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Home » Recipes » Main Dish Recipes » chicken main dishes » Sticky and Sweet Chicken Drumstick Recipe In the Slow Cooker

Sticky and Sweet Chicken Drumstick Recipe In the Slow Cooker

By Lynette on October 4, 2017 · 27 Comments

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sticky drumsticks on a baking sheet

Sticky and sweet chicken drumsticks made in the slow cooker and then made crispy in the oven. Could. Not. Be. Easier. 👍

Drumsticks on dark sheet pan

Drumstick Recipe

Are you interested in the best baked chicken recipe?  I was a bit intimidated by a drumstick recipe.  I like to eat drumsticks.  My eight year old LOVES drumstick (aka chicken bones to him).  However, whenever there’s a bone in the chicken, I start to have panic attacks as to whether it will be cooked enough to enjoy. Okay, maybe that’s a little extreme…. but you catch my drift.

When I stumbled up on this drumstick recipe I knew I was onto something.  The thought of being able to cook the chicken bones in the crockpot so that they were fully cooked, and then broiling them to crisp them up was genius.  I love that I can fully cook them and they’ll still be nice and juicy, yet have the control of the crisp factor. Do you ever think about these things?  Do I think too much?  😉 Here’s an easy way to make a great appetizer or dinner entree that’s tasty and sweet – and crisp!

Sweet and Sticky Drumstick Recipe

1.  Combine the following in a mixing bowl.  Whisk together. ½ Cup honey ½ Cup light brown sugar ⅓ Cup balsamic vinegar ⅓ Cup low sodium soy sauce 3 tsp minced garlic 2 tsp ground ginger.

raw drumsticks in the crockpot slow cooker

2.  Add drumsticks/wings to slow cooker.

pouring sticky and sweet sauce on raw drumsticks

3.  Pour the honey mix onto the drumsticks/wings and mix well.  (I used my hands.) 4.  Cook on high in the slow cooker for 4 hours.  Toss the drumsticks/wings at the halfway point.  (As best you can.)

5.  Once fully cooked, remove drumstick/wings from the slow cooker and add to baking pan that is lined with foil that has been sprayed with cooking spray.

drumsticks broiled on dark cookie sheet

6.  Broil for 3 minutes or until browned. (Don’t leave them unattended!  You always need to watch when broiling as they can burn quickly.)

7.  Remove the drumsticks/wings from the oven and turn them to the other side.

8.  Broil the other side for 3 minutes or until browned.  (Again, keep an eye on it!) Your drumsticks or wings are ready to be enjoyed!  These keep well in the refrigerator and taste even better the second day! Enjoy!

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Drumsticks on dark sheet pan

Sticky and Sweet Chicken Drumstick Recipe In the Slow Cooker

★★★★★ 5 from 2 reviews
  • Author: Lynette Rice
  • Prep Time: 10 mins
  • Cook Time: 4 hours
  • Total Time: 4 hours 10 minutes
  • Yield: 12 1x
  • Category: Main
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Description

Sticky and sweet drumsticks made in the slow cooker using honey, brown sugar and other ingredients.


Ingredients

Scale
  • ½ Cup honey
  • ½ Cup light brown sugar
  • ⅓ Cup balsamic vinegar
  • ⅓ Cup low sodium soy sauce
  • 3 tsp minced garlic
  • 2 tsp ground ginger
  • 4 pounds of drumsticks and/or wings

Instructions

  1. Whisk together honey, brown sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and ginger in a bowl.
  2. Add drumsticks/wings to slow cooker.
  3. Pour the honey mix onto the drumsticks/wings and mix well. (I used my hands.)
  4. Cook on high in the slow cooker for 4 hours. Toss the drumsticks/wings at the halfway point. (As best you can.)
  5. Once fully cooked, remove drumstick/wings from the slow cooker and add to baking pan that is lined with foil that has been sprayed with cooking spray.
  6. Broil for 3 minutes or until browned.
  7. Remove the drumsticks/wings from the oven and turn them to the other side.
  8. Broil the other side for 3 minutes or until browned. (Keep an eye on it!)

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @cleverlysimple on Instagram and hashtag it #cleverlysimple

Looking for another simple chicken recipe? You will love this Freezer Recipe Chicken Tetrazzini!

