cornish hen

Roasted Cornish Hen is tender, juicy, and oh-so-flavorful! The whole family will love this easy dish!

Roasted Cornish Hen

cornish hens (about 1.5 pounds each)

olive oil (divided)

salt

black pepper

rosemary (crushed)

lemon zest

thyme leaves

garlic powder

potatoes (chopped)

carrots (chopped)

onion (chopped)

Preheat oven to 450°F.

Toss vegetables with 1 tablespoon olive oil and season with salt &amp; pepper to taste (add extra herbs if you&#039;d like).

Combine the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and herbs in a small bowl.  Brush hens with olive oil mixture. Twist wings to tuck under the bird.

Place hens in a large casserole dish or on a rimmed baking sheet. Arrange the prepared vegetables around the hends and palce in the oven. Reduce heat to 400°F.

Bake 55-65 minutes or just until hens reach 165°F with a thermometer and vegetables are tender. (Ensure the thermometer does not touch the bone.)

Remove from the oven and loosely tent with foil for 10 minutes before cutting.

Cut hens in half using kitchen scissors and serve.

Perfectly juicy, crisp, and smoky grilled cornish hens rubbed with rosemary and lemon zest.

Grilled Cornish Hens with Lemon and Rosemary Recipe

Cornish hens,

rosemary leaves

lemon

garlic,

extra virgin olive oil

Pat hens dry with paper towels and place breast-side-down on a large cutting board. Using sharp kitchen shears, remove the backbone by cutting along either side of it. Turn chicken over and lay out flat. Press firmly on breast to flatten the chicken. For added stability, run a metal or wooden skewer horizontally, entering through one thigh, going through both breast halves, and exiting through the other thigh. Tuck wing tips behind back of breasts. Repeat with remaining hens.

Combine salt, pepper, rosemary, lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic, and olive oil in a small bowl and stir with fingers until homogenous. Rub mixture evenly over all surfaces of hens.

Light one half chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and spread the coals evenly over half of coal grate. Alternatively, set half the burners of a gas grill to high heat. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Clean and oil the grilling grate. 

Place hens skin-side-up directly over the coals. Cover and cook until lightly charred on bottom, about 5 minutes. Carefully flip birds skin-side-down. Cover and continue to cook until golden brown, crisp, charred in spots, and center of breasts registers 145 to 150°F on an instant read thermometer, about 15 minutes longer. If birds threaten to burn before temperature is achieved, carefully slide to cooler side of grill, cover, and cook until done. Remove from grill, let rest 5 minutes, and serve.

Cornish Hen

Cornish hens

(8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened

salt and black pepper

lemons, halved

yellow onion, quartered

thyme

carrots,

potatoes,

chicken broth

Coat each Cornish hen with 2 tablespoons of the butter and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Into the cavity of each bird, insert a lemon half, an onion quarter, half a garlic head and 3 thyme sprigs. Set aside.

Spread the carrots and potatoes in an even layer in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish or roasting pan. Add the chicken broth and then the prepared Cornish hens. Roast until the juices run clear and the hens are golden brown, 45 minutes to 1 hour.

It was ok. I followed the recipe as is. I turned up the temperature as per one reviewer. I had 2 Cornish hens. It was just ok. I have made better recipes than this.

Just take their little temperatures &amp; cook to 160-165. Tent with foil &amp; rest 10-15 min before serving, maybe while making a small sauce with the drippings.

<b>Cook 4 Cornish Hens in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes?!</b> I'm embarrassed to say I did attempt it, even though I'm a fairly seasoned (no pun intended) home chef. After cooking @350 for 45 minutes the hens were still raw. I bumped up the temp to 425 for an additional 15 minutes and the hens still weren't cooked, also at this point the potatoes and carrots were still crunchy and showed nearly no signs of being cooked. I bumped the temp down to 375 and cooked for an additional 30 minutes. I did serve the hens at this point and my kids did eat most of them but the undersides were still pretty rare and inedible, the potatoes and carrots were half cooked and mostly crunchy. <div><br /></div><div><b>Also, quick note on the "</b><b>Coat each Cornish hen with 2 tablespoons of the butter" instruction.</b> 2 tablespoons of butter is a large amount of butter and you cant really "Coat" 2 tablespoons of butter on a Cornish Hen. What you can do is take a 2 tablespoon slab of butter and rub the entire skin of the hen, and then cut the 2 tablespoon slab into 4 or 6 slices and then slide the slices under the skin just above the breast.</div><div><span><br /></span></div><div><b>In summary, you can't cook Cornish Hens at 350 for 45 minute to an hour, it's not nearly enough time.</b> I would give 375 for 2 hours a shot and poke the potatoes and carrots occasionally after 75 minutes just to check progress. If the potatoes an carrots start to get mushy(properly cooked) then yank a hen out and check if its cooked near the inside of the legs or wings, if not replace hen and continue cooking rechecking occasionally.<br /></div>

