Baked Chicken Legs with Italian Herbs and Garlic Flavor for Indulgent Dining Experience

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Baked chicken legs
Baked chicken legs

Are you craving for finger licking good baked chicken legs? This part of chicken is well-known for its juiciness and richness. Once you are eating the legs of chicken, you will have a hard time to stop. Of course, you need to cook the legs in perfect temperature to yield the best result. In addition to that, a perfect recipe that will enhance the legs’ natural flavor is very important. Let’s see the following recipe that is going to make your favorite chicken legs even more flavorful.

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Ingredients:

  • 3 pounds of mix between chicken thighs and drumsticks
  • ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
  • ½ teaspoon freshly grounded black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning mix. You can create the seasoning mix on your own by mixing equals parts of dried sage, dried oregano, dried rosemary, and dried basil with slightly less amount of dried thyme and dried marjoram
  • A teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic
  • Extra oil for baking the chicken legs

Cooking Instructions:

  1. Mix extra virgin olive oil, fresh lemon juice, Italian seasoning mix, minced garlic, salt, and pepper in a large mixing bowl until the ingredients are fully incorporated.
  2. Add the chicken thighs and drumsticks into the mixing bowl then toss them around until every piece is fully coated with the tasty marinade.
  3. Let the marinated chicken sit inside your fridge for few hours (preferably overnight). The longer you marinate the chicken legs, they will be more flavorful. However, be careful not to overdo the process since lemon juice can actually start cooking your legs.
  4. Preheat the oven at 400°F (or equal to 200°C).
  5. Prepare a baking sheet by coating the surface with oil to prevent baked chicken legs from sticking.
  6. Remove chicken thighs and drumsticks from the marinating bowl then arrange them over the oil coated baking sheet nicely. Make sure that the legs are arranged in one single layer (you can use more than one baking sheet if required to). That will ensure even cooking in all of the legs.
  7. Bake the chicken for about 40 minutes until they are fully cooked. Check the chicken periodically to ensure that the herbs are not burning. If you see that the outer skin is getting too dark, lower the temperature around 25°
  8. Before serving the chicken, sprinkle it with chopped parsley.

This recipe indeed takes long time to prepare. But the beauty of it is that you can prepare it ahead of time. As an example, if you want to serve it for after work dinner, you can start marinating your chicken in the morning before going to work. The recipe can serve up to six people fulfillingly, so it is a nice staple for your dinner time.

The baked chicken legs definitely need something on the side to complement its flavor. The flavor will match well with baked vegetables, such as sweet potato, carrot, and green beans. Baked vegetable can be prepared alongside your chicken legs, so that will be an easy task to do. The vegetable also contributes to much needed vitamin and freshness for this indulgent dish.

If you love you chicken to taste flavorful, there is no other way except trying out this recipe once you have time to spare. You will get the most succulent and delicious baked chicken legs ever.