How to cook chicken shanks in the oven and in the pan

Shanks or chicken legs are popular with housewives because of the opportunity to feed the family deliciously and inexpensively. If you show imagination or use the proposed recipes, from the meat product can be prepared many delicious, nutritious dishes not only for weekdays, but also for holiday feasts.

How to choose the right drumsticks for cooking

In order not to put the family at risk of food poisoning, when choosing a product, focus on the technical requirements established by the state standard.

Characteristics of quality chicken legs:

• Shanks look large, well-fed or with satisfactorily developed muscles;
• the smell of fresh chicken without extraneous impurities;
• meat color - light pink;
• texture - glossy, slightly soft;
• yellowish fat under skin is possible.

Weight of one shank should not be less than 100 g; feathers and stumps on skin are unacceptable.

Give preference to chilled shanks, as the quality of such products is easier to determine. If the chicken is frozen, pay attention to the presence of icing. The thicker the icing, the more times the chicken meat has been frozen. White ice on the surface is a sign of overfrozen chicken parts.

How to tell if a product is spoiled

Spoiled chicken is easy to distinguish from fresh chicken.

Signs of product unfit for cooking:

• Change in color of meat from pink to gray;
• The appearance of yellow stains, which persist when cooked;
• A pungent, repulsive smell of hydrogen sulfide, a sour, ammonia-like odor;
• Skin covered with a slippery, sticky film;
• The presence of greenish or black spots of mold.

If at least one of these signs is detected, get rid of the legs without regret. Spoiled meat contains dangerous bacteria, viruses, staphylococci, salmonella.

Benefits of chicken meat

1. Phosphorus, calcium in the product make bones, dental enamel more dense, prevent the development of osteoporosis, tooth decay.
2. Vitamin A supports crepuscular adaptation, visual acuity, inhibits the development of cataracts.
3. In chicken a lot of zinc, pantothenic acid. These elements improve the quality of the seminal fluid, accelerate sperm activity, increasing male fertility.
4. Choline is involved in the metabolism of phospholipids in the liver, pyridoxine strengthens the immune system, regulates the nervous system.
5. Amino acids in chicken meat regulate energy metabolism, sleep, appetite, accelerate tissue regeneration, increase mental and physical activity, strengthen and build muscle tissue. People who eat chicken have normal metabolism, blood circulation, reduced anxiety, frequency and intensity of headaches.

Doctors recommend including easily digestible chicken meat in the diet for diabetes, chronic GI diseases, pregnant and lactating women, children, athletes and the elderly.

10 recipes for cooking chicken legs in the oven

To bake chicken shanks in the oven, you will need a baking tray, clay pot, pan or baking dish.

Oven-cooked shanks are less calorie-dense than fried shanks and are suitable for people on a healthy diet. In addition, baked meat retains more nutrients. Dishes turn out more juicy, flavorful.

Chicken legs in pita bread

For tender chicken shanks in pita bread, prepare a set of products:

• 0.4 kg of shanks;
• 0,8 л kefir;
• 20 г pita bread;
• 80 ml milk;
• 50 g of cheese;
• 1 tsp. each of Provencal herbs, mustard, ground pepper, salt.

How to prepare:

1. In the kefir enter mustard, salt, pepper, dry herbs, mix. Pour the fermented drink over the washed shanks, leave for an hour to marinate.
2. Cut one part of a pita into strips, another into rectangles.
3. Soak the pieces in milk. Cover the bottom of the baking dish with the rectangles, placing the strips so that the edges hang down.
4. Lay out the marinated chicken, covering the edges.
5. Seal the form with a sheet of foil.
6. Bake the legs for half an hour in an oven preheated to two hundred degrees.
7. Remove the foil and cook for another 10 minutes.
8. Sprinkle grated cheese over the dish and bake for a few more minutes until the cheese crust is crispy.

Serve chicken shanks in pita with a salad of fresh vegetables, baked potatoes at home.

