Freezer Friendly Honey Mustard Drumsticks

Chicken is always a great option for dinner. And when it comes to baking chicken, drumsticks are a delicious choice. On top of being quick to bake, chicken legs are packed with flavor. And when you top them with a flavorful herb sauce, you have a delicious dinner that everyone in the family will love. This freezer-friendly recipe for honey mustard drumsticks is going to be a meal planning favorite!

If you’re fond of drumsticks, you’ll want to also check out our Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Drumsticks. They are a favourite around here.

Honey Mustard Drumsticks Recipe

Ingredients:

• 12 chicken drumsticks (about 2 ½ pounds)
• 1/4 cup honey, melted
• 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons grainy Dijon mustard
• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon Herbes de Provence
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Freezing instructions:

1. Place the chicken legs in a large resealable freezer bag.
2. Add the honey, cider vinegar, Dijon mustard, garlic, Herbes de Provence, salt, and pepper to the bag.
3. Squish the bag to combine the ingredients and coat the drumsticks in the sauce. Open the bag slightly, then press out the remaining air and reseal.
4. Place the bag in the freezer until ready to eat.

Serving instructions:

1. When you’re ready to prepare your drumsticks, thaw the chicken legs in the refrigerator.
2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
3. Place the drumsticks in a single layer in a 9×13 baking pan. Pour all the remaining sauce from bag onto chicken.
4. Bake for 20 minutes, then remove the pan from the oven and baste with the sauce. Return to the oven and cook for an additional 25 minutes. 

Are Drumsticks the Same as Chicken Legs?

If you want to be technical, chicken legs and drumsticks aren’t exactly the same – although the two words are often used interchangeably. Technically, a whole chicken leg is made up of both the thigh and the drumstick. But while a drumstick is just part of a chicken leg, most people use the words drumstick and chicken leg to mean the same thing.

Can You Freeze Fresh Drumsticks?

Freezing fresh chicken – including chicken legs or drumsticks – is a simple way to prepare make-ahead dinners for your family. That’s because it’s so easy to freeze fresh drumsticks and cook them later. Just follow these simple steps for freezing fresh chicken legs:

1. Remove the chicken from the original packaging. Transferring the chicken from the original package will help prevent freezer burn and make adding sauces and seasonings easier.
2. Transfer to a freezer-friendly container. Freezer bags are a great option for saving space in your freezer. But you can transfer the chicken to any freezer-friendly container, including airtight plastic containers, glass baking dishes, or aluminum baking pans.
3. Add sauce or seasoning. While you can freeze your drumsticks plain, adding some flavor to your chicken before freezing is simple. And once you mix the sauce or seasoning on your chicken, you instantly have a main dish ready to be baked! The sauce will serve as a marinade for your chicken, adding flavor to the meat while it freezes.
4. Cover and freeze. If you’re storing your chicken legs in a freezer bag, simply remove the excess air from the bag and seal it. Otherwise, cover the dish with the included lid or wrap it in plastic wrap to seal and protect the chicken.
5. Thaw before cooking. When you’re ready to prepare your chicken legs, remove the package from the freezer and transfer it to the refrigerator to safely thaw the chicken. This will take up to nine hours, so it’s a good idea to move the frozen chicken to the fridge the night before you plan on cooking the drumsticks.

Can Drumsticks Be Cooked from Frozen?

While your chicken drumsticks can be frozen raw, they need to be thawed before you start baking them. Cooking drumsticks from frozen isn’t recommended because it can be difficult to evenly cook the chicken when it’s frozen. While the outside of the chicken legs may look done, the inside could still be raw.

Instead of trying to cook your chicken from frozen, make sure to allow plenty of time for your drumsticks to thaw before baking them or cooking them in the slow cooker.

How to Get Crispy Baked Drumsticks

One of the best parts about eating drumsticks is enjoying the crispy skin on the outside of the chicken legs. But it can be difficult to get that crispy texture when you’re baking the chicken legs in the oven or cooking them in a crockpot.

If you’re hoping to get your honey mustard drumsticks extra crispy, the easiest way to add a crunch to your chicken legs is with the broiler. When cooking your drumsticks in the oven, simply turn the broiler on and cook the chicken legs under the broiler for 5 to 7 minutes.

But if you’re using your slow cooker to cook the chicken legs, you’ll need to transfer your drumsticks to a baking dish after they’re finished cooking in the crockpot. After that, you can cook your drumsticks under the broiler for 5 to 7 minutes.

Either way, it’s a good idea to keep an eye on the chicken legs as they’re broiling. They can quickly burn, so it’s important to watch the chicken closely at this point in the recipe to ensure your drumsticks don’t overcook.

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Honey Mustard Drumsticks

Prep Time

7 mins

Cook Time

45 mins

 

Course: Main Course

Keyword: air fryer, chicken

Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 12 chicken drumsticks about 2 ½ pounds
• 1/4 cup honey melted
• 2 Tbsp. cider vinegar
• 2 Tbsp. grainy Dijon mustard
• 1-2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 tsp. Herbes de Provence
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper

Instructions

Assembly instructions:

1. Place the chicken legs in a large resealable freezer bag.
2. Add the honey, cider vinegar, Dijon mustard, garlic, Herbes de Provence, salt, and pepper to the bag.
3. Squish to combine. Open the bag slightly, then press out the remaining air and reseal.
4. Freeze.

Cooking instructions:

1. When you’re ready to prepare your drumsticks, thaw the chicken legs in the refrigerator.
2. Preheat the oven to 400°.
3. Place the drumsticks in a single layer in a 9x13 baking pan. Pour all the remaining sauce from bag onto chicken.
4. Bake for 20 minutes, then remove the pan from the oven and baste with the sauce. Return to the oven and cook for an additional 25 minutes.

5. Alternatively, cook in air fryer. Thaw and preheat air fryer to 380°. Be careful not to crowd drumsticks in the air fryer. Cook for 20 minutes at 380°, turning once, then raise temp to 400° for 5 minutes to crisp up.