighs!) is quite simple.
- Delicious. With a marinade, these chicken drumsticks turn our juicy and tender.
- Versatile. Great for a main meal, party appetizers, or take to a picnic.
Jump to:
- Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Chicken Lollipop Drumsticks Ingredients
- How to Make Lollipop Chicken Drumsticks
- Serving Suggestions
- Related Recipes
- Substitutions and Variations
- Equipment
- Storage and Reheating
- Tips for Success
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Food Safety
- Some Other Recipes We Are Sure You Will Love
- 📖 Recipe
- Connect with Smells Like Delish!
Chicken Lollipop Drumsticks Ingredients
This lollipop chicken recipe is popular all year round, but it's especially popular during the summer months when people are looking for barbecue, smoking, and grilling recipes. Using an air fryer to cook these chicken lollipops keeps the heat out of the kitchen any time of the year also!
- Chicken drumsticks
- Salt
- Chili powder - Any basic chili powder blend.
- Red Pepper flakes - Optional, but great for flavor!
- Garlic powder - Or garlic granules, or finely minced fresh garlic.
- Ketchup - Or, tomato paste.
- Soy sauce - Or you can use Teriyaki sauce or Hoisin sauce.
- Lemon juice - Fresh squeezed, or use vinegar.
- Paprika - Domestic sweet, Smoked paprika, or Hungarian paprika.
- Olive oil
Full ingredient amounts and preparation instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
How to Make Lollipop Chicken Drumsticks
First, use a sharp knife to transform the raw chicken drumsticks into lollipops.
How To Make a Chicken Lollipop
- Rinse and dry the chicken drumsticks. Cut off the joint at the foot end with a sharp knife.
- Make incisions near where the joint was and pull tendons and meat downward toward the fat end of the drumstick.
Marinate The Chicken Lollipops
- Put the trimmed chicken drumsticks in a bowl and add the salt, chili powder, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, ketchup (or tomato paste), soy sauce, lemon juice, paprika, and olive oil.
- Stir to mix and coat the chicken lollipops, set in the refrigerator for 30 minutes for extra flavor.
Bake In Air Fryer or Oven
- Set your air fryer at 370F, or your conventional oven to 400F.
- Place the chicken on a rack in the air fryer or on a baking tray for your conventional oven.
Flip and Baste
- Bake 20 minutes in the air fryer, and then flip, baste, and cook for an additional 10 minutes. If using the conventional oven, bake for 30 to 35 minutes, then check with an Instant Read meat thermometer.
- Chicken lollipops are ready to remove from the air fryer or oven when the thermometer reads 165F, or the meat juices run clear when pierced in the thickest part of one the largest lollipop.
Serving Suggestions
Chicken lollipop drumsticks can be served with a variety of sides, such as rice, potatoes, or vegetables.
These chicken drumstick lollipops can also be served as an appetizer or snack. Serve with a variety of dipping sauces, such as ketchup, Carolina Gold sauce, Thai Peanut Sauce, or Ranch dressing using our Dry Ranch Dressing recipe.
Full ingredient amounts and preparation instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Related Recipes
Substitutions and Variations
Here are a few easy variations using this recipe as a base:
- You can add different herbs and spices to the batter or marinade. You can also add different vegetables to the batter or marinade.
- Chicken thighs can also be made into lollipops that are even more substantial.
Equipment
Equipment can have a big impact on how a recipe turns out. Below are some of my favorite pieces of equipment that I use when making this dish.
- Nuwave Brio Air Fryer - Rotisserie - Grill - This 15 quart countertop Smart Oven has three slide in trays, that all can be used at the same time. You can air fry rotisserie chickens, an SO mush more!
- Nuwave Air Fryer 15 quart - This large family size basket air fryer has room to air fry enough for a large family!
- Gourmia Digital Air Fryer 6 quart - This basket style air fryer will handle four frozen waffles in the air fryer.
- Ninja Foodie Pro Air Fryer - Folds up out of the way on your counter.
- Nuwave Air Fryer 3 quart - This compact basket air fryer is perfect for singles or a small family of 2 or 3. You can air fry two frozen waffles in 4 minutes.
- Oil Sprayer - This is a perfect sprayer for spritzing a light coating of oil on vegetables, meats, and other prepared frozen foods before air frying. The tiny amount of oil ensures you get as amazing results as deep frying and roasting, with a fraction of the calories and splatter!
- ThermoPro Meat Thermometer
Storage and Reheating
Here are some storage, freezing, and reheating options for this chicken lollipop drumstick recipe:
- Store lollipop chicken legs in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Freeze up to 3 months.
- To reheat the chicken lollipops, thaw it in the refrigerator overnight. Then, bake at 350 or air fry the chicken until it is heated through.
Tips for Success
- Use bone-in, skin-on chicken drumsticks for this chicken lollipop drumstick recipe. The bone and skin help to keep the chicken moist and flavorful.
- Don't overcook the chicken. Chicken lollipops should be cooked until crispy and cooked through, but still juicy and tender.
- Serve chicken lollipops with your favorite dipping sauce.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature of the chicken. Chicken is cooked through when it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Bake in a conventional oven at 400 F for approximately 30 to 35 minutes, or until a meat thermometer reads 165F, or the juices run clear when the meat is pierced.
The chicken lollipops can also be grilled, air fried, pan fried, baked, or you can smoke or make bbq chicken lollipops.
Food Safety
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat.
- Wash hands after touching raw meat.
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods.
- Never leave cooking food unattended.
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds.
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove.
See more guidelines at USDA.gov.
Some Other Recipes We Are Sure You Will Love
📖 Recipe
Chicken Lollipop Drumsticks
Equipment
Ingredients
- 6 large chicken drumsticks
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon ketchup or substitute with tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
Lollipop the Drumsticks
- Rinse and dry the chicken drumsticks. Cut off the joint at the foot end with a sharp knife.6 large chicken drumsticks
- Make incisions near where the joint was and pull tendons and meat downward toward the fat end of the drumstick.
Marinate
- Put the trimmed chicken drumsticks in a bowl and add the salt, chili powder, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, ketchup (or tomato paste), soy sauce, lemon juice, paprika, and olive oil.½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon chili powder, ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 tablespoon ketchup, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon paprika, 2 tablespoon olive oil
- Stir to mix and coat the chicken lollipops, set in the refrigerator for 30 minutes for extra flavor.
Air Fry or Bake
- Set your air fryer at 370F, or your conventional oven to 400F.
- Place the chicken on a rack in the air fryer or on a baking tray for your conventional oven.
- Bake 20 minutes in the air fryer, and then flip, baste, and cook for an additional 10 minutes. If using the conventional oven, bake for 30 to 35 minutes, then check with an Instant Read meat thermometer.
- Chicken lollipops are ready to remove from the air fryer or oven when the thermometer reads 165F, or the meat juices run clear when pierced in the thickest part of one the largest lollipop.
Notes
- The lollipop chicken legs can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- They can be frozen for up to 3 months.
- To reheat the chicken lollipops, thaw it in the refrigerator overnight. Then, bake at 350 or air fry the chicken until it is heated through.
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