Chicken shank in potato dough

Legs, cooked according to this recipe, can be served as an appetizer at the festive table. Chicken in a potato pouch will surprise guests with an unusual appearance.

Ingredients:

• 7 pieces of shanks;
• 0.5 kg of potatoes;
• salt, pepper, spice mix for chicken;
• 2 tbsp. wheat flour;
• one egg, egg yolk;
• 120 г butter;
• dried dill.

Method of preparation:

1. Clean, boil potatoes in salted water. Mash with butter and dill.
2. After the potatoes have cooled, mix in flour and beat an egg. Knead the dough.
3. Put a pot with water on the stove, legs. After boiling, salt and pepper the broth, simmer for half an hour until tender.
4. Remove shank from the pot, cool. Remove the skin.
5. Divide the potato dough into seven parts. Make a tortilla out of each one and wrap the legs in it.
6. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
7. Line a baking tray with parchment. Lay out the billets, brush with egg yolk. A part of the bone, left uncovered by the potatoes, wrap in foil.
8. Cook for 25-30 minutes.

Tip! Potato dough will not stick to your hands, if they are periodically sprinkled with flour or sprinkle with vegetable oil.

Chicken legs in breadcrumbs

The breading keeps the meat juicy inside and forms a delicious crust on top.

Prepare:

• 0.5 kg chicken shanks;
• 80g breadcrumbs;
• 100 г mayonnaise or natural yogurt;
• 50 g mustard;
• 2 cloves of garlic;
• egg.

Preparation steps:

1. Peel off the skins from the legs.
2. Combine mayonnaise, mustard, and garlic squeezed through a press. Stir to combine. Brush all sides of the marinade on the chicken meat.
3. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.
4. Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
5. Dip the marinated legs one by one in the beaten egg, roll in the breadcrumbs, and place in a mold.
6. Cook for one hour until golden brown.

Fun Facts! You can substitute breadcrumbs for the breading with oat flakes, unsweetened corn flakes, or shredded crackers.

Baked Legs in Puff Pastry

A dish with a minimal set of products is very liked by children.

Ingredients:

• 10 legs;
• 1 kg of puff pastry;
• 40 ml of milk;
• 50 ml of vegetable oil;
• 2 tsp. sesame seeds;
• salt, pepper, dried garlic.

Cooking instructions:

1. Rub each leg with a mixture of salt, pepper, and garlic. Brush with vegetable oil.
2. Roll out dough, cut into 10 equal strips.
3. After two hours of marinating, wrap shanks in overlapping strips of dough, sprinkle with sesame seeds.
4. Line a baking tray with parchment. Moisten the paper with milk.
5. Bake the chicken legs for 50 minutes in an oven preheated to 200 degrees.

Serve shanks in puff pastry as a standalone dish on lettuce leaves.

Bacon-flavored chicken shanks

To diversify the menu, you can prepare legs with bacon flavor.

Set of products:

• 6 shanks;
• 100g bacon;
• 2 Tbsp. soy sauce;
• salt, pepper, garlic.

How to bake:

1. Mix soy sauce with garlic, salt, and pepper.
2. Wash chicken legs. Coat with marinade and leave for 30 minutes, covering bowl with clingfilm.
3. Cut bacon into thin slices.
4. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
5. Wrap shanks in strips of bacon and place on a baking tray.
6. Cook for 40 minutes.

Tip! To make the legs convenient to eat, when removing the skin, make a circular incision at the bottom, separate the skin along with the joint.

Stuffed Chicken Legs

To make delicious stuffed shanks you will need:

• 4 chicken shanks;
• an onion;
• 2 eggs;
• 2 garlic cloves;
• 50 ml of vegetable oil;
• 4 tbsp. 1 liter of breadcrumbs.

How to prepare:

1. Chop the onion into small cubes. Fry in a frying pan with oil.
2. Remove the skin from the shins, gently chop the end of the shank.
3. Remove the flesh from the bone. Pass through a meat grinder.
4. Stir in the minced chicken eggs, breadcrumbs, onions, chopped garlic. Salt and pepper it.
5. Fill minced meat with stripped skin. Secure with toothpicks.
6. Bake stuffed shanks in the oven for half an hour at 180°C.

