This 5 Ingredient Slow Cooker Chicken Legs recipe is flavor-packed and easy to prepare with a few simple ingredients. These chicken legs, made with soy sauce, require almost no effort – dinner is done in 10 minutes!
Easy 5 Ingredient Crockpot Chicken Legs Recipe
This meal is super simple and a major crowd pleaser, and it all comes together with 10 minutes of prep time, 5 ingredients, and a slow cooker. I’ve made this at least a million times, maybe more, and it’s a hit. Every. Single. Time. It’s basically a slow cooker version of my very favorite (and sort of internet famous) baked chicken legs recipe, but it takes jam instead of honey. (Both are delicious, by the way, and add a nice touch of sweetness to an otherwise savory dish!)
The best part about this recipe? You hardly have to do a thing. Seriously! The slow cooker does practically ALL the heavy lifting — all you do is place the chicken legs in the slow cooker, mix up the other 4 ingredients, and pour it over the top. Turn on the ol’ slow cooker, and let it go to town! The sauce that the ingredients create is pure heaven, too… I recommend serving it over some rice with steamed vegetables.
The sauce created from the juices is delicious. Feel free to serve it over rice with your meal.
What Do You Need to Make Slow Cooker Chicken Legs?
This recipe to make chicken legs in the slow cooker is a joy because you only need FIVE ingredients: 3-or-so pounds of chicken legs or drumsticks, 1 cup of jam or jelly, 1/2 cup of ketchup, 1/3 cup of soy sauce, and 2 teaspoons minced garlic.
How Long Do the Chicken Legs Last?
If you have leftover chicken legs, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can cut the leftover chicken from the bone and use it in a stir fry and a salad to remix the meal. Store leftover sauce separately in an airtight container for up to 5 days, as well.
How Can You Customize Slow Cooker Chicken Legs?
There are PLENTY of ways to make this recipe your own! You can use all kinds of jams and jellies in the recipe, but I particularly like grape, apple, apricot, and peach. They add a really nice flavor without being too fruity or seedy (I usually avoid seedy ones, like blackberry or strawberry).
You can also add a couple tablespoons of Sriracha or another favorite hot sauce to amp up the spice levels, or throw in some smoky seasonings to make it even richer. It’s super versatile, so add whatever flavors you love!
You can pair this with just about any sides that you like! It’s pretty rich and so very delicious, so even a nice and simple side salad would go well, or some steamed rice to soak up that yummy sauce with steamed veggies.
Tips and Tricks for Making Slow Cooker Chicken Legs
- You can use all kinds of jams and jellies for this recipe. My favorites are grape, apple, apricot, or peach. They have a nice flavor and sweetness without being too fruity. I normally avoid jams with seeds such as blackberry.
- You can add so many things to these chicken legs! Add a tablespoon or three of Siracha or other favorite hot sauce for some spice, add a teaspoon of Montreal Steak Seasoning for a little bit of smokiness, or throw in some favorite spices like onion powder, cumin, or ginger. It’s very flexible and very versatile.
- The sauce that the cooking chicken creates is delicious. Feel free to serve it over rice. Add a side of steamed veggies and you have yourself a complete meal.
- I normally plan on two chicken legs per person as a serving size. This is a great recipe for a crowd and scales up and down really nicely.
- If you like your chicken legs a little crispy on the outside, you can remove them from the slow cooker after they’re finished cooking and put them on a rimmed baking sheet. Brush them with additional sauce left in the slow cooker. Broil them in the oven for around 5 minutes until you reach your desired crispiness.
5 Ingredient Slow Cooker Chicken Legs
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 4 hours
- Total Time: 4 hours 10 minutes
- Yield: Serves 6-8 1x
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Pin RecipeDescription
This 5 Ingredient Slow Cooker Chicken Legs recipe is flavor-packed and easy to prepare with a few simple ingredients. These chicken legs, made with soy sauce, require almost no effort – dinner is done in 10 minutes!
Ingredients
- 3 to 3.5 pound chicken legs or drumsticks
- 1 cup jam or jelly, see notes
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1/3 cup soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic (or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder)
Instructions
- Place the chicken legs in the bottom of the slow cooker.
