Dinnertime shouldn’t be so stressful!

How often do you make it to the end of the day only to start dreading that you now have to cook dinner?! Or as you’re driving home, you start thinking of all the reasons why maybe you should just hit up a drive-thru to save yourself time and energy? NOT SO FAST!

Starting and maintaining healthy habits does take work to elicit change, but it doesn’t have to take over your life or evenings. Dinnertime can still be healthy without being stressful. And you can save yourself time and energy WITHOUT going through the drive-thru!

My goal is to create recipes that Make. Your. Life. Easier. And this recipe for Easy Oven Chicken Drumsticks, does just that. Trust me when I say that I totally get it. Sometimes my days feel like they couldn’t possibly spin any further out of control being at home with 2 littles ones and entering the 3rd trimester of this pregnancy. I’m exhausted. But I always make time to put healthy food on the table for myself and my family. I keep it simple but still expect food to be delicious. And I wouldn’t want it any other way for you either!

Now, don’t get me wrong, maintaining healthy habits does take SOME time and effort, in the form of planning things out and making sure you’ve got your fridge and pantry stocked to support your healthy habits. If your refrigerator and pantry and filled not-so-healthy convenience foods, you’re more likely to grab those when you’re feeling yourself waiver. Lucky for you, I can help you make a plan! If you don’t already have it, grab my Free Meal Planning and Shopping List Templates to help jumpstart/or continue to support your healthier habits!

Ok, ok, onto the chicken. I love using chicken drumstick and thighs when possible for two reasons:

1- They’re a lot cheaper than chicken breasts

2- In my opinion, they’re easier to prepare and are much less likely to end up completely dried out and like chewing on rubber.

This recipe uses chicken drumsticks and the ones I picked up were organic and from Costco. I got 5lbs of drumsticks for $8! That’s so cheap! And with this recipe, you’ll want to start adding these into the rotation on the RE-GU-LAR.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• Chicken drumsticks (the package I cooked had 5)
• kosher salt
• garlic powder
•  fresh ground black pepper (I use the simply organic garlic pepper blend to save myself even more time and energy)
• smoked paprika
• arrowroot flour
• Avocado Oil
• A cast iron skillet- The size will determine how many drumsticks you can cook at once. I used my smaller one and could have fit 6-7

That’s it! Let’s get that oven preheated to 400 degrees!

1. Remove your chicken from the packaging, rinse and then pat dry.
2. Lay the chicken out in a single layer on a plate or tray for seasoning
   1. Generously sprinkle kosher salt, garlic powder, ground black pepper, and smoked paprika on both sides of the chicken drumsticks
   2. Lightly sprinkle arrowroot powder on both sides of the drumsticks and then gently pat to coat with arrowroot powder (this is just a very light sprinkle/coating
3. Warm your cast iron skillet and 1-2 Tablespoons (depends on size and how many drumsticks you’re cooking, just a light coating on the pan) to medium heat on the stove
4. Once your pan sizzles when you flick a drop of water in it, add your chicken and brown on one side for 3 minutes
5. Flip chicken and brown the other side for 3 minutes
6. Place the skillet/chicken in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes
7. Remove skillet from oven and flip chicken
8. Continue baking for another 20 minutes
9. Remove and use meat thermometer to check internal temperature. Poultry should be at least 165 degrees
10. If more time is needed, return to oven and check after 5 minutes (mine were pretty big and were done at 40. If your oven runs hot, consider checking at 30-35 minutes)
11. ENJOY!

So easy right?!

I hope you enjoy this easy and delicious weeknight dinner option! While you’re here, get comfy and check out my other recipes for more inspiration!

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I hope you have an awesome, inspired day!