I find that many modern BBQ recipes place a lot of emphasis on special sauces, special ingredients or ludicrously lengthy lists of spices. Sometimes those recipes reward you handsomely, sometimes not so much. As for me, I like simple recipes and the recipes that provide clean and balanced flavors. I think simple recipes come to perfection the closest, like this recipe for grilled chicken legs that I created in an effort to find a very quick but very tasty grilled chicken leg recipe.
Secrets to making the best grilled chicken legs
This recipe is an improved version of the old one I posted on this page. There were two obvious reasons for the change. One is that the recipe had brown sugar and it made it almost impossible to properly brown the skin without some burning here and there. Not a huge problem but I’d rather avoid it if I could. The other one is aesthetics and visual appeal. Somehow plain dry rub without any oil does not look so appetizing on grilled chicken legs. Here is the picture of the product of the old recipe, see the difference? So, in a nutshell, brown sugar is out and is substituted by dark soy sauce for some sweetness and color. Olive oil is in for better browning and visual appeal.
A quick rub to flavorize chicken legs
The key phrase here is ‘quick’. I am a big fan of marinating chicken, because it works and helps attain deep, balanced flavor profiles. If you’ve tried my Killer chicken thigh marinade you know what I am talking about. But, despite what some recipes claim, marination needs at least 2-4 hours to be effective, and preferably longer, like overnight and up to 24 hours. That’s not always possible. More often than not I don’t plan ahead and tend to look for a quick recipe that does not require a lot of prep time.
In this recipe all it takes is 5 minutes to prepare the rub and apply it on the chicken, which is immediately ready to go on the grill. This is it! All you have to do is mix together some granulated garlic and onions, black pepper and salt, add some dark soy sauce for sweetness and some cayenne for a little kick, rub the chicken with the spice mix and throw on the grill.
Then, magically, the cheapest part of the chicken becomes some of the best ‘que you’ve ever had. I think what makes these grilled chicken legs so special is the balance of sweet and salty, subtle pepper, garlic and onion flavors and a nice kick from the cayenne pepper. There are no overpowering ingredients, and the flavors are clean.
Getting the crispy and caramelized skin
Nicely caramelized and crispy skin is the icing on the cake. It’s the best part. You get it by grilling at a fairly high temperature of about 300F-350F at the grate level. Lower and you won’t get proper skin crispness. Higher and you will burn the chicken skin.
Specifics are important in getting the right result. I don’t like guesswork and like the simplicity of using a good BBQ thermometer. It makes grilling a joy, without any stress. I even use my BBQ thermometer when I roast chicken in the oven.
Meat temperature
The final important part is the internal meat temperature. USDA recommends cooking chicken to 165F internal temperature. A lot of recipes I’ve seen blindly follow that advice. For example, cooking a chicken breast to 165F makes a perfectly cooked breast. Cooking a wing or a leg to to that temperature makes for a juicy, yet stringy and tough piece of meat, that feels under-cooked when cooked to 165F.
Chicken wings and legs are much more forgiving. I like them ‘overcooked’. For legs, in my opinion, 180F-190F is more appropriate as it gives you tender, fall-off-the-bone meat that is still very juicy.
Looking for more great chicken leg quarters recipes? Check these out:
Ingredients
- 4 chicken legs drumsticks with thighs attached
- 1 tsp kosher salt plus more to taste
- 1 Tbsp dark soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp granulated garlic
- 1 tsp granulated onions
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper plus more for a stronger kick - see my notes
Instructions
- Start preheating the grill to medium high, about 300F-350F at the grate level.
- Meanwhile, combine all of the ingredients except chicken in a medium bowl and mix well.
- Pat dry the chicken legs with paper towel, then evenly apply the rub all over the chicken legs. The rub should stick to the chicken fairly easily without adding any oil. If not, rub the chicken legs with a small amount of oil then apply the rub. Set aside and let sit at room temperature until the grill is ready.
- Brush the grill grate with a little bit of oil to prevent chicken legs from sticking. Place the legs on the grill, skin side down, and close the lid. Grill covered for about 30 minutes, flipping every 8-10 minutes and moving around to account for hot spots and ensure even browning. The legs are ready when the chicken legs are nicely browned and the internal temperature is reading about 180F-190F.