- In a small bowl add the jam or jelly, ketchup, soy sauce, and garlic. Mix to combine well.
- Pour the sauce over the chicken legs.
- Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 5-6 or until the chicken is cooked through.
- Enjoy the chicken hot.
Notes
- You can use all kinds of jams and jellies for this recipe. My favorites are grape, apple, apricot, or peach. They have a nice flavor and sweetness without being too fruity. I normally avoid jams with seeds such as blackberry.
- You can add so many things to these chicken legs! Add a tablespoon or three of Siracha or other favorite hot sauce for some spice, add a teaspoon of Montreal Steak Seasoning for a little bit of smokiness, or throw in some favorite spices like onion powder, cumin, or ginger. It’s very flexible and very versatile.
- The sauce that the cooking chicken creates is delicious. Feel free to serve it over rice. Add a side of steamed veggies and you have yourself a complete meal.
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: chicken legs recipe, easy chicken legs recipe, slow cooker chicken recipe, slow cooker chicken legs recipe, easy chicken crockpot recipe, easy chicken dinner recipe, best chicken legs recipe
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So many great chicken and slow cooker recipes! I hope you have time to make this one because it’s a keeper. You’ll love making crock pot chicken drumsticks because they are so easy to make and your whole family will love them too.
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Can I use bbq sauce instead of ketchup?
Yes, it would be delicious.
Hello, an awesome recipe! All we added was 1 TBS of Frank’s Hot Sauce. It’s so easy my 15-year-old son made it. Thank you
★★★★★
Ohhh sounds like a perfect addition! And way to go, getting your kid in the kitchen, it’s a life skill!
This was so simple & delicious. After the chicken legs were cooked, I removed them to a platter to allow them to cool. Then I removed the meat from the bones to shred and put back into the sauce. I served over rice along with streamed broccoli. Thank you for this recipe.
★★★★★
Yessss the sauce is so good over rice and veggie, glad you used it!
My favorite chicken leg recipe to this day. I like to also take the sauce that it cooks in, and when it is done cooking, add a cornstarch slurry and make it thick and put the sauce and chicken over rice. It has been fun mixing up the type of jam I use. This recipe has been used AT LEAST once a month since discovering it.
★★★★★
Yay! This is totally how I approach this recipe, mix it up and make it often! Thank you for including a picture, it’s SO much fun to see it in your home!
When I calculated the ingredients I used, I got 2,136 calories for 6 drumsticks. I took off the skin and dumped the extra sauce mixture in the trash. Any idea what the calorie count would be per drumstick in this case?
Thank you!
★★★★★
It’s hard to tell but there’s no way it’s that mush since you don’t eat all of the sauce…
Was delicious and took no time at all to prepare for the slow cooker-literally 5 minutes. I opted for apricot preserves and we all loved the flavor. I also used the tip to crisp in the broiler after finished in the slow cooker. Will definitely make this again!
★★★★★
Found this recipe originally on Pinterest, and it was super easy and tastes great!! Thanks!
★★★★★
Can this be made with frozen chicken wings
Yep, just add some cooking time, about 30-60 minutes.
I want to make this today. Can I use apple sauce instead of jam?
Hmmmm, I have no idea. In my mind it’ll be too thick. The jam essentially turns into liquid as the sugar melts, applesauce wouldn’t do that. BUT if you do try it, will you let us know how it goes?
I want to try this recipe today. Can I use apple sauce instead of jam?
Is it okay to mix different flavor jams together and use as I have all these sampler jams I would like to use. Also, what vegetables or potatoes would be good to toss in while cooking this in crockpot.
Yes, I use this to use up odds and ends all of the time, no issue with mixing up flavors. I like this with roasted veggies and rice or I’ll put a piece of foil or parchment on top of the cooking chicken and but in medium/smaller washed whole potatoes and they “bake” on top the the chicken while the chicken is cooking without getting too much in the flavor or without getting too sticky/gooey. I don’t really like any vegetables cooked in with the chicken really but I’m a little picky about vegetables.
Hi, can you use orange marmalade?
Yes and we like it a lot, I tend to use a little less than the recipe calls for though as it has a powerful flavor!