Honey Garlic Chicken Lollipops

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These honey garlic chicken lollipops are a great little handheld treat. They’re a kid-friendly BBQ option that is the perfect amount of sweet and savory. Not sure what to make for dinner this week? Add these chicken lollipops to the list!

Honey garlic chicken lollipops on a white serving dish with text overlay - Honey Garlic Chicken Lollipops.

Drumsticks Turned Into Chicken Lollipops

A traditional chicken lollipop is made with chicken wings that have been cut to look like a lollipop. They are popular in Indo-Chinese cuisine.

My take on chicken lollipops is a bit different, as we’re using chicken drumsticks instead of wings, and the sauce in this recipe is a mild honey garlic glaze.

This chicken lollipops recipe is perfect for the whole family and extremely kid-friendly. The end result is clean hands and happy little mouths full of yummy chicken. It’s a solid parent win because what kid doesn’t want lollipops for dinner?

Scissors cutting into the fat on a chicken drumstick.

Chicken Lollipops

These honey garlic chicken lollipops are officially here to shake up your Tuesday night meal plan. My kids (and me, let’s be honest) love chicken drumsticks. Something about having my own little handle to convey meaty goodness into my mouth hole just makes me feel like a kid again!

The only problem is that drumsticks are dang messy, which can be fine unless you have a 2-year-old who is obsessed with having clean hands all of the time. Which is my current predicament. Cleaning the skin and everything off of the bones before grilling made these meaty morsels perfect for handheld consumption.

Chicken drumsticks in a honey garlic marinade.

Ingredients for Honey Garlic Chicken Lollipops

Once the chicken is in the right shape, it’s all about making the perfect flavor combo. My kids like sweet, sauce-covered drumsticks, and I like to be able to actually taste the chicken, so this recipe is a fair compromise.

I also wanted to save some time and energy when making these lollipops, so the fewer ingredients the better. Here’s what you need to make these lollipops.

  • 2 pounds chicken drumsticks
  • 1 cup garlic salad dressing
  • 1 Tablespoon Beef Rub (You can purchase this rub pre-made from the Hey Grill Hey Store, or season the drumsticks with equal parts salt and pepper.)

For the glaze, you’ll need the following:

  • 1/2 cup garlic salad dressing
  • 1/2 cup Everything BBQ Sauce (or you can use your favorite ketchup-based BBQ sauce instead)
  • 1/4 cup honey

This sauce is not too heavy, but it’s sweet and sticky enough to make everyone in the family go crazy.

A dozen chicken lollipops being seasoned with Beef Seasoning.

How to Make Honey Garlic Chicken Lollipops

Ready to make these amazing chicken lollipops? Here’s how to do it!

  1. Prep. The biggest difficulty with this chicken is cutting them into their lollipop shape. After many attempts to clean these drumsticks, I found that using a knife to clean the bones was no fun and super ineffective. The trick is to use some trusty kitchen shears, cut all around the bone, and then slide everything off. Once you get the hang of it, these should be prepped in just a few minutes.
  2. Marinate. Place the chicken lollipops in a gallon zip-top bag and add the garlic salad dressing. Marinate for 6-8 hours in the fridge.
  3. Season. When you are ready to cook the chicken, remove it from the marinade and discard the dressing. Season liberally with Beef Rub or equal parts salt and pepper.
  4. Grill. Preheated the grill to 350 degrees F. Place the marinated lollipops directly on the grill grates and cook for 30-35 minutes. Turn the meat every 10 minutes to ensure they cook evenly.
  5. Sauce. Make the glaze by combining salad dressing, Everything BBQ Sauce, and honey in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the sauce thickens slightly. Remove the chicken from the grill and toss in the sauce. Decrease the temperature on the grill to low and cook for an additional 10 minutes.
  6. Enjoy. Allow the honey garlic chicken lollipops to cool slightly before digging in!

Marinated honey garlic chicken lollipops on the grill.

