These smoky Korean-inspired drumsticks pack serious flavour, and a fiery kick, thanks to a bold dry rub and a finishing glaze of homemade chili oil. This is not a traditional Korean recipe, but definitely one that’ll steal the show at your next cookout.
We’re not trying to pass this off as an authentic Korean dish. The flavour profile just made us think of Korean BBQ. Instead of gochugaru peppers, which are typically used in Korean chili oil and which are milder and more common in Korean cooking, we use regular ground chili powder. We also throw in some smoked paprika to balance the heat and add a smoky touch.
If you’ve ever cooked drumsticks low and slow, you’ll know the skin can sometimes stay soft instead of crisping up. You could dry the drumsticks overnight in the fridge with the rub to fix that, but we take the lazy and tasty way out by removing the skin. Bonus? The dry rub goes straight onto the meat, not just the skin, so you get the flavour where it counts.
We smoked these drumsticks in our smoker, using a chunk of cherry wood nestled into the charcoal. This setup gives you a gentle, almost invisible smoke, and that’s exactly what you want. Heavy smoke can quickly overpower chicken. We’re aiming for a clean, subtle flavour.
We place the drumsticks on the second rack of the smoker, which we’ve found holds a more consistent temperature. Then, we close the lid and forget about them for the next hour. This low and slow cook breaks down the connective tissue and thick tendons, making the meat fall off the bone tender.
After about an hour, we generously baste the drumsticks with our homemade chili oil. You could serve them now, but we like to finish them with a quick sear over direct heat.
That final grilling step tones down the heat of the chili oil just a bit and gives the meat those tasty charred edges. Keep a close eye though. Oil and open flames can cause flare-ups and burn the chicken.
If you like it hot, put the chili oil on the table and let everyone crank up the heat to their own taste.
Are you planning to try these Korean-style drumsticks? Drop a comment below, or even better, snap a photo and tag @bbqhelden on Instagram. We’d love to see what you come up with.
Ingredients
- 8 chicken drumsticks
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tsp sea salt
- 2 tsp cumin
- 2 tsp granulated garlic
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp mustard powder
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp ground chili powder
- Homemade chili oil
Instructions
- Remove the skin from the drumsticks and coat them with olive oil.
- Mix all the dry ingredients (except the chili oil) in a small bowl, and sprinkle the rub evenly over the drumsticks.
- Set up your grill or smoker for indirect heat at 150°C (302°F).
- Place the drumsticks on the grill and let them cook for 1 hour. While they smoke, prepare the chili oil if you haven’t already.
- Brush the drumsticks generously with chili oil, then sear them briefly over direct heat, turning them to get a light char on all sides.prepare the chili oil
- Serve with extra chili oil on the side.
