Chicken lollipops have become a popular appetizer or party snack in recent years. Their fun, whimsical shape and flavorful taste make them hard to resist! But what exactly is a chicken lollipop?
A Brief History of Chicken Lollipops
Chicken lollipops originated in India and China. They were likely created as a creative way to eat chicken wings and drumettes By pushing the meat down to one end of the bone, they form a round “lollipop” shape. This allows you to eat them by holding the clean bone, keeping your hands sauce-free!
The appetizer has now become popular worldwide. You can find chicken lollipops on menus at restaurants and bars. Many people also make them at home for parties and game day snacks. While the origin is Asian, chicken lollipops can be flavored in many different ways nowadays.
What Makes a Chicken Lollipop?
Structurally, a chicken lollipop starts with a chicken wing or drumette. The meat is cut and scraped down to one end of the bone using a knife, leaving the other end bare.
To make a lollipop:
- For a wing, remove the thin middle bone and push the meat down
- For a drumette, scrape meat off top of bone and push to bottom
- For a drumstick, scrape meat to bottom half of bone
This leaves you with a round ball of chicken at one end and an exposed stick-like bone at the other. The meat is usually seasoned and cooked by baking, frying, or grilling. The bone can be wrapped in foil to prevent burning.
Delicious Seasonings and Sauces
While the shape makes them fun, it’s the flavors that make chicken lollipops truly irresistible! The round meatball is perfect for absorbing spices, herbs, and sauces
Popular seasonings include:
- Chili powder, cumin, garlic, onion, paprika – for Southwest flavors
- Soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger – for Asian zing
- Lemon, oregano, garlic – for Mediterranean taste
- Jerk seasoning – for Caribbean spice
The sauces you pair with chicken lollipops are also important. Typical dipping sauces include:
- BBQ sauce – sweet, tangy, and sticky goodness
- Ranch dressing
- Honey mustard
- Sweet chili sauce
- Buffalo wing sauce – for heat!
Get creative with marinades, rubs, and glazes. The flavors will soak right in to give you maximum taste.
Cooking Methods for Chicken Lollipops
You can cook chicken lollipops several ways, but frying and baking are most common.
To fry: Dip lollipops in buttermilk or eggs, then coat with seasoned breadcrumbs or flour. Fry in oil for 2-3 minutes until golden brown and cooked through.
To bake: Place on a sheet pan and bake at 400°F for 20-25 minutes until fully cooked. Brush with sauce during the last 5 minutes to glaze.
Grilling and smoking chicken lollipops are also options if you want charred and smoky flavors. Adjust cooking times based on thickness of meat.
Serving Suggestions
Chicken lollipops make great appetizers for parties and game day snacks. They are handheld, easy to eat, and fun for dipping in various sauces.
You can garnish them with fresh herbs, sesame seeds, or green onions to add flavor and color. Serve alongside crunchy vegetables, blue cheese dip, or add them to a platter of wings and fingers.
For a full meal, chicken lollipops pair well with sides like mac and cheese, coleslaw, potato salad, or fries. They are a more unique alternative to wings or nuggets.
Kids love the playful shape and dipping opportunity. Just be sure to let the exposed bones cool before serving to little hands.
Why People Love Chicken Lollipops
There are several reasons chicken lollipops have become a go-to appetizer:
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Appearance – The lollipop shape makes them visually fun and unique.
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Flavor – Loads of seasoning options allow maximum taste.
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Mess-free – The exposed bone makes them easy to eat without sauce-covered hands.
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Customization – You can flavor them sweet, spicy, or savory.
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Portion control – Individual pops are great for parties and gatherings.
So bring some whimsy and flavor to your next gathering with chicken lollipops! Let your guests play with their food a bit with this novel appetizer.
How to cut up a chicken wing
First lets examine a chicken wing, as it usually comes from the supermarket.
You see that it has three sections. The tapering part is the wing tip, and doesnt have much edible meat on it, so I usually freeze it and use it for making chicken stock. The middle part has two bones in it; experienced chicken-wing-dissecters can remove the smaller second bone and make a lollipop out of the remainder, but thats rather fiddly to do, so I usually use the middle part for something else, such as buffalo chicken wings. The part that we want is the third, thickest part.
So lets cut apart the wing. We need a sharp, small knife. This is a boning knife, with a tapered shape that is quite handy for various boning tasks, but you could use a straight blade knife too. It just has to be sharp. A dull blade may slip, which is dangerous!
Grab hold of the tapered wing tip and find the first joint. Cut through or to the side of the soft cartilage, rather than the bone. Your knife should go through easily.
Heres a closeup of that joint. As you see im cutting through the white cartilage. You might get little bits of loose cartilage here, which you should just cut off and discard.
Now cut through the second joint, in the same way, aiming for the cartilage again.
And here are the 3 wing pieces. As I mentioned above, I usually freeze the wing tips to to make chicken stock with (they are wonderfuly gelationous, so are perfect for this). The other two sections can be used in any recipe that calls for wings just as-is.
Incidentally, many butchers (or rather mechanical chicken cutters or whatever that do this for supermarkets) really do this sloppily leaving bits of cartilage hanging, not to mention bone splinters. If you can do this yourself the results will be a lot neater. 
CHICKEN LOLLIPOPS by GRILLIN WITH DAD
FAQ
What part of chicken is a lollipop?
A chicken lollipop is a chicken drumstick that has been Frenched; the meat is cut at the skinny end and pulled down to the other end to form a lollipop. Once cut properly, you can cook them to your liking (grilling or baking, and serving them in your choice of sauce).
What’s the point of chicken lollipops?
Chicken lollipops are a way to prepare chicken drumsticks where the meat is pushed to one end of the bone (frenching), creating an appetizer resembling a lollipop. The technique involves cutting around the narrow end of the drumstick and pushing the meat upward to form a ball at the top.
What’s the difference between a chicken leg piece and a chicken lollipop?
What is the difference between chicken lollipop and drumstick? Chicken lolipops are small, bite-sized pieces of chicken with a bone hold. They are typically made from chicken wings or drumettes, but this recipe calls for drumsticks, which are larger pieces of chicken.
Is chicken lollipop a Chinese dish?
Frequently Asked Questions: What is Chicken Lollipop? Answer: Chicken Lollipop is a popular Indo-Chinese dish made from chicken wings or drumsticks, marinated, deep-fried, and tossed in a flavorful sauce.