Butterflied Cornish Hens with Sage Butter

(1 3/4-pound) Cornish game hens, butterflied

butter,

sage leaves, finely chopped

lemon, zested

Salt and black pepper

Olive oil,

bacon, chopped

Food Network Sunny Anderson Butterfield Cornish Hens

Place hens on a sheet tray fitted with a cooling rack in the refrigerator to dry skin out for 1 hour. Meanwhile, in a small pan over medium heat, melt butter with sage, zest, salt and pepper. Remove hens from refrigerator. Preheat 2 large saute pans over medium heat, lightly coat with oil. Season hens with salt and pepper and sear, skin side down, in the pans. Sear until skin caramelizes and turns golden brown and crispy, about 7 to 10 minutes. Flip birds over, and baste with sage butter. Sprinkle tops with chopped bacon and place in preheated oven to finish cooking, 25 to 30 minutes, basting occasionally. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

Followed recipe exactly as I was curious I must be missing something... I wasn’t.  First, after an hour in the fridge to dry, the salt basically rolled off the skin side.  I will baste with a salted olive oil next time and forego heating oil in the pan - it smoked considerably and scorched one of the hens.  Also, there is no baseline salt and pepper measurement for the sage butter or the hens.  “Salt and pepper to taste” is generally a recipe for bland food...give us a starting point and we can always “add more to taste”.  Next time I will butterfly them (love that idea!) and basically follow Ina Garten’s recipe for Skillet roasted Lemon Chicken, using one large roasting pan and no messy sautéing!  

OMGoodness!  EZ and delicious recipe for game hens.  I made one hen for myself, reduced the bacon to one lean piece, otherwise I made this to spec.  The deep flavor of the sage and butter permeated the meat to the bone.  Love the crispy skin.  I'll make this for guests in the future.  Thank you for this recipe using sage and butter combination.  Yummy!

I love this recipe however it's one of the worst shot cooking videos I've ever seen. You can't even see what she's doing 95% of the time. Good thing the recipe itself is clear and easy. It's still fun to be able to watch them work while they talk though. 

Someone copied this recipe and changed a few words to make it seem original:<br />https://www.frontiercoop.com/community/recipe/Butterflied-Cornish-Hens-with-Sage-Butter<br />

This was delicious!  I made it for my wife and mother in law for Mother’s Day and had enough for two meals.  The chicken is savory and delicious.  I brined it overnight which helped the flavors pop.

Who has two thumbs and enjoyed this recipe? ME. I only had chicken so I took my shrink ray and made them small and named them Cornish Hens. I've never made a whole chicken before but with a quick little google search, I butterflied those bad boys like it was nothing. Had a little difficulty on the sear. Skin stuck to the pan (I guess I didn't oil it enough) fast forward popped em in the oven and before my tv show was over it was ready. Can we say MOIST DELICIOUSNESS? I'm planning on making these again in the future.  L I T

Excellent recipe, the instructions are clear.  The chicken is flavorful and juicy.  I paired it with garlicky asparagus with olive oil, a side of green olives, and toasted baguette with olive oil and garlic powder.  Next time I will add more lemon zest, and may try rosemary and thyme instead of sage.  I only used 2 T. butter and maybe 2 T olive oil in my "sage butter", and it was enough.  This is definitely going to be a regular dish for me, it is pretty universally appealing and pairs with so much.  Browning the chicken does make the kitchen a bit of a mess, but well worth it.  The skin is nice and crisp. I baked mine for about 22-23 minutes and it was enough because it continues to cook in the hot pan for a bit when it comes out of the oven.  I think I will add a side of brown rice or scalloped rosemary potatoes au gratin with my leftover chicken tonight.  I will be checking out more of Sunny's recipes.

https://www.foodnetwork.com/videos/cornish-hens-0133335

Sunny bastes Cornish game hens with sage butter and tops them with bacon.

