Chicken Drumsticks, Ethiopian Style

By RobinPD

You can do this with chicken wings or thighs, too, but don't use breasts — they will dry out. Cook the chicken how you want. You will need to reach an internal temperature of at least 175° for it to taste right, but I like to cook them slow and low until the meat is almost falling off the bone. The longer you cook, the more you need to baste with all that chicken-y goodness that renders out of the drumsticks.

Ingredients

• Spice Mix:
• 3-4 pounds chicken legs, thighs or wings
• 2 Tbsp peanut oil, or melted butter (or ghee)
• Salt
• Lemons or limes for serving
• 2 Tbsp sweet paprika
• 1 Tbsp hot paprika, or 1-2 teaspoons cayenne
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground fenugreek
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 325°. Coat the drumsticks in the peanut oil or melted butter, then sprinkle with salt.

Mix all the spices together in a small bowl. In a large bowl, mix half of the spice mix with the chicken, then arrange the drumsticks in a casserole dish lined with enough foil to make a package; you will be cooking these legs covered for most of the time.

Sprinkle more of the spice mix over the drumsticks. You can use all of the spice mix, or stop whenever you want. The more mix, the spicier the chicken. Fold over the foil to seal up the drumsticks and bake for 90 minutes.

At 90 minutes, open up the foil packet to let the chicken continue to cook uncovered. Continue cooking for at least another 15 minutes, and as long as you like. I like the meat to almost fall off the bone on my drumsticks, so I cook uncovered for another 30-45 minutes.

To serve, baste with a little of the sauce that forms at the bottom of the pan, and use the rest to flavor some rice or flatbread. Squeeze some lemon or lime juice over the chicken right before you serve it. A green salad is a good side dish, too.