Skillet Chicken Drumsticks with Corn, Zucchini, and Tomatoes

Pair deliciously fresh summer veggies with affordable chicken drumsticks in this complete Skillet Chicken Drumsticks dinner!

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Here’s another all-in-one recipe that takes advantage of plentiful, seasonal corn-on-the cob! Corn always pairs so nicely with chicken to create an easy and affordable summer dinner, so today I combined fresh corn with other colorful summer veggies to make up this Skillet Chicken Drumsticks with Corn, Zucchini, and Tomatoes dinner.

Seasonal sales on chicken drumsticks and corn thus feature in this week’s Sunday Scratchups: Your weekly recipe from scratch around grocery sales and affordable ingredients. Sure, I do realize that it’s not Sunday, but sometimes… life happens. So, Sunday Scratchups on Tuesday it is. Hope this pretty and plentiful recipe was worth the wait. 😉

This is an easy one pan meal, but you need to make it in two parts, given the different cooking times and requirements of its various components. No worries; this just gives you time to chop all these veggies in a leisurely fashion while your chicken finishes cooking!

Skillet Chicken Drumsticks with Corn, Zucchini, and Tomatoes

Ingredients

– for the chicken

2-2.5 lbs chicken drumsticks
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp butter
1 tsp seasoned salt
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp garlic powder

– for the veggies

Half a medium yellow onion, diced (about 1/2 a cup)
1/2 tsp minced garlic (about 1 clove)
10-12 oz zucchini, cut into bite-sized pieces
3 corn cobs, kernels stripped
10 oz container of grape tomatoes, halved lengthwise
Sea salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp oregano

Directions

Trim chicken as necessary and season on both sides (see Note). Melt olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat, then add chicken and brown for about four minutes per side. Use tongs to make it easier to flip the chicken, and watch out for spattering.

Flip chicken again, reduce heat under the skillet to medium, and cover the pan. Cook chicken for another 20 minutes covered over medium heat, or until cooked through to an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Time may vary, depending on the size of your drumsticks.

While the chicken is cooking, cut corn off the cob, trim and cut up the zucchini, dice your onion, mince garlic, and halve the tomatoes.

When the chicken is cooked through, remove it to a separate plate and add the onion right into the same pan. Saute onion over medium heat for two minutes, scraping up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan, then stir in the garlic and add the zucchini. Cook for another five minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally.

Add the corn and cook for another five minutes, continuing to stir occasionally. Add the grape tomatoes, season the veggies with sea salt, pepper, basil, and oregano, and saute for another five minutes.

Once veggies are done, serve skillet chicken drumsticks with the corn/zucchini/tomato medley as a complete dinner.

Note: I find it easier to season the chicken on one side with half of the seasonings, then add to the hot pan seasoned-side down before seasoning the other side. 

A Summerlicious Fresh Corn Recipe

Cooking the veggies in the same pan after the chicken gives them an additional depth of flavor — similar to oven baking chicken and corn together, but all done on the stove top. The crisp-tender corn, juicy tomatoes, and flavorful zucchini meet their match in the smoky pan-cooked drumsticks, and there’s nothing better than dirtying just one pan while making dinner, amiright? Skillet chicken drumsticks with corn, zucchini, and tomatoes is a naturally gluten free dinner recipe.

More Fresh Corn Recipes?

Looking for more fresh summer corn recipes? Try…

• Cheesy Summer Corn Soup
• Smoky Pan Roasted Corn on the Cob
• Smoky Chicken Leg Quarters with Fresh Corn

Skillet Chicken Drumsticks with Corn, Zucchini, and Tomatoes, printable recipe

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Skillet Chicken Drumsticks with Corn, Zucchini, and Tomatoes

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Crisp-tender corn, juicy tomatoes, and flavorful zucchini meet their match in smoky pan-cooked drumsticks — and there’s nothing better than dirtying just one pan while making dinner, amiright?

Course dinner

Cuisine Chicken

Keyword chicken, chicken dinner, chicken drumsticks, corn, skillet, zucchini

Total Time 1 hour hour

Servings 4

Author Rachel Singer

Ingredients

– for the chicken

• 2-2.5 lbs chicken drumsticks
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1 tsp seasoned salt
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp garlic powder

– for the veggies

• Half a medium yellow onion diced (about 1/2 a cup)
• 1/2 tsp minced garlic about 1 clove
• 10-12 oz zucchini cut into bite-sized pieces
• 3 corn cobs kernels stripped
• 10 oz container of grape tomatoes halved lengthwise
• Sea salt to taste
• Black pepper to taste
• 1/2 tsp basil
• 1/2 tsp oregano

Instructions

• Trim chicken as necessary and season on both sides (see Note). Melt olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat, then add chicken and brown for about four minutes per side. Use tongs to make it easier to flip the chicken, and watch out for spattering.
• Flip chicken again, reduce heat under the skillet to medium, and cover the pan. Cook chicken for another 20 minutes covered over medium heat, or until cooked through to an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Time may vary, depending on the size of your drumsticks.
• While the chicken is cooking, cut corn off the cob, trim and cut up the zucchini, dice your onion, mince garlic, and halve the tomatoes.
• When the chicken is cooked through, remove it to a separate plate and add the onion right into the same pan. Saute onion over medium heat for two minutes, scraping up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan, then stir in the garlic and add the zucchini. Cook for another five minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
• Add the corn and cook for another five minutes, continuing to stir occasionally. Add the grape tomatoes, season the veggies with sea salt, pepper, basil, and oregano, and saute for another five minutes.
• Once veggies are done, serve skillet chicken drumsticks with the corn/zucchini/tomato medley as a complete dinner.

Notes

I find it easier to season the chicken on one side with half of the seasonings, then add to the hot pan seasoned-side down before seasoning the other side.

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