Cornish Hens

Instant Pot Cornish Hen is an easy one-pot meal that your family will love!

Easy Instant Pot Cornish Hen

lb (908 grams) Cornish Hen

Creole seasoning

Tbsp olive oil (or no-calorie cooking spray)

(236 milliliters) water (for cooking)

olive oil

butter

¼ tsp pepper

tsp smoked paprika

onion powder

onion

garlic (smashed)

rosemary

(80 milliliters) water

potatoes

Tbsp all-purpose flour

Rub the seasoning mix all over the Cornish hen.

Pour water into Instant Pot insert, add the trivet and place hen on the trivet.

Place the lid on and turn valve to the sealing position. Set to pressure cook / manual cook on high pressure for 20 mins.

When done allow for a natural pressure release for 5 mins, then perform a quick pressure release.

To finish in the Instant Pot, remove the hen, drain the water, and put Cornish hen back in.

If using your Duo Crisp, spray the Cornish hen with oil. Place the air fryer lid on the Duo Crisp and then air fry at 400F / 204C for 8-10 mins. Then open the lid, turn the hen over, spray with oil, place the air fryer lid back on, and air fry for another 8-10 mins.

If using the broiler to finish, set your broiler to 400F / 204C and broil the hen until golden brown and crispy.

Make it in the Instant Pot:

Dry the Cornish hen with paper towels.

In a medium bowl, mix butter with your lemon zest, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika and dried thyme.

Rub the outside and under the skin of the hen with the butter mixture. Add some of the butter mixture to the inside of the cavity of the hen as well.

Stuff half of the lemon wedges into the cavity along with the fresh rosemary.

Turn the Instant Pot Saute function on, when the display reads “hot”, add olive oil.

Once the oil is simmering, add the hen to the pot with the breast side down and cook for 3 mins undisturbed. Flip the Instant Pot Cornish Hen over and brown the other side for about 3 mins as well. Once both sides have been browned, remove the hen and set aside on a plate.

Add the onion and garlic to the Instant Pot insert and cook for a few mins, stirring occasionally.

Add in water and use a wooden spoon to scrape the bottom of the pot.

Cancel the Saute function and add the hen back to the pot with the breast side up.

Add in your potatoes. Put the lid on and turn the release valve to the sealing position.

Pressure cook for 12 mins on High Pressure and use a Natural Pressure Release for 10 mins once done cooking to release the remaining pressure.

Open the lid and use tongs to take out the hen and place it on a baking sheet. Brush the hen with the melted butter.

To finish, set the broiler to 400F / 204C, and broil the hen until golden brown and crispy.

To make the gravy, turn the pot on to sauté again. Use a slotted spoon to remove the onion and garlic from the drippings.

Combine flour and butter to make a ball.

Add butter ball to the simmering drippings and stir well until the gravy thickens.

Make it in the Instant Pot: with gravy

My dad&#039;s famous Roasted Cornish Hens recipe that he makes us for special occasions! It&#039;s the perfect festive (but easy) dinner at home!

Dad's Roasted Cornish Hens

Cornish game hens

yellow onions,

garlic

lemons,

Pat the hens dry with paper towels and generously season with the dry rub both inside and out.

Preheat your oven to 425 °F.

In a small roasting pan add the quartered onions, garlic cloves, thyme springs and half the lemon wedges. Stuff the remaining lemons into the cavities and then place the hens in the roasting pan over the herbs and onions and drizzle the olive oil over the hens.

Transfer the roasting pan to the preheated oven and bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast registers at 165 °F.

Remove the hens from the oven and let them rest for 20 minutes. Garnish with additional herbs as needed and serve.

A classic Korean chicken soup made with a small, whole chicken and ginseng.

