Crispy Baked Drumsticks (Faux Fried Chicken)

One of my favorite meals growing up was my mom's fried chicken. I have never made fried chicken myself, because it seems really messy and in general, I tend to shy away from recipes that involve a lot of frying. Also because my husband doesn't like bone-in chicken very much. But I saw this recipe in EatingWell magazine and had to try it. It still involved bone-in chicken, but it's baked instead of fried.

Crispy Baked Drumsticks

Ingredients:

1⅓ cup Panko breadcrumbs

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp salt

10 tsp canola oil

1 large egg

8 chicken drumsticks (about 2 pounds total), skin removed

Directions:

Preheat oven to 475°. Coat a wire rack with cooking spray and set it on a large rimmed baking sheet.

Mix breadcrumbs, paprika, onion powder, and salt in a shallow dish. Drizzle with oil and mash with a fork until the oil is thoroughly incorporated. Lightly beat egg with a fork in another shallow dish. Dip the drumsticks into the egg, then press into the breading mixture until evenly coated on both sides. (Discard any remaining mixture and/or egg.)

Place the chicken on the prepared rack. Bake the chicken until golden and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a drumstick without touching bone registers 165°F, 30 to 40 minutes.

Makes 4 servings, 2 drumsticks each.

These drumsticks are really good. If you are craving fried chicken, they really hit the spot. The coating is not dry at all and I love the seasoning. The only thing I changed was that the original recipe called for dry breadcrumbs, but the Panko makes it so much more crunchy, so I definitely recommend using Panko. Also I only made 6 drumsticks and ran out of breading, so in the recipe above I have doubled the breading ingredients. I would much rather end up with too much than fall short.

While still not the healthiest thing you can eat, these are much better than traditional fried chicken, and I don't feel quite as guilty making or eating them. Here is a comparison of these vs. fried.

Baked Drumsticks: Fried Drumsticks:

Per serving (2 drumsticks) Per serving (2 drumsticks)

Calories: 299 Calories: 431

Fat: 11g (7g sat.) Fat: 27g (7g sat.)

Cholesterol: 131mg Cholesterol: 166mg

Sodium: 510mg Sodium: 755mg

Protein: 29g Protein: 30g

*These amounts are approximate. The nutrition info for the baked is for the original recipe without my alterations and also includes 2 tbsp of a honey-mustard sauce they put with it. But it gives you an idea of the fat and calories you would be saving.

As a final note, I would urge you to err on the side of over-baking these drumsticks. My drumsticks were, apparently, larger than average because it took much longer than the suggested 25-30 minutes. And even then, they weren't quite done after I took them out and I ended up microwaving them to completely finish them. So don't be too eager to take them out no matter how tasty they look! There's nothing less appetizing than underdone chicken.

I will definitely be making these at least a few times this summer. They would be so great with fresh corn on the cob. Mmmm!