How Long to Cook Chicken Lollipops

It takes 45 minutes or less to cook these garlic honey chicken lollipops. Make sure you are taking the temperature of the meat to ensure it is cooked to 165 degrees F as measured by an instant-read meat thermometer.

The real time commitment comes from marinating them for 6-8 hours prior to cooking, but I find if I toss them in the marinade at the beginning of the day they are ready to go by dinnertime.

Honey garlic chicken lollipops on a white serving dish.

More Chicken Legs Recipes

Looking for other delicious ways to cook up chicken legs and drumsticks? These recipes are tried and true and big favorites from Hey Grill Hey. Check them out today!

Honey Garlic Chicken Lollipops Recipe

Here’s hoping you all give these honey garlic chicken lollipops a go! I have to admit, I was a little intimidated at first, but making the drumsticks into lollipops was way easier than I anticipated. 

Honey Garlic Chicken Lollipops

By: Susie Bulloch
0 from 0 votes
These honey garlic chicken lollipops are a great little handheld treat. They're a kid-friendly BBQ option that is the perfect amount of sweet and savory. Not sure what to make for dinner this week? Add these chicken lollipops to the list!
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time45 minutes
Marinade Time6 hours
Total Time7 hours 5 minutes
Servings4 people

Ingredients
 

  • 2 lbs chicken drumsticks
  • 1 cup garlic salad dressing
  • 1 Tablespoon Hey Grill Hey Beef Rub or equal parts salt and pepper

Honey Garlic Glaze

  • ½ cup garlic salad dressing
  • ½ cup Everything BBQ sauce or your favorite ketchup-based BBQ sauce
  • ¼ cup honey

Instructions
 

  • Trim. Begin by preparing your chicken drumsticks. Using sharp kitchen shears. cut the skin and connective tissue off of the bone. Press the remaining leg meat on the drumsticks down so about 3 inches of the bone are exposed and the meat is somewhat condensed into a rounded "lollipop" shape.
  • Marinate. Place all of your trimmed lollipops into a large gallon zip-top bag and pour in 1 cup of the salad dressing. Seal the bag and gently toss to coat all of the drumsticks. Place in the refrigerator and allow to marinate for 6-8 hours.
  • Preheat. When you're ready to cook, start up your grill on medium heat. You want your temperature to be around 350 degrees F.
  • Season. Remove your chicken lollipops from the bag and discard the marinade. Season the chicken liberally with Beer Rub or equal parts salt and pepper. Place the drumsticks directly on the grill grates, close the lid, and cook for 30-35 minutes, turning every 10 minutes.
  • Make the glaze. While your chicken cooks, prepare your glaze. Combine the garlic salad dressing, Everything BBQ sauce, and honey in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring often until the ingredients are well combined and the sauce starts to thicken (about 10 minutes). Transfer to a large bowl and allow to cool for a few minutes.
  • Sauce and finish cooking. Remove your chicken lollipops from the grill and place them in the bowl of sauce. Toss to thoroughly coat all of the chicken in the glaze. Return the lollipops to the grill and reduce the temperature to low. Cook for an additional 10 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. F.
  • Enjoy. Transfer your chicken to a serving platter and serve with additional honey on the side, if desired.

Nutrition

Calories: 368kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 140mg | Sodium: 527mg | Potassium: 433mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 29g | Vitamin A: 150IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 28mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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About

FOUNDER/BBQ BOSS LADY

Susie is the BBQ Brain behind the Hey Grill Hey website. Her passion for smoked meats and developing fun, new recipes have landed her on the Food Network, cooking turkeys with Shaq, and on a couple of Guinness World Records. When she’s not grilling, she is hanging out with Todd and their three kids, preferably outdoors!

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2 Reviews

  1. Calla Alter says:

    Hi! Is there a substitute for T Lish Sweet Garlic Dressing since they are out of stock?

    1. Hey Grill Hey says:

      Anything similar should work.