Samgyetang (Ginseng Chicken Soup)

Cornish hen (about 1.5 to 2 pounds)

ginseng root

sweet rice (2 to 3 tablespoons more to boil with liquid if desired)

garlic cloves

ginger (about 1 inch)

jujubes, daechu (대추)

scallion white part

scallions (finely chopped, to garnish)

salt and pepper

Clean the chicken. Do not cut off the neck and/or tail, if they are still attached. They help keep the rice inside the cavity. Place the cleaned chicken on a cutting board or a large plate. Clean the inside of the cavity with a paper towel to remove any blood. Fold the attached neck into the cavity to close the hole.&nbsp;

Stuff the cavity with the sweet rice and a couple of garlic cloves, leaving room (about 1/4 of the cavity) for the rice to expand as it cooks.

To keep the rice inside the cavity while being cooked, use of one of these two methods: (1) Make a small cut through the thick skin part between one thigh and the cavity opening, but not too close to the edge. Then, use your finger to expand the hole enough to fit the end part of a leg. Bring the other leg over, and insert the end part through the hole to keep the legs crossed together, tucking the tail in to close the opening (see the photos above); or (2) Simply cross the legs and tie together with kitchen twine. Tightly close the cavity with a toothpick if necessary.&nbsp;

In a medium size pot, place the chicken and add 5 to 6 cups (or enough to cover most of the chicken) of water or chicken stock. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, jujubes, and ginseng. If the chicken came with the neck that&#039;s been cut off, add to the pot. Also add the extra sweet rice to thicken the soup, if using. Blend the extra soaked rice with a little bit of water for a creamier texture, if desired.

Bring it to a boil over medium high heat. Skim off the foam on top. Cover, and boil for 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium low and boil, covered, for about 25 minutes, depending on the size of the chicken. Turn the heat off and rest the chicken in the pot for about 10 minutes. See note 3. 

Serve piping hot with the chopped scallions and salt and pepper on the side so each person can season to taste.

Spicy Maple Cornish Hens

Cornish game hens, trussed (see Cook's Note)

(1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

maple syrup

brown sugar

kosher salt,

cayenne pepper

sweet paprika (Hungarian),

white pepper

pumpkin pie spice

dry sherry

chicken stock

cornstarch

Spicy Maple Cornish Hens, as Seen on Delicious Miss Brown, Season 3.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place a wire rack on a rimmed baking sheet.

Pat the game hens dry and place on the prepared rack. Mix the butter, 1/3 cup maple syrup and 2 tablespoons brown sugar with the salt and all the spices in a bowl. Rub the birds with the butter mixture, making sure it gets in all the cavities and under the skin. Reserve any unused butter for later. Sprinkle the hens with a little extra salt and paprika.

Roast for 30 minutes, then baste with the juices at the bottom of the baking sheet, or a little of the remaining butter. Return to the oven and roast until the juices run clear and an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thigh (do not touch bone) registers 165 degrees F, another 15 to 30 minutes more. Remove the hens to a cutting board or serving tray to rest and remove the rack. Pour the dry sherry into the hot baking sheet and use a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits; add a little of the stock if necessary. Transfer the sherry mixture to a small saucepan and add any remaining butter. Melt over medium heat. Meanwhile, mix the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons chicken stock in a small bowl to make a slurry. Add the slurry and the remaining stock to the saucepan along with the remaining 1/3 cup syrup and remaining 2 tablespoons brown sugar. Cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens, about 5 minutes. Serve the game hens with the sweet and spicy gravy.

Wow!! This recipe fancied things up, and hit the spot for my family too! My mom always made Cornish hens for New Years to celebrate. Sadly she passed away this year, and I wanted to carry on her tradition with an updated spin. Thank you for this recipe, I will be making it again and again! My family thoroughly enjoyed it, and that gravy over rice, wowzers!  

Made this for Christmas and this was wonderful!! I will definitely be making again. The gravy was outstanding. I also used to cover my dressing!!

Really love, love, love Ms Brown's program on the Food Network! We were hoping we could order some dishes. Disappointing that service is not available. We'll try the Spicy Maple Cornish Hens for family Christmas dinner.<div>CB</div><div><br /></div>

These were delicious! The only thing I’d recommend changing is cooking hens at a higher temperature for 5-10 mins just to get a crispier skin. Otherwise, we followed the recipe exactly as written.

