Crispy Salt & Pepper Drumsticks

1Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F (232 C). This high heat is our secret weapon for getting those Salt & Pepper Drumsticks wonderfully crispy—it helps the skin crisp up beautifully before the chicken has a chance to dry out. After the oven says it's preheated, give it an extra 15 to 20 minutes to fully stabilize at that temperature. This ensures the heat inside is truly consistent.

2Now, you don't have to do this next step, but it adds to the wow factor for presentation. Its a technique called "Frenching" the drumsticks. This is a simple step that makes your finished dish look really elegant and gives you a nice, clean bone handle to hold while eating. To do this, take one drumstick and place it on your cutting board. Grab a sharp paring knife and find the narrowest part of the drumstick, which is usually where the meat stops and the knuckle starts—this is typically about 1 to 1.5 inches (2.5 to 4 cm) from the very end of the bone. Gently score a clean, deep ring all the way around the bone at that point, making sure you cut through the skin, tendons, and any small bits of meat. Once you've scored the ring, you can use your knife or your fingers to push all the meat, skin, and connective tissue down the bone toward the wider, meaty section of the drumstick. It should slide down quite a bit. Take some kitchen shears and trim off any tendons, and clean up all of the skin off of the knuckle.

3Next, pat the chicken dry and coat them all with vegetable oil. The goal is for the entire surface of each drumstick to look glossy and fully coated. This layer of oil is really important because it helps the skin crisp up beautifully and acts like a perfect base for our seasoning. Once they are glistening, it's time to season them up! Generously sprinkle your kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper all over the chicken, pressing the seasoning into the meat.

4Place some foil on a baking sheet (dull side up - that is the non-stick side). Space the chicken out on the foil, and place into the oven. We're going to bake them for a total of 40-45 minutes until crispy. After 20 minutes, open the oven and rotate the baking sheet 180 degrees. This helps ensure that all the drumsticks cook and brown evenly. While you're there, you can use tongs to give the drumsticks a quick, gentle nudge just to make sure they aren't sticking to the foil (careful not to tear them or disrupt the skin). Continue baking for the remaining 20-25 minutes.

5Carefully remove from the foil, and arrange on a platter. As they cool they will crisp up a bit more.