Notes
1 tsp - medium kick
1 1/2 tsp plus more - a lot of kick.
AB
Are these cooked on direct or indirect heat if I am using a gas grill?
victor
Direct heat. Like it much better that way.
victor
I sear without oil but adding some won’t hurt if only add a bot of smoke.
Eleni Pankowski
Super easy and super delicious. My family loved it.
Patty
It was so easy and delicious. Everyone hates my cooking boy did I surprise them with this chicken. They want it all the time now. Thank you can’t wait to try more of your recipes.
Susan
Most delicious. I’m wondering about adapting it to a spatchcocked/butterflied chicken or even rotisserie?
victor
It Will work great, I tried several times.
Mike
This was amazing! I marinated the chicken for a half-hour before putting on my UDS and my family loved it.
Sherry
WOW ! This was amazing! I’m making it again tonight. Such a nice break from a heavy BBQ sauce. Thanks
victor
You are welcome.
Sharon
This was delicious!! I did double the recipe the 2nd time I made it and did let it marinate for a couple of hours for greater flavor. Will definitely be one of my new go-to recipes. Thanks!
Diana Hughes
The best grilled chicken I have ever made!
Extremely moist and tender and crisp skin.
The only way I’ll grill chicken again!
Chris R
Great flavor! Had to triple the recipe for a few more people. Worked great!
Bart
Is this a dry rub or wet. Seems to me the soy would keep this from being a dry rub.
Recipe doesn’t specify where the soy is comes into play. What I am I missing here
with how to properly use the soy in this recipe?
victor
Wet since it has soy sauce and oil in it. Just mix all of the ingredients except the chicken in a bowl (see picture in the post above), then apply on the chicken and grill.
Paul
Follow the directions closely and you’ll have an amazing chicken dinner. The flavor is great, the chicken is moist, and the skin is perfectly crispy.
Luchiano
This is bar-non the best & quickest way to prepare great tasting drums and thighs-Thanks! We use this on both que & in oven. One suggestion is to pierce the skins on the chicken prior to brushing on marinade this allows oils to drain crisping the skin more. We also had to play around while using oven between bake & convection roast to obtain correct crisp. Also 190 F internal gives the best pull of the bone doneness.
#flavour #simplicity #cravingtasty
L. Corrigan
Burlington Ontario
victor
Happy to hear that you liked my recipe, Luchiano.
Christopher Lupold
I’m confused…does the tbsp oil go in the rub? Or.just for grates?
victor
Chris, it’s for the grates only.
MikeMJP
I used this recipe and adopted it to my Breville air fryer toaster oven. 10-12 minutes at 390 degrees air fryer setting. flip over and 10-14 minutes at 390 degrees. I’ve also Cooke on my gas grill. The air fryer was as good or better.
victor
I use my air fryer a lot lately, I actually bought a second one so I can cook more at the same time. Love the taste of the food that comes out of it.
Mike Pallone
This is now my favorite go-to recipe for chicken leg quarters, thighs or drumsticks. I have a big easy SRG Grill and this recipe come out fantastic on it.
Nicole
Ha! Just realized I didn’t start from the beginning when I “reread” so I get it now. I had actually read it all before making the recipe. Unfortunately I totally forgot by the time I was done.
victor
No worries. Enjoy!
Nicole
Hi, you say add some sugar but I’m not sure how much to add. I made the recipe with the ingredients in the list which didn’t list sugar and didn’t catch the sugar part until after I finished cooking and reread your intro. I liked this recipe and would like to try again with the sugar next time.
Richard Lynch
Thanks for the recipe…perfect!!
victor
You are very welcome!
Jo
Hey there, these look great! Could you smoke these at a lower temp and then just put them in the oven/broil to get the skin browned? New to smoking.
victor
Yes, you can. You can finish by broiling, pan searing or grilling over high direct heat.
Jo
Thanks!
Marek
Tried these grilled chicken legs today and was quite impressed. Simple recipe yet the taste was anything but simple. The crispy skin perfectly contrasted the juicy, fall-off-the-bone meat. I did mine on the egg as well, I think that makes a difference.