Grilled Chicken Legs
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My grilled chicken legs cook low and slow on the cooler side of the grill, get brushed with BBQ sauce halfway through, and finish with a quick sear for crispy, caramelized skin. It takes about 10 minutes to prep, and about 35 minutes to cook, and the dark meat comes out juicy with that sweet, smoky BBQ flavor every single time.
We grill a lot of chicken at my house once summer hits. Sometimes it’s my grilled chicken thighs or grilled chicken wings, but I grab drumsticks the most since they’re cheap and so hard to mess up.
These grilled chicken legs are the easiest ones I make. The grill and the BBQ sauce do almost all the work for me.
PS: Got hot dog people in your house? My grilled hot dogs cook right next to these.
Table of Contents
Samantha’s Recipe Highlights
A 10-Minute Prep Shortcut – Pat dry, drizzle with oil, rub with spices. That’s the whole prep! The chicken rests while the grill preheats, so any hands-on cooking time is kept to a minimum.
Two Kinds of Heat, One Perfect Result – The cooler side of the grill cooks the chicken legs on the grill gently so the juices stay locked in the dark meat. The hot side gets its turn at the very end, just long enough to crisp the skin and stamp on grill marks.
The Halfway-Mark Sauce Trick – BBQ sauce goes on halfway through the cooking time, not the start. That timing gives the sugars enough heat to caramelize into a sticky glaze without ever sitting over flames long enough to burn.
Setting Up a Hot Side and a Cool Side
This setup is the whole secret to this recipe, so I do it before anything else hits the grill.
For a charcoal grill: Light the coals and pour them onto one side of the grill only. The side with coals underneath is your hot side. The empty side is your cool side, and that’s where the grilled chicken legs spend most of their time.
For a gas grill: Preheat one side to medium heat, about 400-450 degrees F, and leave the other side on low heat.
Either way, clean the grates well before the chicken goes on. Old char grabs onto chicken skin and tears it right off when you flip.
Grilled Chicken Legs Ingredients
- Chicken drumsticks – Let them sit out at room temperature while the grill is preheating. Cold chicken straight from the fridge cooks unevenly, so the outside finishes long before the inside catches up. Room temperature legs cook evenly from end to end, and dark meat’s extra fat keeps these grilled chicken legs juicy even if they get a few extra minutes of heat.
- BBQ sauce – The sugars in the sauce build that sticky, caramelized glaze. I usually grab a sweet and smoky bottle, or stir together my 2-ingredient BBQ sauce when I’m out. For a spicy version, my homemade buffalo sauce or hot sauce works great, and swapping honey in for some of the BBQ sauce makes the legs extra caramelized.
- Olive oil and spice rub – The oil is the glue. Drizzle it on the chicken legs first so the rub sticks to the skin instead of falling off on the grates, then coat every side evenly with the spices. I like Slap Ya Mama for its bold kick, but any BBQ rub works, and my homemade blend of onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, salt, and pepper is in the recipe card below.
How to Grill Chicken Legs
Scroll down to the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post for exact measurements and storage tips.
Prep and Season the Drumsticks
I start by patting the drumsticks completely dry with paper towels. This is the step most people skip, and it’s the difference between skin that crisps and skin that steams. Then I drizzle them with olive oil, coat them all over with the rub, and let them sit out for 30 minutes while the grill heats up.
Cook on the Cool Side (The Low and Slow Phase)
The drumsticks go on the cool side first, lid closed, for 15-20 minutes. I turn them every so often so no side gets ahead of the others, and I point the thickest part of each leg toward the hot side so the meatiest section gets the most heat. This slow start cooks the chicken legs on the grill all the way through before the outside ever gets a chance to burn.
How Long to Grill Chicken Legs
Once they’ve had their first 15-20 minutes, I brush them all over with BBQ sauce and keep grilling until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F. That usually takes about 15 more minutes, and the final sear adds another 5-7, so plan on 35-45 minutes start to finish. Bigger, meatier drumsticks land at the longer end of that range. Gas or charcoal, how long to grill chicken legs comes down to the thermometer, not the clock.
Final Sear for Crispy Skin
Right at the end, I move the drumsticks over to the hot side in batches for 5-7 minutes, turning them often. This is where the sauce caramelizes and these grilled chicken legs get their crispy skin and grill marks. It’s my favorite part to watch!
