Juicy Roasted Turkey Drumsticks, Easy Nut Free Recipe

Do you ever wish for more turkey drumsticks at Thanksgiving dinner? My solution is to roast enough juicy turkey drumsticks for everyone at our family’s Thanksgiving dinner.

Disclaimer: I am a brand ambassador for Rodelle and receive products to use and review. Please check that all ingredients are suitable for your allergies and be sure to ask your medical care team regarding any allergy related questions (I do not share medical advice). As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

How I Celebrated Thanksgiving the First 30+ Years of My Life

In order to understand why Juicy Roasted Turkey Drumsticks For Everyone has become my Thanksgiving motto, you have to understand my first impressions of Thanksgiving. I have a huge extended family and usually the host family would make or buy the bulk of the entrees and family members would make or buy side dishes and desserts. Usually someone buys a deep fried turkey from a Chinese take out place or roast a turkey until it’s very well done.

Instead of eating our turkey with cranberry sauce or mashed potatoes or gravy, we had our dry slices of turkey with roast duck, BBQ pork, roast pig, Chinese vegetables, stir fries, stews, and braises of every sort, white cut chicken (made on the stove), lettuce wraps with minced pork and dried oysters, sticky rice, sweet potatoes, etc.. We had a feast with Chinese food but the turkey was a nod to the occasion rather than the highlight of the meal.

My First Roasted Turkeys

My husband and I hosted Thanksgiving for our parents and a few friends after we got married. Someone really wanted to bring a store bought turkey and no one enjoyed it. I took a free cooking class at a store at the mall and learned all about brining, trusseting, and basting. I bought an organic turkey and I thought it was The Best Turkey Ever. It was evenly cooked, the dark meat was juicy, the white meat was cooked thru and flavorful. I loved it and but my family didn’t feel the same way and I ate turkey leftovers for weeks.

Every year I would ask my family, “What would you like for me to make for Thanksgiving? How about turkey?” They would say something to the effect of “please keep it simple, we really like it when you make salmon (or roast duck or chicken drumsticks) and sticky rice.” In 2015 I bought and roasted a duck but when I carved it, it looked and tasted like a big chicken! I don’t understand what happened because “it” didn’t come with its head or feet. A fake duck? A chicken trapped in a duck’s body? I still don’t know what to think.

So for Thanksgiving 2016, I decided to make only turkey drumsticks as our only main entree. I roasted 12 turkey drumsticks for 7 people and we only had 3 turkey drumsticks leftover. SUCCESS! Everyone had their own yummy drumstick, I didn’t have to deal with mystery poultry or eat leftovers forever. Win, win, win!

Rodelle Gourmet Turkey Brine Review

If you’ve never tried brining your turkey before roasting, you have to try it. A brine is a solution of salt and spices and you soak your turkey in it overnight and soaking your turkey in brine is an easy way to add flavor and moisture to the turkey.

One of the reasons I love being a brand ambassador for Rodelle is that they are allergy safe for my family. Rodelle even has an allergen statement on their website, “Rodelle does not utilize peanuts or tree-nuts on its production floor or in its products. Contact us for any other allergen questions!” Allergy safe brine works for me because I know how hard it is to find a pre-made brine mix that is nut-free. And it’s even better when the brine makes the turkey taste good.

One 13 oz container of Turkey Brine is enough for an entire 18 pound turkey. Four turkey drumsticks weighs about 4-5 pounds, which would need about 1/4 of the container combined with 8 cups of water. It’s so delicious but we have some family members who are on a low sodium diet so I use a little less of the turkey brine.

I use about 1/4 cup of Rodelle’s Gourmet Turkey Brine for 4 drumsticks. Bring 2 cups of water to boil in a small pot and add 1/4 cup of the brine and then stir to dissolve and let it steep for 5-10 minutes.

Before you add the brine to the turkey legs you have to let the brine solution cool down and I usually do it 1 of 3 ways depending on how much time I have.

• Add two cups of cold water and let the brine to cool to room temperature OR
• Add two cups of cold water into the pot and then place the pot of brine solution in a cold water bath in your sink OR
• Fill a 2 cup measuring cup with ice, add water up to the 2 cup line, and add the ice water to the brine and wait until the brine mixture is at room temperature.

Rodelle’s Gourmet Turkey Brine Update

Rodelle’s Gourmet Turkey Brine uses the following ingredients*: Salt, Sugar, Cranberries, Exhausted Vanilla Beans, Allspice, Apple, Black Pepper, Garlic, Orange Peel, Rosemary, Thyme, Bay Leaves and Sage.

*Update: Since this post was originally published, Rodelle changed manufacturing facilities and now they have the following advisory on their website: “Produced in a facility that processes milk, wheat, soy, eggs, sesame, almonds and coconut. Contact us for allergen questions.“

If you liked using their turkey brine before but don’t feel comfortable with the potential cross-contact, you could make your own brine from scratch using herbs and spices that you already have and like.

For every 4 turkey drumsticks, we will need 8 cups of the brine solution. I would combine 8 cups of water with 1/2 cup kosher salt (or 1/4 cup table salt), 1/4 cup sugar with any available herbs, spices, orange peel, exhausted vanilla bean pods, etc. from the ingredient list. After I split and scrape a vanilla bean pod for a recipe, I freeze the used (exhausted) vanilla bean in a freezer bag for use in other recipes.

