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My Crispiest, Juiciest Baked Chicken Leg Quarters
I’ve been baking chicken drumsticks and chicken thighs for decades, but when I realized a few years ago that chicken leg quarters are a more cost-effective alternative for literally the same thing, I felt like I discovered a secret. (Now I just feel silly… am I the only one that didn’t know?!) I make these baked chicken leg quarters all the time now — here’s why:
- Juicy and tender with crispy skin – Golden and crispy outside, practically fall-off-the-bone juicy inside. It’s the best.
- Effortless flavor – Chicken leg quarters are entirely dark meat, which means loads of flavor! Don’t get me wrong, a healthy baked chicken breast can be juicy, but it can’t beat dark meat in the flavor department.
- Quick and easy – I season the chicken with pantry basics (chances are you have them on hand) and pop them in the oven. The prep takes just minutes!
- Cost effective – This cut of chicken is such a good value. Just like whole chicken wings are cheaper than ones that are cut, chicken quarters cost less than thighs and drumsticks separately.
Serve these chicken leg quarters with a healthy side dish and you’ve got a winner of a chicken dinner. Make them with me!
Ingredients & Substitutions
Here I explain the best ingredients for my crispy baked chicken leg quarters, what each one does in the recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card.
- Chicken Leg Quarters – Sometimes I see them called chicken quarters or chicken hindquarters at the grocery store. They are simply whole chicken legs (thighs and drumsticks) that also have a piece of the back attached.
- Olive Oil – Oil adds flavor, helps the seasonings stay on, and most importantly, gets the skin crispy. Any heat-safe oil works — sometimes I use avocado oil instead.
- Spices – You can season these with any spices you’d normally use for chicken. My go-to blend is paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, sea salt, and black pepper. If you like a kick, 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper makes a nice addition. Or if you want some comforting flavor, use my homemade poultry seasoning.
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How To Cook Chicken Leg Quarters
I have step-by-step photos here to help you visualize the recipe. For full instructions, including amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card.
- Prep and dry. Preheat your oven. Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel to remove excess moisture. This allows the skin to get crispy later!
- Season. Brush the chicken with olive oil. Season with paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Make sure to get both sides!
- Bake. Arrange the chicken on an oven-safe rack fitted over a baking sheet (I love this thing!), skin side down. Bake chicken leg quarters in the oven, flipping halfway through, until crispy and cooked through.
- Rest. Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes before serving. This helps the juices settle so that the chicken won’t be dry.
You can serve the chicken quarters whole, but they are very large. So, in my family we usually cut them apart (separate the thighs and drumsticks), and everyone chooses the cut they prefer.
My Recipe Tips
- You can pre-mix the spices. I find that it can save time to mix them in a small bowl and then season the chicken with the mixture all at once. The flip side is it’s one more dish to wash, so it depends on your needs.
- Want extra crispy skin? Mix a couple teaspoons of baking powder with the spices, like I do for my other baked chicken recipe.
- Baking on a rack isn’t a must, but improves results. I have this set and it allows air flow all around the chicken while baking. Translation: even cooking and crispier skin! But if all you have is a regular sheet sheet pan, that’s totally fine as long as it’s not crowded.
- Line the pan with aluminum foil (underneath the rack) if you like. Lining the pan is not required, but makes for easier cleanup.
- Bake skin-side-down first. It’s best to have the chicken leg quarters skin-side-up last, because this keeps the skin crispy. When I cooked them skin side down last, the skin was softer.
- Use a meat thermometer for perfect results. Cooking times can vary depending on the size of your chicken quarters. I like this instant-read thermometer, but actually use this probe thermometer the most because it beeps when ready and I don’t have to keep checking. It’s hard to overcook dark meat, so don’t stress if you don’t have a thermometer, but having one allows you to take advantage of my next tip…
- Cook to 170 degrees F for the juiciest results. Like all chicken recipes, baked chicken quarters are safe to eat once they reach 165 degrees F. However, because leg dark meat has more connective tissue than white meat, it will be more tender if you cook it to 170-175 degrees F. I always do this for dark meat and you’ll taste the difference!
- Broil if you need to crisp the skin more. I don’t usually need to, but you can place the chicken under the broiler for a few minutes at the end.
- Can you air fry them? Absolutely! I bake the chicken for this recipe, but if you want an even faster method, you can air fry chicken leg quarters, too.
- Can you grill them? Also yes! You just need a special method that combines indirect and direct heat. See how I grill chicken quarters here.
Baked Chicken Leg Quarters (Crispy & Juicy)
By
My easy recipe for baked chicken leg quarters in the oven makes juicy, crispy chicken every time. You need just 5 simple ingredients!
Instructions
[ See step photos See my tips ]Tap on the times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer.
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Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (218 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with foil and place an oven safe rack on top.
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Pat the chicken leg quarters dry with paper towels, which will help them get crispy.
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Brush the chicken quarters with olive oil on both sides. Season both sides with paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper.
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Arrange the chicken on the rack, skin side down. Bake the chicken leg quarters in the oven for 15 minutes. Flip and bake for another 20-30 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 170 degrees F (74 degrees C).
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Optional step: If they are not crispy enough for your liking, place under the broiler for 2-3 minutes to crisp up the skin even more.
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Rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Did you make it? Leave a review or tag me @wholesomeyum on Instagram!
