The Secret To Quickly Cooking Chicken Drumsticks Is To Debone Them First

If you even dabble in preparing poultry, then you'll certainly have a stance on cooking with bone-in versus boneless chicken cuts. In addition to influencing the flavor palate, there's a distinct approach to cooking each type. Bone-in cuts require a longer cooking duration, since they'll transfer less heat than surrounding meat. Not to mention, the composition influences the recipe's texture, too. So, say you've got a batch of chicken drumsticks on hand — they're both delicious and reasonably priced — but don't want to deal with the time and effort of the bone. Well, you can easily turn the drumsticks boneless.

The deboning process itself isn't too complicated: The move only becomes laborious with a multitude of drumsticks. You'll just need a paring knife for the job, as its smaller blade will enable delicate knifework. Start by slicing across the tendons at the narrow part of the drumstick, and then slide the knife along the bone length. Separate as much meat as possible, cutting right along the bone, and then swiftly yank the bone away. Just make sure to watch for an especially sharp protruding bone piece at the top. You might need to rotate and apply force while pulling, but you'll eventually remove an intact piece of meat. Give the chicken a final trim for any fat, skin, and other connective tissue, and it's ready for further applications.

Taken right off the bone, the drumstick chicken meat won't look like the most aesthetic cut. The meat will likely come with a few tears, and since it's a part of the leg, there are some tendons, fat, and even a bit of skin. Yet, such an appearance says nothing about the taste; this is one of the moistest, most strongly flavored parts of the bird. So, chop up the poultry into evenly-sized pieces, and you'll be ready to cook.

A great starting point is a chicken stir-fry; the dish lets small-cut dark meat shine. You can enhance the flavors further with a simple two ingredient chicken marinade, and craft a tasty stir-fry sauce, too. Just don't forget one of the worst mistakes with stir-fry ingredients: You need to cook the protein first, and then set it aside. So throw the chicken drumsticks in a hot wok, and you'll get an extra tasty color and crisp in minutes.

If you're not feeling going down an Asian-inspired route, then you could always sauté the chicken pieces alongside some garlic and simple seasonings. Alternatively, leave the drumstick filet whole, and bake like a chicken thigh; the cut lends to diverse applications. Finally, if you're not in the mood for all of the deboning work, it's also easy to butterfly chicken drumsticks for the grill. Just a bit of at-home butchering work will let this poultry cut shine in a new light.