Serve this dish with mashed potatoes, greens, fresh vegetables.

Thai style chicken thighs

To bake two servings of shanks on a pillow of vegetables, prepare:

• 4 shanks;
• 2 pieces. carrots, onions;
• 6 potato tubers;
• 2 garlic cloves;
• 100 ml of soy sauce;
• 30g sesame seeds;
• salt, pepper, turmeric.

Cooking Algorithm:

1. Remove the skin from the legs.
2. Prepare the marinade. Cut onion into half rings and put it in a bowl. Pour soy sauce, add salt and spices. Pour the marinade over the shanks, stir, leave for 2-3 hours.
3. Peel and slice carrots, potatoes, chop onions. Season with salt, pepper, minced garlic.
4. Put the vegetables in a baking bag, top with chicken legs sprinkled with sesame seeds. Tie the bag, pierce in several places with a fork or toothpick.
5. Cook the chicken legs for 50 minutes in an oven preheated to 180 degrees.

The dish, baked in a bag, preserves all the useful properties of the chicken. Soy sauce, sesame seeds give a spicy flavor.

Chicken legs in cream sauce

The sauce in the dish gives juicy shanks a delicate creamy flavor.

Ingredients:

• 1 kg of chicken legs;
• 300 g of cream 20% fat;
• 2 cloves of garlic;
• salt, pepper;
• 20 ml of vegetable oil.

How to prepare:

1. Wash and dry the chicken meat. Salt and pepper it.
2. Peel and crush the garlic.
3. Place shanks in a pan with hot oil. Roast on each side for 5 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven at 200°C.
5. Pour cream into a saucepan, add pepper, salt and garlic. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
6. Take the legs out of the pan and place in a baking dish, pour the sauce over them.
7. Cook in the oven for 30 minutes.

Before serving, sprinkle chopped parsley and dill greens over the dish.

Advice! If there is no cream on hand, replace it with fat milk.

Philo with chicken legs

Vibrant flavor of chicken in layered paste with tomato and cheese filling will not disappoint even the most demanding gourmets.

Set of products for 4 servings:

• 4 shanks;
• 0.5 kg of pastry;
• 4 tomatoes;
• 100g of hard cheese;
• 1 egg;
• 50 g each of butter and vegetable oil;
• salt, pepper.

Method of preparation:

1. Wash, dry chicken shanks. Salt and pepper. Pan fry for 15 minutes.
2. Finely chop tomatoes. Grate cheese. Separate egg yolk from egg yolk.
3. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
4. Cut the dough into four equal squares. Place a quarter of the shredded tomatoes and cheese in each. Place the legs vertically in the center. Wrap the dough around the meat, securing the ends to the bone with string.
5. Brush the billets with egg yolk and place on a baking tray.
6. Bake for half an hour.

When serving, sprinkle chicken legs in filo dough with finely chopped green onions.

Shish kebab of shanks

If there is no possibility to barbecue the legs, you can make chicken kebab in the oven.

Wash shanks under running water, dry with paper towels, put them in a bowl. Pour olive oil over the chicken, sprinkle with pepper, turmeric, dry mustard, coriander, and paprika. Add bay leaf, dried basil.

After half an hour, put the legs on skewers soaked in cold water and place them on a baking dish. Cook in the oven at 220 degrees for 40 minutes. Periodically sprinkle the fat dripping into the mold over the meat.

How to Make Quick and Delicious Chicken Legs in a Pan

To minimize frying damage, choose a nonstick pan and oil that is resistant to high temperatures. Fats with a high smoke point include coconut, canola, linseed, olive, refined and deodorized oils.

Chicken leg chops

Beer batter gives the dish juiciness, airiness, savory flavor and aroma.

