Foil-Packet BBQ Drumsticks
Drumsticks cooked over coals in foil, then opened up to crisp in their own sauce.
- calories
- 420
- weight
- 9 oz
- cal / oz
- 47
- protein
- 38 g
- serves
- 5, scales
- prep
- 5 min
- cook
- 35 min
- total time
- 40 min
- water
- none
- cost
- $
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dinner
- Campfire coals
- Grill grate
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- Gluten free
- Foil packet
- Grab and go
- Needs a cooler
- Basic
Ingredients
| Chicken drumsticks | 10 (2-3 lbs) | packed frozen, they thaw in the cooler over a day |
|---|---|---|
| Salt and pepper | to taste | |
| BBQ sauce | 1/2 to 3/4 cup | single-serve packets or a small squeeze bottle; check the label if you need it gluten-free |
| Heavy-duty foil | 4 large sheets |
Method
- Burn a fire down to coals, or run a grill at a steady medium. You want heat you can hold a hand over for three seconds, not flames.
- Pat the drumsticks dry with a paper towel and season them hard with salt and pepper. Dry skin is the whole game.
- Brush on about 3 tablespoons of sauce, then wrap the legs in doubled foil in packets of three or four.
- Set the packets on the grate over the coals for 20 minutes, turning once.
- Open the foil, flip each leg, and brush on more sauce. Leave the packets open and cook another 10 to 15 minutes so the sauce sets and the skin tightens.
- Cut into the thickest leg down to the bone. Juices run clear and no pink at the joint, or it goes back on.
Home ovens hold 400°F without being asked. A fire does not, so the foil does that job instead: it traps steam and cooks the meat through at whatever heat the coals happen to be giving. Opening the packet for the last stretch is what turns it from steamed chicken into something with a crust, because the sauce cannot caramelize while it is sitting in trapped moisture.
This is a cooler recipe, not a backcountry one. Raw chicken needs to stay cold until it hits the fire, so freeze it solid at home and cook it in the first day or two. No water goes in the pot at any point, and the foil comes off as trash, which means nothing to scrub in the dark.
Packing
Freeze the drumsticks flat in a zip bag before the drive; they act as an ice block and thaw by dinner on night one or two. Sauce packets go in the same bag so a leak stays contained. Bring more foil than you think you need.
Variations
- Skip the foil and cook straight on the grate over lower coals if you want harder char. It takes longer and needs watching.
- A dutch oven with the lid on works the same way: 30 minutes covered, then lid off to set the sauce.
- Dry rub only, no sauce, if you are worried about a sticky bear-attracting mess in camp.
https://mealswithmaria.site/baked-bbq-chicken-drumsticks