Sweet and Spicy Chicken Drumsticks

Chicken drumsticks are my favorite part for buffet dinners. They are easy to serve and are the perfect portion when combined with other dishes.
The recipe here makes using them even easier, as they are mixed with the marinade in the pan ahead of time, and kept in the fridge until ready to roast.

The main ingredient in the marinade is a homemade sweet and spicy peppers sauce, which, unlike store bought ones, contains mostly fresh peppers, without any preservatives or additions. It’s very easy and quick to make, and it gives the marinade and the dish wonderful flavor and aroma. Try it and enjoy.

Notes:
* The sauce can also be used as a dipping sauce for fried chicken, fish or shrimps, and a tablespoon of it will upgrade soups, stews and other dishes.
* Pectin powder is a natural thickener which is extracted from fruits. It works best when added to heated liquid that has some sugar in it, so make sure to add it only after the sauce has been cooked for a while.

Makes: 10 buffet portions or 5 dinner portions
Prep time: 10 minutes (not including preparing the peppers sauce)
Marinating time: 1 hour and up to overnight
Roasting time: 1 hour

Ingredients:
2.8 lbs (1.25 Kg) Chicken drumsticks (preferably air chilled)
1/3 cup sweet and spicy peppers sauce (recipe below)
¼ cup soy sauce
2 Tbs apricot jam
2 garlic cloves, crushed to a paste
1 tsp ginger, chopped fine to a paste
1 Tbs whole grain Dijon mustard
1 tsp Sriracha sauce (or any other hot sauce), or to taste
1 tsp salt
For serving:
2 scallions, chopped

1. Line a deep roasting pan with aluminum foil and baking paper. Dry the chicken drumsticks well with paper towels and place in the pan. Add the peppers sauce, soy sauce, apricot jam, garlic paste, ginger paste, mustard, Sriracha sauce and salt. Mix to coat the chicken with the marinade. Cover and place in the fridge for an hour, and up to overnight. Turn the chicken in the marinade occasionally.

2. When ready to roast, preheat the oven to 400F (205C). Bring the chicken to room temperature and place in the oven. Roast for 15 minutes, then turn down the temperature to 375F (190C). Roast for about 45 minutes longer, turning the chicken and basting with the marinade 2-3 times while roasting. If the chicken turns too dark, cover the pan loosely with aluminum foil.
3. Transfer to a serving dish, scatter chopped scallions on top and serve hot.

Sweet and Spicy Pepper Sauce
Makes: 1½ cups
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 35 minutes

Combine 3 cups seeded mini peppers, 1 garlic clove and ½ cup water in a bowl. Using a hand blender, blend to a fine mixture. You should end up with 1 2/3 cups mixture. Transfer into a medium size pot. Add ¼ cup apple cider vinegar, 1/3 cup sugar, 1 Tbs salt, 1 tsp hot paprika, 1 tsp red Tabasco sauce. Mix well and bring to the boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to simmer and, while whisking, add 1 Tbs pectin powder. Mix again and cook for another 20 minutes, until the sauce thickens, mixing occasionally. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. The sauce will keep, in an airtight jar the fridge, for up to a month.