Originally shared January, 2014.

chicken drumsticks with sauce in crockpot and on baking sheet
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About Lynette

Lynette is the home cook, recipe tester and photographer for Cleverly Simple which she created in 2010.  Most of her recipes come from the treasured recipe box passed down from her great-grandma, grandmother, and mother.

Lynette’s recipes and projects have been featured in Country Living, Good Housekeeping, House Beautiful and others.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Victor

    March 12, 2016 at 8:11 pm

    The recipe is awesome! I made it with a little over 4 lbs of drumsticks and it worked fine. I just double the garlic because in my house, we love garlic! I wouldn’t cook it longer than 4 hours, I did mine for 3.5 hours and the chicken was falling apart. Broiled in the oven for a few minutes each side, voila! It was fantastic! Thanks for sharing!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Lynette

      March 13, 2016 at 2:10 pm

      So glad you enjoyed it Victor!

      Reply
  2. Barbara

    May 03, 2015 at 7:20 pm

    Do you think I could the leave the chicken in the crockpot on low for 8 hours instead of 4 on high? thanks

    Reply
    • Lynette

      May 06, 2015 at 7:49 am

      Hi Barbara, I’ve not tried it that way. My crockpot gets really hot on low, and my only fear is that the chicken will start to fall off the bone to the point that it would be hard to broil in the oven. If you try it, let me know how it goes!

      Reply
  3. Desiree

    February 05, 2015 at 7:00 pm

    Made this tonight for my husband and I and my 4 year old. We ate every last piece! It was delicious! Any idea how I could figure out the sugar content or nutritional facts?

    Reply
    • Lynette

      February 18, 2015 at 8:15 pm

      Hi Desiree, I believe you can google some nutrition calculators and type in the ingredients to find your exact nutrition facts. I’m glad you enjoyed them!

      Reply
  4. Sue

    December 14, 2014 at 12:20 pm

    Hive frozen wings. I assume you should start with thawed chicken?

    Reply
  5. Iris

    December 13, 2014 at 4:56 am

    We had these today, and they were absolutely delicious. Thank you for this wonderful recipe.

    Reply
  6. ugh

    November 18, 2014 at 5:43 pm

    mine is in the crockpot now and it’s super watery. not sticky at all. I followed the recipe. i don’t get it

    Reply
    • Lynette

      November 18, 2014 at 8:41 pm

      Hi. Did you follow the last steps? You remove them from the crockpot and place them on a greased pan and broil them. See the recipe above.

      Reply
    • ugh

      November 19, 2014 at 1:46 am

      ok, i put it in the broiler but also reduced the sauce on the stove and it got sticky. Very good.

      Reply
      • Lynette

        November 21, 2014 at 8:12 am

        Glad it worked out for you! Thanks for coming back and letting me know. 🙂

        Reply
  7. SYLVIA THERESA OSTIR

    November 10, 2014 at 12:50 pm

    Will try

    Reply
  8. Miranda Peterson

    September 04, 2014 at 4:28 pm

    YUM! This looks great. I am going to try it tonight with chicken tenders and see how that works.

    Reply
  9. Laura

    July 25, 2014 at 8:56 am

    Hi, what is that script font used in the photo that reads “sticky & sweet”?

    Reply
    • Lynette

      July 25, 2014 at 11:33 am

      It’s called Sacramento. I used PicMonkey to make that pic. 🙂

      Reply
  10. Annie

    February 20, 2014 at 6:00 pm

    I don’t have Balsamic Vinegar, do you think Apple Cider Vinegar will work?

    Reply
    • Patti

      October 04, 2017 at 9:12 pm

      This is a wonderful recipe.This can also be made with chicken breasts cut in smaller pieces, cooking 2 hours and serve over rice with bean sprouts and bamboo shoots. Thank you for a wonderful recipe!

      Reply
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Lynette Rice head shotHi, I’m Lynette. My desire is to help women who feel uninspired weave time honored recipes into their routines to create a sense of simplicity. Most of my recipes come from the treasured recipe box passed down from my great-grandma, grandmother and mother. And I want to share them with you.  Learn more.

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