Crockpot Drumsticks with Fresh Tomato BBQ Sauce

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Looking for a really simple recipe to throw in the slow cooker this week. Give these slow cooker BBQ drumsticks a try!

BBQ Drumsticks

Fresh Slow Cooker BBQ Drumsticks

I love cooking drumsticks. There are lots of different things to do with them and they are so cheap. Plus they are so easy to make when you can just throw them in the crockpot! We don’t eat bottled ketchup or bbq sauce so we make our own. This is one of those “by taste” recipes with not many measurements. Have fun experimenting and making it work for you!

Drumsticks with Fresh BBQ Sauce Recipe

What you need:

  • Chicken Drumsticks
  • tomatoes or canned tomatoes
  • salt
  • brown sugar
  • garlic powder
  • onion

Picture of the ingredients I used. I don’t have any “fresh” tomatoes right now so I just used home canned.

Cut up the onion and fry in olive oil. We used a whole onion because we are onion people. 🙂

After the onion cooked down a little I added the garlic powder, salt, a quart of tomatoes, and brown sugar. I let this simmer for a while for the flavors to come together.

Put in the crockpot with the chicken. Cook together until the chicken is cooked through for about 4-6 hours on high. Try not to overcook or the meat won’t stay on the bones.

This is a really simple recipe and can be put together in no time. If you want to keep it all in one pan and you have an Instant Pot, you can sauce the onions/oil in the pot first before adding the rest of the ingredients and finishing it up on the slow cooker setting.

Looking for even more recipes to make in your slow cooker? Here are some of our favorites from over the years:

What simple crockpot meals does your family enjoy?

Merissa Bio

This recipe was originally posted on Little House Living in March of 2011. It has been updated as of May 2021.

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8 Comments

  1. Great recipe, however I have a question on a different subject. I saw in one of your baking recipes a tool you use from pampered chef that is your favorite, but I unfortunately can’t remember what it is called. It was a black tool. Thanks for your help again!!

    1. I love my Pampered Chef Mix and Chop! I’m not sure if you can buy it anywhere other than Pampered Chef, but it’s definitely my favorite kitchen tool. I use it for meat and for chopping things, or crushing things. It’s a good investment!

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  3. About how much brown sugar do you use? I am new to this crockpot cooking as I just had two twin girls three months ago.

  4. I cook a lot of drumsticks too. I fry them in a cast iron pan. Then throw them in crockpot with rice water and cream of mushroom soup. When the rice is done turn on low and stragglers can have a hot meal too.