Paprika Chicken Legs – Resist the temptation of cooking the same thing over and over and make these Baked Garlic Paprika Chicken Legs. It’s packed with great flavors from garlic, onion, cayenne pepper, herbs and of course, paprika. It’ll be a new family favorite easy dish!
The whole family will totally enjoy these baked Paprika Chicken Legs and it comes together quickly. If chicken is on your mind this week, put this one-pot low-carb meal on the menu.
All you need is a few pantry staple spices coupled with herbs on hand. For an added bonus, you can throw in some vegetables in the roasting pan and have a delicious one-pot meal ready in no time. How easy is that? You’ll have a complete meal that looks as impressive as it tastes.
What is paprika?
Paprika is a deep orange-red ground spice made from dried fruits of the larger and sweeter varieties of Capsicum annum called bell pepper or sweet peppers. It is commonly used as a garnish on soups, stews or appetizers, but its flavor is truly released when its is heated through. Paprika is also named as the fourth most consumed spiced in the world.
Is paprika spicy?
There’s not just one variety of paprika; thus its flavor could vary depending on where it’s from and the type of peppers used. Thus the flavors could range from sweet to mild to red hot.
Popular varieties consist of plain paprika, Spanish paprika and Hungarian paprika. If you’re unsure on which suits you, you can start with the one that only says “paprika” on the label as it is neither sweet nor hot and is perfect as a garnish for eggs. Hungarian paprika on the other hand has some degree of rich, sweet red pepper flavor. Those you see usually in the grocery store marketed as the Hungarian sweet paprika is sweet and slightly pungent.
For this recipe I used a smoked paprika which is a type of Spanish paprika used to achieve a deep, smoky and woodsy, earthy touch of flavor.
If you want a really crisp skin, use a paper towel to wipe the chicken dry. Looking for carbs to pair this with? Then try pairing it with this aromatic Green Beans and Bacon. If using fresh vegetables be sure to blanch before adding so you can have really tender vegetables.
Enjoy!
Watch How to Make It
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Paprika Chicken Legs
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Ingredients
- 3 -3 ½ pound chicken drumsticks
- 1 ¼ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon white pepper
- 1 teaspoon bouillon powder (you may replace with salt)
- 1/4 cup canola oil
- 4-6 garlic cloves minced
- 2-3 Tablespoons fresh herbs (thyme, parsley, oregano)
- 1 Tablespoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
- 2 Tablespoons onion powder
Instructions
- Wash chicken legs dry, rub with salt , white pepper and bouillon powder and set aside
- In a small pan set over medium low heat, combine canola oil, minced garlic, fresh herbs, smoked paprika and cayenne pepper . Stir for about 30 seconds or 1 minute. Let this mixture sit for a little bit about 5 minutes.
- When ready to bake, preheat oven to 425°.
- Place the chicken in a large bowl, toss with garlic paprika spice mix, then sprinkle with the onion powder.
- Line a baking pan with foil; top with a wire rack. Arrange chicken legs out in a single layer.
- Bake chicken legs until cooked through and skin is crispy, about 40-45 minutes
- If desired rotate chicken halfway through-roughly 25 minutes. And continue cooking until chicken is fully cooked and juice from the chicken runs clear.
- Remove and let it cool slightly before serving .
Tips & Notes:
Nutrition Information:
How to Make Baked Chicken Legs
Wash chicken legs and dry, rub with salt, white pepper and bouillon powder and set aside. In a small pan, set over medium low heat, combine canola oil, minced garlic, fresh herbs, smoked paprika and cayenne pepper . Stir for about 30 seconds or 1 minute. Let this mixture sit for a little bit about 5 minutes.
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 425°. Place the chicken in a large bowl, toss with garlic paprika spice mix, then sprinkle with the onion powder.
Optional: You can lay out baby carrots and green beans on the foiled baking pan just underneath the rack to roast alongside the chicken.
Line a baking pan with foil; top with a wire rack. Arrange chicken legs out in a single layer. Bake chicken legs until cooked through and skin is crispy, about 40-45 minute.
If desired, rotate chicken halfway through-roughly 25 minutes. And continue cooking until chicken is fully cooked and juice from the chicken runs clear. Remove and let it cool slightly before serving.
Lora says
I absolutely love this recipe and so does my entire family! I have made it several times now but I have one quick question…my garlic and parsley always seems to burn on the chicken. I haven’t noticed any other comments that this is happening to them. What am I doing wrong?! Help!
ImmaculateBites says
Shake off any excess garlic and herbs on the chicken before baking. Or just smashed the garlic and infuse the oil with it . Another option would be to lower your oven temp.