To fry the chops, you will need:

• 4 legs;
• A quarter of a cup of light beer;
• 100 grams of wheat flour;
• one egg;
• seasoning for chicken, salt;
• 200 ml of vegetable oil.

How to prepare:

1. Thaw the legs, remove the skin. Cut along the bone, separate the flesh.
2. Put fillet in a plastic bag, beat, salt, pepper, rub with spice mix.
3. Beat egg with beer, pinch of salt, sprinkle flour. Make the batter.
4. Heat a frying pan with oil.
5. Dip the chops into the batter and fry on both sides until appetizingly crisp.

Serve on salad leaves and garnish with a sprig of dill. Place cherry tomatoes cut in half on the side.

Legs in soy sauce

To prepare pan-seared chicken shanks in soy sauce, you will need:

• 4 shanks;
• 3 tbsp. each of sauce and vegetable oil;
• 2 cloves of garlic;
• salt, paprika, ground black pepper.

How to roast:

1. Rub meat, salt, spices.
2. After half an hour, quickly fry in a pan with oil at maximum heat of the burner until browned.
3. Pour the soy sauce and minced garlic into the pan and put a lid on it. Reduce the heat.
4. Cook for a quarter hour, turning shanks occasionally.

Tip! To check the meat for readiness, pierce it with a fork. If it comes out a light transparent liquid, then the legs are ready to eat.

Chahohbili

A fragrant dish with a bright savory flavor can make even a novice hostess.

The set of products:

• 1 kg of chicken shanks;
• 1 cup tomato juice;
• 100 g butter;
• 1 kg ripe tomatoes;
• 250 grams of onions
• bulb of garlic;
• 1 tsp. coriander, hummelsuneli;
• salt;
• chili pod.

Cooking instructions:

1. Prepare the stalks. Peel, chop onion, garlic.
2. Rinse fresh tomatoes with boiling water. Remove skin, cut into cubes.
3. Fry shank on a hot pan without oil, put in a cauldron or heavy-wall saucepan. Add tomatoes, salt, pour tomato juice. Cook for 10 minutes.
4. Fry half rings of onions in butter, transfer to cauldron.
5. After a quarter of an hour add other ingredients (garlic, spices). After 5 minutes remove cauldron from heat. Allow Georgian dish to stand for half an hour.

Serve chahohbili with greens, boiled, baked potatoes.

Cooking chicken legs in the multicooker

In the multicooker you can quickly, without much trouble create a culinary masterpiece of chicken legs, while retaining the useful properties of the meat.

Chicken shanks with sour cream

To prepare chicken shanks with mushroom flavor, prepare the products:

• 5 shanks;
• 0,5 kg mushrooms;
• 250 g of low-fat sour cream;
• 3 onions;
• 50 ml vegetable oil;
• one bay leaf;
• salt; turmeric;
• 2 tsp. curry.

How to prepare:

1. Roast salted shanks in the bowl of a multicooker until golden.
2. Add onion with chopped onion rings. Cook in the same stir-fry mode until the vegetable becomes caramelized.
3. Chop mushrooms in slices. Add them to the bowl with the shanks. Continue to stir-fry.
4. After 5 minutes, add sour cream and spices. Cook for half an hour in stew mode.

Chicken legs stewed in sour cream can be combined with boiled potatoes.

Chicken legs in foil

The dish is cooked in a multicooker in "Baking" mode without adding oil, which does not increase its caloric content, preserves the natural taste, the benefits.

Ingredients:

• 0.5 kg of chicken shanks;
• 2 cloves of garlic;
• 50 g sour cream;
• 1 tsp mustard;
• herbs;
• salt, pepper, coriander.

Method of preparation:

1. Defrost, wash, dry and put in a deep bowl the shanks.
2. Peel, chop garlic in any convenient way.
3. Season chicken with salt and pepper, mustard, sour cream. Mix it up so that the marinade evenly covers the meat.
4. After an hour, place the legs on a sheet of foil, seal the edges.
5. Cook in the multicooker for an hour and a half.

Serve chicken shanks in foil with fresh bread, pita bread.

