How to Cook Turkey Drumsticks

Co-authored by Jennifer Levasseur

Last Updated: March 19, 2024 Approved

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Turkey drumsticks are a flavorful alternative to chicken. They are best known for their savory dark meat and crispy brown skin. Drumsticks are much easier to prepare than a whole turkey, so they're a great choice for weeknight cooking. Learn how to bake, grill, slow-cook, or boil turkey drumsticks to perfection.

Steps

Method 1

Method 1 of 4:

Baking Turkey Drumsticks

1. 1
   Preheat the oven to 350 °F (177 °C). Before you do anything else, switch on your oven. Let it warm up to 350 °F (177 °C) while you prepare your drumsticks.
2. 2
   Peel back the skin. Grip the skin near the bone and gently peel it toward the top of the drumstick. Don't pull it off entirely; just peel it back, so you can tuck butter and seasonings underneath.

   • Turkey drumsticks are much larger than chicken drumsticks, so you'll only need 1 per person (2 at most).

   Warning: Don’t rinse your turkey legs before cooking them. Rinsing raw turkey won’t remove bacteria effectively, and in fact it could spread harmful germs around your kitchen and increase your chances of getting sick.
3. 3
   Rub 1 tablespoon (14 g) of butter over the meat of each drumstick. This will keep the meat moist while the drumsticks bake. For larger drumsticks, you can use up to 3 tablespoons (42 g) of butter.

   • To make the butter easier to spread, bring it to room temperature before applying it to the turkey.
   • Use olive oil in place of butter if you're calorie conscious.
4. 4
   Season the turkey. With the skin still pulled down, sprinkle salt and pepper all over the turkey legs. For more flavor, try rubbing a tablespoon (about 2-4 g) of chopped herbs onto the buttered turkey meat while the skins are still pulled back. Rosemary, thyme, and sage make great seasonings for turkey.
5. 5
   Pull the skin over the meat and rub it with butter. Stretch the skin back over the meat and rub another 1-3 tablespoons (14-42 g) of butter over the skin of the turkey. This will help the skin crisp up as it bakes.
6. 6
   Sprinkle the skin with salt and pepper. Use a liberal amount of both salt and pepper to bring out the best in the turkey's flavor.
7. 7
   Lay the turkey legs in a roasting pan. Use a pan large enough to easily hold all of the legs with no overlap. If you want to catch the drippings, use a metal roasting rack over a drip pan.
8. 8
   Bake the turkey drumsticks for 90 minutes. Place them in the preheated oven for 45 minutes. Turn them over and cook them for another 45 minutes. Insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the meat. They are ready when the internal temperature reaches 165 °F (74 °C).

   • To ensure that the turkey stays juicy, you can baste it every 20 minutes with a turkey baster or spoon. Use the drippings as your basting liquid, or baste with extra melted butter.
   • Larger drumsticks may take a total of 2 hours to finish cooking.
9. 9
   Let the meat rest for 15 minutes before serving. This gives the juices time to reabsorb into the flesh, making the meat juicy. Serve whole or remove the meat from the bone.

Method 2

Method 2 of 4:

Grilling Turkey Drumsticks

1. 1
   Heat your gas or charcoal grill to medium heat. Turkey drumsticks require almost an hour on the grill, and it's important to maintain a steady heat of about 300 °F (149 °C) so they don't burn or end up undercooked.

   • Use a grill thermometer to test the heat of your grill.
2. 2
   Season your turkey drumsticks. Sprinkle the meat all over with salt and pepper. If you want to add spices and other seasonings, spread mixed spices all over each drumstick to coat the skin. Try these delicious combinations:

   • For hot and spicy drumsticks: combine 1/2 teaspoon (1 g) cayenne pepper, 1/2 teaspoon (1.5 g) garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon (1 g) black pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon (3 g) salt
   • For herb-encrusted drumsticks: combine 1/2 teaspoon (.4 g) dried basil, 1/2 teaspoon (.7 g) dried thyme, 1/2 teaspoon (1.5 g) garlic powder, and 1/2 teaspoon (3 g) salt
3. 3
   Cook the drumsticks in indirect heat for 1 hour. Lay them on a part of the grill that isn't getting a stream of direct heat, since this will cook them too quickly.
4. 4
   Turn the drumsticks every 10 minutes. This will ensure they cook evenly on all sides. Keep going as each side turns golden brown and crispy.
5. 5
   Test the internal temperature of the drumsticks. Insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the meat. The drumsticks are ready when the internal temperature reaches 180 °F (82 °C).

