How Long to Boil Chicken Legs

Chicken is one of the most versatile animal proteins on the planet: fry it, bake it, grill it, smoke it, or – as we’ll discuss here – boil it! It’s delicious almost any way it’s made, but some parts, specifically the legs, have a tendency to dry out when cooked over a flame or in the oven. There’s one incredibly easy way to prevent your chicken from drying out during the cooking process: boil it first. How long do chicken legs take to boil? Keep reading to find out.

So, How Long Does it Take to Boil Chicken Legs?

How long to boil chicken legs is determined by a few things: what segment of the leg you’re boiling, how much it weighs and what you intend to use it for. It’s important to note that, in any case, you’ll want to have a meat thermometer on hand to ensure the internal temperature of the chicken has reached 165℉ for safety purposes – food poisoning, especially salmonella, can be dangerous.

How to Boil Chicken Legs

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. The pot must be large enough to accommodate all of your chicken and plenty of water, or you’ll have to work in batches.
2. Slowly introduce the raw chicken legs to the boiling water.
3. Boil the chicken legs for the recommended amount of time.
4. Remove chicken legs from the boiling water using metal tongs and allow to dry on a paper towel-lined plate.

Leg Segment

How Long Does it Take to Boil Chicken Drumsticks?

Chicken drumsticks should be boiled for 25 minutes.

How Long Does it Take to Boil Chicken Leg Quarters?

Leg quarters (the drumstick and the thigh) should be boiled for a minimum of 25-30 minutes.

How Long Does it Take to Boil Chicken Feet?

To eat them, chicken feet need to be boiled for at least 60 minutes, but if you’re using them to make a soup stock or collagen-rich bone broth, you can boil them much longer to release nutrients.

Uses

It’s important to note that it’s not strictly necessary to boil chicken legs before using another method of cooking to finish them, but boiling them before grilling, baking or making soup will cut down on the amount of cooking time and change the texture of the final result, which is desired in some cases.

How Long to Boil Chicken Legs before Grilling

To ensure the chicken legs are done and prevent them from getting dry on the grill, boil them for 5-10 minutes before grilling.

How Long to Boil Chicken Legs before Baking

Boiling before baking can help crisp the chicken skin on the legs and ensure they stay juicy and flavorful. Boil for 20 minutes before baking.

How Long to Boil Chicken Legs for Soup

It takes between 20 and 30 minutes to cook the chicken legs–whether you do this at the same time as boiling the soup or before is up to you.

How to Tell if the Chicken Legs are Done Boiling

There are a few ways to determine if the chicken legs have boiled long enough:

• The meat thermometer reads 165℉ when inserted into the thickest part of the leg and/or thigh (check multiple places for accuracy).
• The juices from the chicken run clear.
• The center of the leg, when cut into, is white and completely opaque with no pink or translucency.

It’s best to use a combination of these methods (the meat thermometer is a must) to make sure the chicken is fully cooked. If any of these tests yields a negative result; i.e., the temperature is too low, the juices are slightly bloody, or the center of the chicken leg is still pink, adjust the cooking time, allow it to boil longer and check again.

How Long to Boil Chicken Legs

Chicken Leg Segment	How Long to Boil (minutes)
Drumstick	25 minutes
Thigh	20-25 minutes
Leg Quarter	30 minutes
Feet	60 minutes