Turkey Legs in Oven
Turkey legs aren’t just for Thanksgiving around here. Growing up in a Southern kitchen, they showed up at Sunday dinners and holidays, always seasoned with love and cooked until tender. Now, with over a decade of sharing my recipes online, I’ve put together a baked turkey leg recipe that works every time. You know my recipe is coming with crispy skin, juicy meat, and always well seasoned because we don't do bland!
Servings 4 servings
Calories 451kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup sliced onions I used white onions.
- 1 cup sliced green and red bell peppers peppers
- 3-4 pounds turkey legs
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil Use enough to coat each leg.
- 1 tablespoon Creole Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup broth Any broth, turkey, chicken, vegetable, etc.
- foil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
- Place the sliced onions and bell peppers into the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish.
- Pat the legs dry. Place the legs in the dish and drizzle both sides of the legs olive oil and then sprinkle the spices onto both sides of the legs. Be sure to use enough spices to cover the skin of both sides of the legs. Add additional as necessary to prevent bland turkey.
- Rub the spices into the legs. Drizzle the broth in the pan around the turkey legs. Don't drizzle it on top of the turkey because you don't want to lose the spices.
- Cover the dish with foil and bake for 2 hours.
- Remove the foil and adjust the oven temperature to 350 degrees. Allow the legs to bake for an additional 20-40 minutes or until the skin is crisp and the turkey is tender and falls off the bone. You can test if the legs have finished cooking by using a meat thermometer. Test the thickest part of the leg and ensure the turkey has reached a minimum internal temperature of 165 degrees.
- Cool before serving.
Notes
- You can substitute Creole seasoning for any of your favorite spices or chicken/turkey rubs.
- You can also use chicken drumsticks. Be sure to test if the chicken is done by inserting a meat thermometer into the thickest parts of one of the pieces of chicken. Chicken must be cooked to an internal temperature of at least 165 degrees.
- You will need to use a meat thermometer. Insert the meat thermometer into the thickest part of one the turkey wings. According to the USDA, Poultry must be cooked to a minimum internal temperature of 165 degrees.
- The legs are baked and covered at a lower temperature initially, in order to cook the turkey throughout.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 451kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 56g | Fat: 20g