Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Drumsticks (5 Ingredients!)

Savory, juicy slow cooker drumsticks only have five ingredients. It’s a delicious tender chicken dinner that is so kid-friendly and is super easy to make.

 

This is the best way (and my favorite way!) to cook chicken drumsticks, and the entire family will love this recipe.

Why We Love Slow Cooker Chicken Drumsticks

• Quick And Easy Dinner– Low prep, and dinner is ready for you when you want it. This is one of my favorite slow cooker recipes for its quick prep time.
• Juicy Chicken– Cooking dark meat like these chicken drumsticks in the crockpot always makes a super juicy chicken dinner!
• Five Ingredients– Only a few simple ingredients in this recipe, that you likely already have! This recipe has a sauce similar to a savory bbq sauce and is an easy chicken dinner recipe for all home chefs or (kid chefs!)

Ingredients For Chicken Drumsticks

• chicken drumsticks 
• honey – you can use a little less or a little more to your own taste
• ½ cup soy sauce – I always prefer low sodium but you can use what you have
• ketchup – you can also swap in your favorite bbq sauce
• garlic – you can use fresh garlic, minced garlic or garlic powder

How To Make Slow Cooker Chicken Drumsticks

1. In a small bowl, whisk together honey, soy sauce, ketchup and garlic.

2. Spray the slow cooker with a spray cooking oil I like to use spray olive oil or avacado oil) . Place the chicken drumsticks inside the bottom of the slow cooker, stacking the chicken if necessary.

3. Pour the sauce over the chicken drumsticks.

4. Cook the chicken drumsticks slow cooking on high heat for 4 hours (or low for 6 hours). Serve and enjoy!

Can You Make This Chicken A Freezer Meal?

You can prepare these chicken drumsticks and freeze them into sauce to prepare your dinner ahead of time. To use this recipe as meal prep, you must defrost the chicken and sauce before adding it to the slow cooker.

Can I Make This Drumstick Recipe Spicy?

I like to add just a few red pepper flakes at the table, but you could also add them to the sauce if the whole family likes it spicy. I’d start with 1/4-1/2 teaspoon if adding to the sauce unless you like a lot of spice.

A few dashes of hot sauce can also be added to the whole slow cooker.

What’s The Difference Between Chicken Drumsticks and Chicken Legs?

Chicken legs include the chicken thigh attached to the chicken drumstick. Chicken drumsticks are just the bottom calf part of the chicken leg. Sometimes people mistakenly call chicken drumsticks “chicken legs.”

How Can I Thicken The Sauce?

Here’s how to thicken the sauce over the chicken drumsticks. I don’t always thicken the sauce though because sometimes I want it to be a super simple recipe and it’s delicious as written in the recipe card at the bottom of the page.

1. Remove the chicken from the slow cooker.
2. Add two teaspoons of cornstarch to four teaspoons of water and mix well with a fork or a whisk to make a cornstarch slurry.
3. Place the sauce in a small saucepan on the stove on medium-high heat.
4. Add the cornstarch and stir the sauce, cooking for 2-3 minutes or just begins to simmer. Then toss the juicy chicken drumsticks again in the sauce. Serve and enjoy!

How Long Do These Chicken Drumsticks Last?

These slow cooker chicken drumsticks will last for about three days in the refrigerator if stored in an airtight container.

Leftover chicken from this recipe doesn’t freeze well unfortunately, but you could cook a few less drumsticks and the recipe will still work.