Hey Smokers and welcome to my post where we will run through my Traeger smoked chicken drumsticks recipe and cooking guide. As you may or may not know, this site is all about cooking on my Traeger Pro 22 Pellet Smoker and seeing where we can take things. And today, we are looking at a smoked alternative to chicken wings as we focus on the leg!
Now I have to admit that chicken drumsticks are not something that we eat a lot of in my household. And to be honest, when I was at the butcher, I was all about getting some wings for some sport watching action. However my son picked up a packet of the drumsticks and asked why I hadn’t done them in the smoker.
So here we are….
Traeger Smoked Chicken Drumsticks: What You’ll Need
Ok, so below is what I used to smoke me some Traeger chicken drumsticks on the old pellet smoker:
Ingredients
- 12 chicken drumsticks
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Some dry rub of your choice (I used a simple rub created for chicken but as always – you do you!)
- Your favorite BBQ sauce (optional, for glazing) – an Asian style sauce would also work well here
Check out my: Traeger 0-400 Chicken Wings – Recipe and Cooking Guide
The Smoking Process
This is what I did and when:
1. Prepare the Drumsticks
- Clean and Prep: Rinse the chicken drumsticks under cold water and pat them dry with paper towels.
- Coat with Oil: Rub the drumsticks with olive oil to help the rub stick and to create a little crunch on the skin.
- Add your rub: Coat each drumstick evenly with your chosen rub.
For a deeper flavor, you can refrigerate the seasoned drumsticks for 1–2 hours
2. Preheat the Pellet Smoker
- Set your pellet smoker to 250°F/121°C and load it with wood pellets. Hickory, apple, or cherry pellets work well with chicken.
3. Smoke the Drumsticks
- Place the Drumsticks in the Smoker: Arrange the drumsticks on the smoker grates, leaving space between each piece for even smoking.
- Smoke Slowly: Smoke them at 250°F/121°C for about 2 hours or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F/75°C.
- Rest and Serve: Remove the drumsticks from the smoker and let them rest for 5–10 minutes. This allows the juices to redistribute and keeps the meat tender.
For a BBQ finish, brush the drumsticks with your favorite BBQ sauce during the last 15 minutes of smoking. Let the sauce caramelize slightly. I did this on a couple just to test the difference.
My cook: I started checking internal temps of the drumsticks after about an hour until they reached the required temp of 165°F (75°C) – which took just over an hour and 45 minutes. At this point, I removed them from the smoker and let them rest for around 15 minutes.
4. Serve
Traditional accompaniments include roasted vegetables, smoked corn on the cob, a fresh coleslaw, or a baked potato with a fresh salad. We ate ours with some Mexican style rice.
My Results
So, as an outline of the above, drumsticks on the smoker are really really good – that is the technical term of course. The outside skin had a little crunch and as I pulled them off right on temperature, they were really moist inside.
The smokiness of flavor was a little weak which is probably to be expected due to the fact that one, the drumsticks were not on the smoker for that long, and two, the skin on the chicken would possibly deflect some of the smoke. A stronger flavored pellet choice may assist here then.
And finally, I did coat a couple with BBQ sauce about half an hour before they were removed from the smoker. This was a real winner and something I would highly recommend here as well. And seeing that this is chicken, you could add any flavored sauce that you like at this point.
Tips
- Keep the smoker lid closed as much as possible to maintain a consistent temperature.
- Chicken can dry out quickly so use a meat thermometer to ensure the drumsticks are cooked to perfection.
- Chicken drumsticks are quite oily and release a lot of juices when cooked which can be a fire hazard in smokers. I highly recommend cleaning and degreasing your smoker before cooking any type of chicken on a smoker.
Conclusion
So there you have it, my recipe and cooking guide for some Traeger chicken legs. I hope it has been of assistance but as usual, if you have any questions please do not hesitate to reach out by commenting below. I would also love to hear of your own experiences, preferences or suggestions here as well.
Are there any other products you have been looking at but want to know more about? If so, please comment below and I will do my best to get some details for you.
Until next time
Have fun and get smoking!
Paul
How I Turned My Smoking Passion Into A Full Time Income
Hey there! I’m Paul, and like you, I started as a BBQ beginner with just a Traeger and a dream. Now I’m helping others turn their smoking passion into a sustainable online business.