Shopping and Preparation Tips

Shopping

The turkey drumsticks usually vary between 1 to 1.25 pounds each. Try to buy turkey drumsticks approximately the same size so that they will finish cooking at the same time.

This recipe is also party ready. You could easily double or triple the recipe.

Brining

You can make a large batch of brine and brine the turkey drumsticks in a large stock pot in your refrigerator. But if you are short on space, just brine them in plastic bags and tuck them in the empty spaces of your refrigerator in a large bowl or container (just in case the plastic bag breaks).

Prepping

The key to juicy turkey drumsticks is inserting celery sticks into the drumsticks. I first saw this idea on All Recipes. There’s no explanation on why or how adding a celery stick into the drumstick makes them juicier and tastier than without the celery. If anyone knows the reason, please let me know.

Roasting

If they’re mostly 1 pound each, then they will be ready after 90 minutes. If some turkey drumsticks are visibly larger, then they will need an extra 15-20 minutes in the oven.

The drumsticks are ready when the skin is golden brown and crispy, the meat shrinks a little bit, and you can see the bone.

Roast the turkey to a minimum of 165ºF and then tent with foil until it reaches 170ºF.

Allergy Aware Roasted Turkey Drumsticks

This recipe is free of peanuts, tree nuts, eggs, soy, fish, shellfish, and wheat as written.

If dairy allergic, substitute with an allergy-safe buttery non-dairy alternative. I usually use Earth Balance buttery sticks when cooking or baking for someone with a milk allergy.

You could also omit the buttery spread, but note that the skin won’t turn golden brown so definitely look for the meat shrinking from the bone or use a meat thermometer to check for doneness.

5 from 5 votes

Print

Juicy Roasted Turkey Drumsticks, Easy Nut Free Recipe

This recipe is easy to double or triple by brining 4 drumsticks per 1 gallon plastic bag. Or you could brine them in one large container if you can easily fit the whole thing in your refrigerator.

Course main dish

Cuisine American

Keyword thanksgiving, turkey drumsticks

Prep Time 1 day

Cook Time 2 hours

Total Time 1 day 2 hours

Servings 4

Calories 280 kcal

Author Sharon Wong @ Nut Free Wok

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup Turkey Brine approximately 1.67 ounce
• 4 turkey drumsticks 4-5 pounds total (try to buy evenly sized drumsticks)
• 1-2 stalks of celery cut into 3 inch sticks about the thickness of chopsticks
• Salt & pepper
• 2 tablespoons butter melted

Instructions

1. Bring 2 cups of water to boil in a small (2 qt) sauce pan and add turkey brine, stir to dissolve, remove from heat and let the mixture steep for 5-10 minutes.
2. Add 2 cups of cold water and allow the brine solution to cool to room temperature (wait or cold water bath in the sink).
3. Rinse turkey drumsticks (check for blood clots and feathers) and drain in a colander in the sink.
4. Place a 1 gallon sized resealable bag in a large bowl and fold down the sides, arrange the turkey drumsticks in the bag.
5. When the brine solution is at room temperature, add the brine solution to the drumsticks, and partially seal up the plastic bag.
6. Check that the turkey meat is submerged in the brine solution and add 1-2 cups of water as needed, seal up the bag while squeezing the air out of the bag at the same time, refrigerate overnight in a large bowl in case the bag gets punctured.
7. About 2 hours before you want to eat, preheat your oven 350ºF, line a rimmed baking sheet with foil for easy clean up, rinse the turkey legs, pat them dry with paper towels, and place them on the baking sheet.

8. Lay the drum stick on its side and insert a sharp knife in through the top to cut a slit and insert a celery stick, repeat with 2-3 celery sticks per drumstick.

9. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes, brush with 1 tablespoon of melted butter, and turn them over and brush again.
10. Bake for 30 more minutes and brush with the rest of the butter.
11. Bake for another 30 minutes and check for doneness; drumsticks which are about 1 pound each will be ready after about 90 minutes total, the skin should look golden and crispy and the meat should be pulling away from the bone slightly; larger drumsticks will need additional time, approximately 4-5 minutes per ounce (a 1.25 pound drumstick will need another 15-20 minutes).

Related Recipes

• Dairy-Free & Make Ahead Beef Gravy Recipe – you can always adapt this recipe with turkey stock or chicken stock to make some gravy ahead of time.
• Instant Pot Cranberry Sauce, An Easy 3 Ingredient Recipe – this recipe is easy and so delicious. Make a little extra to enjoy with leftovers.
• Cranberry White Chocolate Chip Cookies & Friendships – very pretty and yummy
• Make some cranberry muffins ahead of time for a Thanksgiving day brunch (or anytime) and then reheat in your oven or air fryer Super Cranberry Orange Muffins, Dairy & Nut Free
• Super popular Chinese-American side dish for almost any holiday gathering, Sharon’s Special Sticky Rice Recipe

What’s your favorite Thanksgiving dish, side, or dessert? Let me know in the comments! Happy Thanksgiving!

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