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If you are looking to make the most tender, juicy, fall-off-the-bone chicken legs, these sous vide chicken drumsticks are for you! Cooked until tender, they are coated in a honey sriracha glaze and caramelized before serving to make them even more mouthwateringly delicious.
Not only do these drumsticks come out absolutely perfectly cooked very time using the sous vide method, the honey sriracha glaze adds the perfect sweet, spice and tanginess and delicious caramelized exterior to the chicken legs.
Plus, being able to make these in advance and finish them (like these sous vide boneless chicken thighs) when you're ready makes them perfect for busy weeknight dinners, meal planning, or entertaining!
And if you're worried about food safety, the cooking temperature and time results in completely pasteurized chicken even though we are not cooking them to 165 degrees f.
Jump to:
- Why this sous vide chicken leg recipe works
- Ingredients for sous vide chicken drumsticks
- Step by step recipe instructions
- Sous vide time and temperature charts
- How to make honey sriracha glaze
- Best sous vide expert tips
- Frequently asked questions for cooking sous vide chicken
- Reader's favorite sous vide chicken recipes
- Recipe
- 💬 Comments
Why this sous vide chicken leg recipe works
- Cooking the chicken slowly at a lower temperature in a sous vide water bath yields the most tender, fall-off-the-bone results while still staying ultra moist.
- The results come out perfect every single time using sous vide cooking for this chicken drumstick recipe.
- The recipe can be made in advance and stored in the fridge and/or freezer until ready to use, which is perfect for meal planning.
- They can also be cooked straight from frozen which makes it ultra convenient.
- The chicken legs are cooked in a hot oven with the sticky sauce allowing crispy skin and a caramelized flavor for form.
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Ingredients for sous vide chicken drumsticks
The full list of ingredients and amounts is included in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Any kind of chicken legs work great here - like I always say, the higher quality your meat, the better your results will be. That said, this is an amazing, budget conscience recipe as it works really well even with cheap grocery store brand chicken drumsticks.
Honey: Any kind of honey works great here - you can even use this hot honey for some extra spice!!
Sriracha: I'm a big fan of the Rooster (Huy Fong) brand sriracha, but any version will work. You can also substitute chili garlic sauce or even a chili paste like gochujang.
Unsalted butter: I always recommend using unsalted butter so we can control the salt content of the recipe. You can also substitute ghee if you prefer the nutty flavor.
Step by step recipe instructions
Sous vide time and temperature charts
| Temperature | Results | Time |
| 150°F - 155°F | More firm, juicy texture | 4-6 hours |
| 156°F - 160°F | Perfectly juicy and tender | 4-6 hours |
| 161°F - 165°F | Drier, shreddable fall-off-the-bone texture | 4-6 hours |
Remove and serve hot.
**You can also use these tender chicken legs to make sous vide fried chicken!
How to make honey sriracha glaze
Combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan and simmer on medium to medium-low heat for 3-5 minutes, until thickened and sticky. Set aside until ready to use.
Best sous vide expert tips
- If you don't have a vacuum sealer, you can use the water displacement method (see instructions in post above).
- To ensure even cooking, make sure the legs are in a single layer in the bag.
- Pat the legs as dry as possible before coating them in the glaze - removing excess moisture helps the skin get crispier.
- Make sure the bag stays submerged during cooking to ensure even cooking - use sous vide magnets or weights as needed.
- You can cook them for as little as 2 hours, but they will come out most tender cooking them for 4 hours.
- For a juicier, more toothsome texture, cook them at 150°F-155°F. For a drier, fall off the bone texture, cook them at 165°F.
- Frozen chicken drumsticks can be cooked straight from frozen by adding 30 minutes to the cook time.
- Watch the legs while they roast in the oven as the glaze can burn if left too long.
Frequently asked questions for cooking sous vide chicken
Chicken legs can be rubbery if you don't cook them at a high enough temperature (they need a higher temperature for the tendons to break down and tenderize). I typically recommend cooking them to at least 150°F to allow the tough parts to break down and become tender.
Also, if you cook drumsticks at too high of a temperature, they can become rubbery or chewy. I don't recommend cooking them higher than 165°F ever.
The best temperature to sous vide perfectly cooked chicken legs is 155°F to 160°F to allow the drumsticks to become tender while still staying moist and juicy.
If you leave the chicken legs in the water bath for too long, they will take on a mushy texture. However, you would need to leave them in for longer than 8 hours for this to really become a problem.
Chicken breast can be overcooked in the sous vide if cooked at too high of a temperature (more than 150°F) or left for longer than about 4 hours in he water bath..
The chicken legs can be cooked in the water bath in advance and be stored in the fridge for up to a week, or in the freezer for 3-6 months. To reheat and serve, cook in a 155°F water bath for 30-60 minutes (60 for frozen, 30 straight from the fridge), then follow the remaining instructions to glaze them.
You can also reheat leftovers in the microwave or in a 350°F oven for 10-15 minutes.
Reader's favorite sous vide chicken recipes
If you love this recipe, please leave a star rating and a comment below and let us know your favorite thing about it. We'd also love to connect on Instagram! Follow us at @went_here_8_this for awesome recipes and all sorts of fun food stuff 🙂
Recipe
Sous Vide Chicken Drumsticks
Ingredients
- 2 pounds chicken legs
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2-3 teaspoons salt
Honey Sriracha Glaze:
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon sriracha sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice substitute vinegar
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
Instructions
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper, and place on a wire rack over a baking sheet or large plate. Let sit in the fridge, uncovered, for 6-8 hours, or overnight.
- Heat a sous vide water bath to 160°F.
- Place the chicken legs in a vacuum seal bag and seal.
- Cook in the water bath for 4-6 hours.
- Remove from the water bath and bag and pat dry.
- Heat an oven to 500°F. Toss the chicken legs with the honey sriracha glaze and place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
- Place the chicken legs in the oven for 7-10 minutes, until glaze starts to caramelize and turn brown.
- Remove and serve hot.
Honey Sriracha Glaze:
- Combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan and simmer on medium to medium-low heat for 3-5 minutes, until thickened and sticky. Set aside until ready to use.
Expert Tips:
- If you don't have a vacuum sealer, you can use the water displacement method (see instructions in post above).
- To ensure even cooking, make sure the legs are in a single layer in the bag.
- Pat the legs as dry as possible before coating them in the glaze - removing excess moisture helps the skin get crispier.
- Make sure the bag stays submerged during cooking to ensure even cooking - use sous vide magnets or weights as needed.
- You can cook them for as little as 2 hours, but they will come out most tender cooking them for 4 hours.
- For a juicier, more toothsome texture, cook them at 150°F-155°F. For a drier, fall off the bone texture, cook them at 165°F.
- Frozen chicken drumsticks can be cooked straight from frozen by adding 30 minutes to the cook time.
- Watch the legs while they roast in the oven as the glaze can burn if left too long.
Nutrition
Danielle
Great recipes - comes out so juicy and tender.