Herb Roasted Chicken Drumsticks & Potatoes

At a glance

What stands out: Roasted chicken drumsticks, flavorful with herbs and spices, are nestled in a bed of cubed sweet potatoes, white potatoes, and onions in this straightforward sheet pan dinner. This is a go-to weeknight recipe; simply add a salad or green vegetable and you’re golden!

How long it takes: 45 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: large bowl, sheet pan
Servings: 4

Sheet Pan Chicken Drumsticks

Reliable for a weeknight meal. This crispy baked one pan chicken dinner is lighter and a cinch to make. The chicken is juicy and flavorful with a straightforward herb rub. Two kinds of potatoes, sweet potatoes and russets, roast right along with the chicken and melt in your mouth. Our husband thinks it’s a standby chicken ever.

Chicken drumsticks are economical, flavorful, and fun to eat. We love our recipe for straightforward air fryer drumsticks and soy and honey glazed drumsticks are finger lickin’ good. Grilled chicken shawarma drumsticks with from-scratch tzatziki (cucumber yogurt sauce) are tasty when it’s grilling weather.

A one pan dinner! When we're wanting a convenient one pan dinner (and when isn’t it a good time for that)? We'll take these roasted chicken drumsticks with potatoes any day! Pick up a package of drumsticks the next time you shop and look forward to a great dinner.

Liz Said:

“Great recipe, especially for fall. We did a mix of thighs and legs with fresh herbs from our garden. Rich and a huge hit!”

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What goes in

• Chicken Drumsticks: If you prefer, substitute thighs or breasts. Keep in mind cooking time will change slightly.
• Potatoes: We like a combination of sweet potatoes and russet potatoes but you can use all of one or the other if you prefer. Try Yukon gold potatoes, baby potatoes, or red potatoes. They all work great in this recipe, too.
• Onion: A yellow onion is fine but red onions, Vidalia onions, or halved shallots all work as well.
• Seasonings: This recipe uses a combination of fresh herbs and warm spices to give so much flavor to both the chicken and the potatoes. You’ll need fresh rosemary and thyme (check out the recipe notes if you only have dried), and then from your spice cupboard, you’ll need paprika, garlic powder, salt and pepper. You can substitute our all purpose seasoning to make it even easier.
• Olive Oil: Olive oil ties everything together and helps the herbs and spices stick to the chicken and potatoes. Avocado oil also works well here.

How it comes together

Preheat the oven. This is a straightforward sheet pan chicken dinner. Get a nice big rimmed sheet pan out and preheat the oven to 450°F. You want that oven good and hot to get crispy results.

Prep the veggies. Simply dice the potatoes and an onion and put them into a big bowl with a tasty spice/herb/olive oil mixture. Toss the veggies around until they’re coated and spread them in the sheet pan.

Prep the chicken. Put seven or eight drumsticks in the same bowl, and coat them with the same oil mixture. Nestle the drumsticks on top of the potatoes and stick the pan in the oven. Wash your hands and let the oven do the rest of the work. Your job is pretty much done.

Roast for 30 minutes. Give the potatoes a stir once during the cooking time so they brown evenly. It isn’t necessary to flip the drumsticks but you can if you want to. The chicken is done in about thirty minutes, or when an instant read thermometer reads 165°F. Make sure the tip of thermometer is inserted in the meatiest part of the leg and not touching the bone. Juices should run clear, not pink or red, at this temperature.

Serve. Clap your hands, dinner is served! Serve a simple green arugula salad or a vinegar based coleslaw for a nice contrast of flavors.

Change It Up

• Chicken legs and thighs can be used interchangeably. However, if they are connected (leg quarters), the chicken will take longer to roast, about forty minutes. We don’t recommend using leg quarters for this recipe because the potatoes tend to burn with the longer roasting time.
• Roast a whole chicken. Prefer to roast a whole chicken with all the fixings? Try this fail-proof roasted chicken. Oven roasted bone-in chicken breasts are a great alternative, too.
• Choose your potato. Use all sweet potatoes, or all russet potatoes, if you prefer. Yukon gold potatoes, baby potatoes, or red potatoes are good choices, as well.
• Change up the seasoning. Try different mixtures of spices or herbs for a different flavor profile on your roasted chicken drumsticks. Chili powder, five spice powder, or smoked paprika are good choices. We often use our all purpose seasoning.
• Try pork instead. If you happen to be more in the mood for pork chops instead of chicken drumsticks, try sheet pan pork chops with sweet potatoes and apples.

Make Ahead Ideas

If you have extra time in the morning, prepare the potatoes ahead of time and submerge them in water. Dry them thoroughly before proceeding with the recipe. Wet = steam = not crispy.

Keeping leftovers

Refrigerate: Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator tightly covered for two to three days.

Reheat: For best results, reheat in a single layer in the oven at 350°F for ten minutes or so until the drumsticks are heated through. You can reheat single portions in the microwave until warm. The chicken and potatoes won’t be as crispy with this method, and the chicken may dry out more.

Free Meal Plan

Interested in a weekly meal plan that includes this sheet pan recipe? Take a look at our Meal Plan #3 or Meal Plan #31. You’ll find a wholesome recipe for each weekday plus a categorized grocery list. Let us do the planning for you this week!

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Sheet Pan Chicken Dinners

• Yield: 4
• Prep: 15 minutes
• Cook: 30 minutes
• Total: 45 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, roughly chopped (see note #1)
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, roughly chopped
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 medium sweet potatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces ( 1 ½ lbs.)
• 1 medium russet potato, cut into 1-inch pieces ( ½ -¾ lb.)
• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 8 chicken drumsticks, about 3 pounds

Method

1. Preheat oven to 450°F.
2. In a small bowl, combine rosemary, thyme, paprika, garlic powder, black pepper, and salt.
3. In large bowl, toss potatoes and onion with olive oil and half of the spice/herb mixture. Spread evenly in large rimmed sheet pan, about 13 x 18 inches.
4. In same bowl, toss drumsticks with remaining spice mixture. Position the drumsticks on top, or nestle them into the potatoes, whichever you prefer.
5. Roast for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and stir potatoes. Return pan to oven and roast for an additional 10 minutes, or until an instant read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the leg reads 165°F.
6. Serve immediately.

Notes

Using dried herbs: If you don’t have fresh herbs, substitute dried herbs but use half as much (1 teaspoon crushed rosemary, ½ teaspoon dried thyme). Feel free to vary the spices and/or herbs if you’d like a different flavor profile.

Pro tip: Try to cut the potatoes into fairly uniform ¾ inch cubes. Cubes that are approximately the same size will roast more evenly and get done at the same time.

Chicken: If you prefer, substitute chicken thighs or roast a combination of thighs and legs.

Storage & reheating: Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator tightly covered for two to three days. Reheat in a single layer in the oven at 350°F for ten minutes or until the drumsticks are heated through. Single portions can be microwaved but the chicken and potatoes won’t be as crispy and the chicken may dry out more.