Diet dishes with chicken shanks

Nonfat, nutritious product is recommended by nutritionists to include in the menu for obesity, to maintain a slender figure. Gently cooked chicken legs can be eaten for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Zucchini with chicken and herbs

Despite the low calorie portion (81 kcal), the dish with the flavor of rosemary quickly and for a long time satiates, nourishes the body with useful elements.

Product set:

• 8 shanks;
• 1 pc. zucchini, carrots, onions;
• two stalks celery;
• sprig rosemary;
• pepper, salt;
• 2 cloves of garlic;
• 0.5 tbsp. olive oil;
• Glass of water (chicken broth).

How to prepare:

1. Peel garlic, celery, carrots, and onions. Pass garlic through the press, the rest of the vegetables, including zucchini, cut into cubes. Chop rosemary leaves.
2. Wash and dry stalks. Rub with spices and herbs.
3. Fry shanks in oil for five minutes.
4. Clean the frying pan. Sauté carrots and onions in the same oil.
5. Add garlic, zucchini.
6. After 5 minutes, transfer vegetables to sauté pan. Place shanks on top. Pour water or stock.
7. Braise for 20 minutes.

The dish is quite independent, it does not require a side dish.

Steamed chicken shanks

Steamed shanks are easy to prepare. Wash shanks in running water, dry with paper towels. Rub with salt, paprika and curry to make it more flavorful. Drizzle with olive oil. After 10 minutes put the legs in the steamer. Cook for 40 minutes.

How to Boil a Chicken Shank Deliciously

Boil chicken shanks to make broths and soups, add to side dishes, or use in salads.

Tip! To keep shanks juicy, remove cooked product from broth just before eating.

Flavorful Boiled Chicken Legs

To make fragrant boiled shanks, you'll need:

• two shanks;
• 3 peas of black pepper.;
• 2 bay leaves;
• 1 tsp. Italian herbs;
• salt.

Preparation Steps:

1. Lower the rinsed shanks into a pot of cold water. Put the container on the stove.
2. After boiling, turn down the heat, remove the foam.
3. Boil for 25-30 minutes. Five minutes before the end of cooking, add herbs, bay leaves, salt, pepper.

A suitable side dish is boiled potatoes.

Q&A

The most frequently asked questions from consumers relate to the proper serving of chicken shanks, cooking time and shelf life of finished dishes.

What can I serve chicken shanks with?

Chicken shanks are eaten as a separate dish or with various cereal, vegetable side dishes. Chicken is combined with crumbled rice, buckwheat, pasta, boiled, baked or mashed potatoes.

The legs can be served with lettuce, greens, fresh vegetable salad with oil dressing, ketchup, soy sauce, sour cream.

How long do you cook the shanks?

Cooking time for chicken shanks is 25-60 minutes. Broiler legs cook no longer than half an hour, chicken parts - not less than 45 minutes.

To get the broth, boil the chicken on low heat for 40-45 minutes.

How, where and how long is the cooked chicken kept?

According to sanitary and epidemiological rules and regulations baked, smoked chicken parts retain consumer properties in the domestic refrigerator at a temperature of 2-6°C for 72 hours.

Boiled, stewed and fried chicken keeps two days. Legs in sauce are edible for only 12 hours.

The maximum shelf life of cooked product at room temperature is 6 hours.

Chicken in a pot of soup or broth will last on the refrigerator shelf for 3-4 days.

Chicken shank dishes are sent to storage after they have cooled completely. Keep longer taste, useful properties of chicken shanks, placed in a hermetically sealed food container or tightly wrapped in foil, folded in several layers. In plastic bags, food wrap spoils shanks faster.

What are braised onions?

Passaging is a cooking method in which vegetables are lightly fried in a pan in oil, until semi-cooked.

If your family or guests prefer the bright, spicy flavor of chicken, add chili when cooking. In any case, the chicken will taste better if the product is marinated in honey-mustard, sour cream, orange or lemon sauce before heat treatment.