Carol says
Seriously, this was delicious I couldn’t wait for my husband to get home and started eating I said “just one piece ” but eat more, I forgot the vegetables and rice and we devoured the chicken it was spiced I add a bit more of cayenne because we love spiced food and this recipe was delicious. Thank you so much!
ImmaculateBites says
My pleasure! Thanks for taking the time to let me know.
Alyssa Juan says
Hey! I just started a food blog and I was looking for a easy chicken recipe to go with a salad that I was going to post about. I found your recipe and it was PERFECT! It was so delicious and flavorful. My family and I loved it. I ended up linking this post to mine. I hope you don’t mind! You can check it out here. http://serve-with-rice.com/spinach-arugula-salad/ Anyway, love your food!!
ImmaculateBites says
Glad to hear it was a success. Thanks for letting me know.
Kigrape says
This was delicious! A bit too spicy for my kids, but my husband, my sister and I loved it. I didn’t have smoked paprika so I did some researching for a substitute. It’s actually a weakness of mine. Lol. I find a recipe that looks good and then adjust it so I can use ingredients I already have on hand. My husband is always telling me I need to try a recipe the way it’s written before substituting. Haha! But I haven’t learned to yet. 😉 Anyway, I found this site: http://www.pepperscale.com/smoked-paprika-substitute/ Here I found I could replace the smoked paprika with chili powder and cumin or paprika and cumin (2:1 ratio). So I added 1 tsp chili powder, 1 tsp paprika & 1 tsp cumin. It worked great for me, although I do now want to get some smoked paprika and try this recipe again. Thank you for this!
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome! That’s the beauty of recipes – it serves as a guide – not rocket science. Do what works for you Girl. So glad to hear it worked out well for you. Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us.
Gay says
Made it and was a winner!
I didn’t have canola oil so i used vegetable oil instead .
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome! Glad to hear you enjoyed it.
Sara says
Absolutely Delicious!!!! Everyone in my family loved this meal. Very easy to make. This meal is definitely a keeper. I will definitely be cooking this meal again.
ImmaculateBites says
Fantastic! Thanks for taking the time to let me know.
Zaida Irwin says
I will be 55 years old and have never cooked a meal all by myself. I know, hard to believe, right. I got married for the ver first time last year at 54 years old. My husband is a fabulous cook and he always cooks for us. Now that I’m married I thought it would be nice to cook for him at least one a month. I have started to help him out in the kitchen (sous chef) but tonight while he is at the gym I made the Paprika Garlic chicken (it’s in the oven nos and smells amazing). It’s my very first recipi I made on my very own. Can’t wait for my hubby and I to try the chicken about 30 minutes from now.
ImmaculateBites says
Hi Zaida! You picked a great recipe to start with. Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts with us.
Trudy Vanderhall says
Hi
Will be making this again soon. Your recipe is on point thank you so much. Next weekend I will do Jamaican brown stew chicken chicken.
Originally I wanted to do your recipe for Jamaican brown stew chicken but chose to do this recipe instead, do to not having all the ingredients. Next weekend I must do the Jamaican brown stew chicken chicken.
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome! You are going to love that too! Thank you for taking the time to let me know.
Stacy says
Very flavorful. My family loved these drumsticks and the veggies.
Dave says
The recipe calls for 1/4 cup of oil. Once the herbs, spices, garlic, are cooked in it do you pour the whole mix on the chicken or just scoop out the ingredients. Also when you let it sit after cooking, does that mean leave it sitting in the oil? I love chicken and this looks like a much better recipe than using shake and bake. I’ve already done your Jamaican Curry Chicken and loved it. I want this to turn out right that’s why I’m asking about this.
Ashley says
I’m trying this recipe tonite!
ImmaculateBites says
You are going to love it !!!
Debbie says
I’ve made this several times now and my kids absolutely love it! They polish it off and go back for seconds. Really tasty!
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome!!! Thanks for the feedback.
Laura S says
Made this for dinner last night – delicious!!! A hit with the whole family, even the picky 3 and 4 year olds 🙂 I used cilantro as I had some on hand that needed to be used up. I will most definitely make this again. Thanks for an easy-to-follow recipe and deliciously flavorful dish!!
Kris says
I’ve made this 3 times and this last time I let the legs marinate for awhile and it was awesome. This is the best chicken leg recipe yet.
ImmaculateBites says
Woah! High compliment! Thanks kris! So glad you loved it.
donesha says
can you use skinless chicken legs?
ImmaculateBites says
You can. However, chicken legs with skin is best.