Don’t worry about the temperature climbing past 165 degrees F during the sear. Dark meat is different from chicken breast, and a few extra degrees makes drumsticks more tender, not dried out.
Advanced Troubleshooting
How to Prevent Soggy Chicken Skin
Soggy skin on grilled chicken legs almost always starts before the grill. Any moisture left on the drumsticks turns to steam, and steamed skin stays rubbery no matter what you do later, so pat them dry like you mean it. The second culprit is skipping the sear. The cool side cooks the meat, but only the hot side crisps the skin, so give your grilled chicken drumsticks their full 5-7 minutes over the heat at the end.
Why Sugar-Based Sauces Burn (And How to Stop It)
BBQ sauce is loaded with sugar, and sugar burns fast over an open flame. Brush it on at the start and it turns black before the chicken is even close to done. Brushing at the halfway mark gives the sauce just enough time to thicken into a sticky glaze on your BBQ chicken legs without crossing over from caramelized to charred.
What to Serve with BBQ Chicken Legs
Fresh and Cool Side Dishes
Something cool and crunchy belongs next to grilled chicken legs fresh off the grill.
- Coleslaw is a classic for a reason. All that crunch next to smoky BBQ chicken just works.
- Loaded potato salad is the heartier pick when I’m having a larger summer cookout.
- Watermelon salad or caprese salad keeps the whole meal feeling like summer.
Warm and Savory Pairings
When my family wants comfort food, these all cook inside while the chicken grills outside.
- Crock pot corn on the cob is the lazy trick I swear by. The slow cooker starts before I even light the grill, so a hot side is ready the second the chicken comes off.
- Sweet potato cornbread soaks up extra BBQ sauce like it was made for the job.
- Velveeta mac and cheese disappears before anything else on the table when my kids are around.
- Garlic green beans are the easy green thing on the plate.
Alternative Cooking Methods
If it’s a rainy day or you’re out of propane, this recipe works indoors when grilled chicken legs aren’t an option. My baked chicken legs use the oven’s steady, even heat the same way the covered grill cooks these through gently. And my air fryer chicken legs get that same crackly skin, since the circulating hot air does the job of the final sear.
Storing and Reheating Guide
Leftover grilled chicken legs go straight into an airtight container in the fridge, where they keep for 3-4 days. For longer storage, I wrap them in foil or tuck them into a freezer-safe bag, and they hold up in the freezer for up to 3 months.
The oven is my favorite way to bring grilled chicken drumsticks back to life. About 10-15 minutes at 375 degrees F re-crisps the skin. If the grill is already going for something else, 5-7 minutes over the heat works even faster, just keep turning them.
More Grilling Recipes
If you love these grilled chicken legs, fire up the grill for these next:
BBQ Grilled Chicken Legs
Ingredients
- 8–10 chicken legs
- 1 cup BBQ sauce
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2–3 tablespoons Slap Ya Mama Seasoning, OR for homemade spice rub, see below
Alternate homemade spice rub
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Pat the chicken drumsticks dry with paper towels and place them on a plate or baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and coat them evenly with the dry rub. Let them rest to room temperature while preheating the grill.
- Set up the grill with a hot side and a cool side. On a gas grill, heat one side to medium (400-450 degrees F) and leave the other side on low. On a charcoal grill, pour the lit coals onto one side only.
- Place the drumsticks on the cool side of the grill, cover, and cook for 15-20 minutes, turning occasionally.
- Brush the drumsticks with BBQ sauce. Keep grilling until a meat thermometer reads an internal temperature of 165 degrees F, about 15 more minutes.
- Move the drumsticks in batches to the hot side of the grill for 5-7 minutes, turning them frequently, for crispy skin and a more tender dark meat.
Notes
- For a gas grill, preheat one side to medium heat (400-450 degrees F) and leave the other on low.
- For a charcoal grill, pour the lit coals onto one side only. That side is your hot side, and the empty side is your cool side
Nutrition
This nutrition information is based on the exact products I used in this recipe. Brands and sizes of products could alter exact nutrition and should always be calculated independently.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
Like homemade rub. chick legs are my favorite part of chicken and these are good
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed them, Donna!