Maya’s Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1 chicken leg quarter
- Tips: Check out my recipe tips above to help you get the juiciest chicken leg quarters, ways to crisp up the skin more, how to make cleanup easier, and more.
- Storage: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. The skin does soften, so I usually remove the meat from the bones and repurpose it for soups or salads.
- Reheat: If you want to reheat the chicken leg quarters whole, the best method is the oven at 350 degrees F. You can place them under the broiler in the last few minutes if the skin isn’t crisp.
- Freeze: You can freeze the cooked chicken in zip lock bags for up to 3 months, or raw chicken quarters for up to 6-12 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight.
I provide nutrition facts as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see my nutrition policy.
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Baked Chicken Leg Quarters
Serving Ideas
Somehow, these baked chicken leg quarters are flavorful and neutral in flavor at the same time. Does that make any sense? The point is they go with anything. Here are some of my favorite sides to serve with them:
- Vegetables – Chicken and veggies is literally the meal I make most often. Particularly with chicken leg quarter recipes, though, vegetables can balance the heavy main dish. I like to saute eggplant, air fry cauliflower, or whip up some patty pan squash while I have the chicken quarters in the oven. But you can also roast broccoli, broccoli and cauliflower (pictured above), or asparagus first and just cover to keep warm.
- Potatoes – For a more comforting meal, make my Instant Pot sweet potatoes or even Greek lemon potatoes. My family’s go-to is simple, buttery air fryer potatoes — my kids ask for them often.
- Salads – For a lighter meal, try my creamy cucumber salad, earthy beet salad, or simple arugula salad.
More Baked Chicken Recipes
If you love chicken as much as I do, check out my other easy baked chicken recipes:
210 Comments
Rod
0Great, juicy, tender, amazing flavour.
patricia
0I made these chicken leg quarters last night for dinner. Oh, they were so good! I only made 2 instead of 4 thinking that would be enough for the 2 of us for couple nights. Surprise, they were so good we each ate the whole leg quarter. Might just go for a repeat tonight!
Thanks for your recipe. The added spices really add to the flavor of the meat.
Randy L Halford
0Liked the recipe although I didn’t use onion powder.
Margy
0This was so delicious! My now go-to chicken recipe!
Edward Mietzner
0I made this recipe tonight and it turned out perfect I don’t believe it could be and more juicy it truly was delicious. Thank you for the recipe.
Evelyn
0Bake at what temperature?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Evelyn, You can find this info in step #1– Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Enna
0Because my quarters were large, I baked these chicken legs for 45 minutes. Then because they were still “bleeding”, I put them on to broil for 20 minutes or more at different times because they were still bleeding.
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Enna, Sorry this recipe didn’t meet expectations. All ovens are different so it sounds like you needed some extra time to get the chicken fully cooked.
Erin Smith
0The only think I changed was using some of the herbs and spices under the skin as well as on the skin. Came out perfect.
baltisraul
0Wanted just a tad more crispy, so did 425 degrees and did both side for 20 min. Extremely juicy quarters!
Marc Joplin
0Definite amateur cook here. The recipe was simple to follow, although at the completion of cook time, much blood and pink meat existed. I ended up cooking on both sides for another 20 minutes per side. In all fairness, these were extremely large chicken leg quarters. Recipe made for delicious moist chicken. Thank you!
Mark Cameron
0This is a good recipe for those who have limited pantry items. Paprika, sea salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic powder should be in everyone’s spice rack. It’s always easier though to have a pre-mixed container of these ingredients on hand and ready. It’s better to use a shaker than your fingers to measure how much spice is going on to each piece. Nobody likes too much salt.
Beverly crawley
0I’ve been looking for a recipe for awhile that can help me bake chicken. I found this today. I’m baking my chicken now.
Brenda
0I have basically been making my similar version of this baked chicken for decades. It’s my go-to twice a week, especially when I don’t want to think too hard about making a menu for the week or don’t have a grocery list ready. But to those who feel it needs to be broiled, the way my recipe has evolved is to set oven temp to 425 and cook the leg quarters for 40 to 45 min for smaller leg quarters, 50 minutes if they are larger/plumper leg quarters.
Solomon salsberg
0The last 5 min broiler option is what I saw in the comments. I wash an dry and cut off extra fat, rest an dry in refrigerator, pat dry, pre heat oven while bringing chicken to Lil above room temperature, season, I use parchment an no rack(aluminum bad) kin up 20 min down in fat for 10 min. Skin up broil for as long as needed for internal temp you want. But look for crispyness not burn, I make a lot to be reasoned for other types of dishes so I use digital stick thermometer and highest temp gets eaten first..
Aaron
0Do yourself a favor and turn on the broiler for the last 3-5 minutes.
ERIN LANNING
0Loved it and it was very easy. i put the spicy on a little early to let them “soak” in. delicious!
Nick
0Easy recipe great taste and consistency.
charlene martin
0It had a good flavor I added thyme I couldn’t get it crispy.
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Charlene, Sorry this recipe didn’t meet your expectations. Did you pat the chicken leg quarters dry with paper towels?
Jan Craddock
0Should I cover them with a lid or foil? Or not at all
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Jan, No, don’t cover the chicken.
Marilyn Anderson
0Very delicious
Donna
0Easy-peasy! And super delicious! Just adjust the ingredients as to your taste. For me, little more paprika, sea salt, frequent basting with olive oil.