Method 3

Method 3 of 4:

Using a Slow Cooker

1. 1
   Remove the skin from the drumsticks. Use as many drumsticks as you can fit in your slow cooker. Since the skin won't get crispy in the slow cooker, it's best to remove it before cooking.
2. 2
   Season the meat with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle a generous amount of salt and pepper on each of the drumsticks to enhance their flavor as they cook.
3. 3
   Place your drumsticks into your slow cooker. Since the drumsticks are so large, you might have trouble fitting more than 2. You can lop off the ends of the bones if necessary.
4. 4
   Cover the drumsticks with chicken broth. The liquid is necessary to flavor the turkey and help it cook evenly and slowly in the slow cooker. Fill up the slow cooker until the turkey legs are completely submerged.

   • For extra flavor, add a packet of onion soup mix to the pot.
   • Or add the following: 1 teaspoon (6 g) salt, 1/2 teaspoon (1 g) pepper, and 1 teaspoon (3 g) garlic powder.
5. 5
   Cover the slow cooker and cook on low heat for 8 to 9 hours. Plan ahead so you can time the drumsticks to be ready for your dinnertime.
6. 6
   Let the drumsticks cool. Transfer the drumsticks to a plate or other heat-proof surface and allow them to cool for 5 to 10 minutes.
7. 7
   Pull the meat off the bones. The turkey meat is delicious served with your favorite sauce over noodles or rice. You can also add it to a casserole or soup.

Method 4

Method 4 of 4:

Boiling Turkey Legs

1. 1
   Place the turkey legs in a large stockpot. Make sure it's big enough to comfortably hold all of the drumsticks you want to cook.
2. 2
   Cover the drumsticks with water or chicken broth. Fill the pot to within a few inches of the top of the rim, rather than right up to the edge. The drumsticks should be completely submerged.
3. 3
   Season the water or broth. Add a teaspoon (6 g) of salt, a half teaspoon (1 g) of pepper, and any other seasonings you desire. The seasoned water will penetrate the turkey meat to flavor it as it cooks.
4. 4
   Boil the turkey legs for about 60 minutes. Bring the liquid to a rolling boil, then reduce it slightly to a low boil that won't splash. After an hour, insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the meat. The turkey legs are ready when the internal temperature reaches 180 °F (82 °C).
5. 5
   Drain the turkey legs and let them cool. Pour them over a colander to drain out the water, then let the meat cool for about 10 minutes before you try to handle it.
6. 6
   Remove the skin and pick off the meat. Be careful to make sure small bones are removed. Use the meat to make barbecue, soup, or a casserole.

Expert Q&A

• Question

  How do I braise turkey legs?

  Jennifer Levasseur

  Personal Chef

  Expert Answer

  You can follow the same instructions as you would for coq au vin, but instead, sub in turkey legs. This ensures you have delicious, fall-off-the-bone turkey meat.
• Question

  When temperature do I bake it in a fan oven?

  Community Answer

  If there is only a conventional baking temperature and no fan forced temperature, fan forced will be about 20 degrees less than whatever the conventional temperature is, so if it says bake in a conventional oven at 400 degrees, it'll be 380 degrees for fan-forced ovens.
• Question

  How long do I cook frozen turkey legs?

  Community Answer

  Thaw before cooking so that you can reach the proper safe internal temperature. Thawing overnight in the fridge is the safest method for poultry, but if you need to you can also thaw the legs in a bowl of cold water.

See more answers

Warnings

• Don’t rinse raw turkey, since doing so could spread harmful bacteria around your kitchen. The best way to kill any bacteria in your turkey is to cook it thoroughly.

Things You'll Need

• Roasting pan, grill, large stockpot or slow cooker
• Meat thermometer
• Turkey baster or large spoon

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