BBQ Instant Pot Chicken Drumsticks
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Sticky, sweet, and just a little spicy, these BBQ Instant Pot Chicken Drumsticks are economical, kid-friendly, and tasty. The secret to making these crispy is giving them a few minutes under the broiler at the end.
Ingredients
To make sure your drumsticks are extra flavorful, we have created a delicious rub for them. Here is everything you’ll need:
Ingredient Notes:
- Chicken drumsticks – We love the ones we get through ButcherBox.
- Chicken broth – Water will work.
- BBQ Sauce – Store-bought or make homemade BBQ Sauce.
If BBQ isn’t your thing, try our Savory Instant Pot Frozen Drumsticks.
How to Make Drumsticks in the Instant Pot
You’re going to love the simplicity of this recipe! Here is a brief overview of how to make this recipe.
- Combine the brown sugar, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle the seasoning evenly over the drumsticks.
- Add 1 cup of broth to the pot. Place drumsticks in the bottom. Add 1 cup of BBQ sauce. Use your hands to rub the sauce all over the drumsticks.
- Cook at high pressure for 12 minutes, then quick release the pressure.
- Brush the chicken with BBQ sauce and broil until the chicken starts to brown and look crispy, 2 to 3 minutes.
Cooking Tip:
When cooking Instant Pot Chicken Recipes, do your best not to stack or pile the drumsticks on top of each other. This will result in uneven cooking.
How to Cook Frozen Chicken Drumsticks in the Instant Pot
One of the beauties of the Instant Pot is you can cook food straight from frozen in it. In fact, we have an entire post of Instant Pot Freezer Meals designed just for this purpose!
Freeze For Later: Place the seasoned chicken and 1 cup of the BBQ sauce in a freezer bag. Seal, toss to coat, and freeze. Pour the remaining BBQ sauce into a small freezer bag or container, seal, and freeze alongside the chicken.
Prepare From Frozen: Let the BBQ Sauce thaw. Add 1 cup of chicken broth or water to the bottom of the pot. Add the frozen drumsticks to the pot. Try not to pile them on top of each other, but place side-by-side or stack them on end. Follow steps 3 through 6 in the recipe below, but cook for 17 to 22 minutes.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! We wrote a whole full post about it: BBQ Instant Pot Chicken Drumsticks. You can also make them in the oven with this Baked BBQ Drumsticks recipe.
You can broil at the end for a few minutes to caramelize the drumsticks even more.
Yes. You can use this rub and our BBQ sauce on chicken breasts or chicken thighs. Cook in the slow cooker on Low for 2 1/2 – 3 1/2 hours or in the Instant Pot for 7 minutes with a quick release. Shred and serve on buns for easy BBQ chicken sandwiches.
What to Serve with BBQ Drumsticks
Serve with extra BBQ sauce on the side and try one of these side dish ideas:
Instant Pot Cooking Times Chart
After testing hundreds of Instant Pot recipes, we have honed in on the best timing and methods for cooking different types of meals in the Instant Pot.
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BBQ Instant Pot Chicken Drumsticks
Sticky, sweet, and just a little spicy, these Instant Pot Chicken Drumsticks are economical, kid-friendly, and tasty. The secret to making these crispy is giving them a few minutes under the broiler at the end.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- About 3 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken drumsticks (we get ours from ButcherBox)
- 1 cup low sodium chicken broth (or water)
- 2 cups BBQ Sauce, store-bought or our homemade version
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Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle the seasoning evenly over the drumsticks and rub it in to coat all sides. (Freezing instructions begin here.)
- Add 1 cup of broth (or water) to the pot. Place seasoned drumsticks in the bottom. (Try not to pile them on top of each other, but place side-by-side or stack them on end). Top with 1 cup of BBQ sauce (feel free to use your hands to rub the sauce all over the drumsticks).
- Lock and seal the lid. Cook at high pressure for 12 minutes, then quick release the pressure.
- Position the top oven rack about 6 inches below the broiler. Preheat the broiler. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. (Note: You can also use the grill for this step instead of the broiler, placing the drumsticks directly on the grill.)
- Use tongs to place the drumsticks on the prepared baking sheet; discard any liquid remaining in the cooker. Brush the chicken with 1/4 cup of BBQ sauce and broil until the chicken starts to brown and look crispy, 2 to 3 minutes. Flip the chicken over, brush with another 1/4 cup BBQ sauce, and broil until the skin begins to brown and look crispy, 2 to 3 minutes more.
- Serve warm with remaining BBQ sauce on the side.
Freeze For Later: Follow Step 1. Place the seasoned chicken and 1 cup of the BBQ sauce in the bag. Try not to stack the drumsticks in the bag; instead, place them flat, side by side. Use parchment paper to divide layers, if needed. Seal, toss to coat, and freeze flat. Pour the remaining BBQ sauce into a small freezer bag or container, seal, and freeze alongside the chicken.
Prepare From Frozen: You will need 1 cup of chicken broth or water to complete this meal. Let the BBQ Sauce thaw. Add 1 cup of chicken broth or water to the bottom of the pot. Break apart and add the frozen drumsticks to the pot. Try not to pile them on top of each other, but place side-by-side or stack them on end. Follow steps 3 through 6 in the recipe, but cook for 17 to 22 minutes.
Notes/Tips
- We use this same rub and BBQ sauce in our Crockpot BBQ Drumsticks and Baked BBQ Drumsticks.
- You can also use this rub and our BBQ sauce on chicken breasts or chicken thighs. Cook in the slow cooker on Low for 2 1/2 – 3 1/2 hours or in the Instant Pot for 7 minutes with a quick release. Shred and serve on buns for easy BBQ chicken sandwiches.
- We get our chicken from ButcherBox.
- Make sure to not stack your chicken when cooking in the Instant Pot.
Photos and video by Whitney Reist of Sweet Cayenne.
Truly amazing! Such a hit with my Littles and husband.
Yay! Love to hear when all ages love a recipe! Thanks for leaving a review Jasmine.
The best! My kids also love it.
Hi Jasmine! Love recipes that win over the kids. Thanks for leaving a review!
Absolutely delicious and they’re going into my regular dinner rotation. My super picky eaters gobbled them all up. I love that these can be made from frozen, too. I definitely forwarded this recipe to friends. Thanks so much!
Yeah! I’d call that a win! Thanks for sharing, Liz.