Cornish Hens Au Vin

bacon

all-purpose flour

dry white wine

water

Heat a large Dutch oven over medium heat and add the bacon. Cook until browned and crisp and the fat is rendered. Remove the bacon to a paper-towel lined plate to drain.

Put the flour in a large bowl and season heavily with salt and pepper, to taste. Toss the hens in the seasoned flour until coated, shaking off excess. Heat the pan with the bacon fat over medium heat. Add the hens and brown on all sides. Carefully add the wine, letting it bubble and release the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Stir in the water and garlic cloves and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. Cover and braise until hens are cooked through, about 20 minutes.

Transfer the hens to a platter and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. Continue simmering the liquid, uncovered, until thickened, about 10 minutes. Taste the gravy and season with salt and pepper, if necessary. Nestle the hens in the gravy and simmer until heated through. Arrange the hens on a serving platter. Crumble the bacon over the top and serve immediately with the gravy.

I would add mushrooms with the gravy. Really good. I don’t have to add anything else 

I knew as an experienced cook,that this was a ridiculous recipe.Too much liquid,too little time.Why I went against my educated instinct and made it I don't know.Just awful.This is why Ms Robinson has no show of her own and hangs on the coat tails of the big guys.<br />If Ina has a recipe you can bet it's the best and fool proof.<br />

I was looking for a stove top recipe for hens and this one was most appealing for it's simplicity.  I basically followed the recipe, but since I was serving to my family with kids, I cut the wine in half and added some chicken broth. It was just divine!  I did take the advice of another reviewer and simmered the hens much longer, 2 hours on low. They were tender and flavorful.  After I browned the hens, I threw in some baby bellas halved, and cooked for about 2 minutes, set aside and readded them close to the end of cook time. Will make this again and again!

This was good, but nothing to write home about.

I wasn't too sure about this dish but it actually came out good

Quick-Easy-Yummm... throw some thyme in it, and call it a day!

I was skeptical, but this was amazing. I used more wine than water. I threw in mushrooms and asparagus. I didn't even have to transfer the hen and reduce the sauce. Came out perfect. Served with quinoa. 

Cooked with chicken broth instead of wine--I'm pregnant and didn't really want to worry about cook off of the alcohol. Turned out great- especially with adding some flour to the juices for gravy (great on our potatoes too)! Will make again maybe with a few more spices. 

this recipe was good. I didn't have a dutch oven and was still able to pull it off. I just cooked it for an extra 15 min or until juices ran clear. even the white meat was moist and if it was thin i added flour. 

https://www.foodnetwork.com/videos/cornish-hens-au-vin-0135529

For a simple but spectacular dinner, Claire suggests Cornish hens au vin.

Cornish Hens au Vin

Juicy hens are cooked in a fragrant vinegar-soy sauce laced with sugar, peppercorns and bay leaves until fall-off-the-bone tender in this mouthwatering dish made complete with jasmine rice.

Adobo-Style Cornish Hens

jasmine rice

Cornish game hens (1 1/2

canola oil

onion,

low-sodium soy sauce

sugar

black peppercorns

bay leaves

scallions,

white vinegar

Cook the rice as the label directs. Meanwhile, cut the hens in half with kitchen shears, cutting along one side of the breastbone; season with salt and pepper. Heat the canola oil in a large Dutch oven or pot over high heat. Add the hens, skin-side down, and cook until browned, about 5 minutes. Remove and set aside.

Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons oil from the pot. Add the onion and garlic; cook, stirring, until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Return the hens to the pot, skin-side up; add 2 cups water, the soy sauce, sugar, peppercorns and bay leaves. Bring to a boil. Lay the scallions on top of the hens; cover and cook until the scallions are tender and the hens are cooked through, about 10 minutes.

Uncover the pot and add the vinegar (do not stir). Cook, uncovered, until the liquid is reduced by about two-thirds, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the hens and scallions; discard the bay leaves from the pan sauce. Serve with the rice.

This recipe is the perfect example of simple and delicious! My partner and I use Food Network Magazine to plan our meals for the week. Cornish hens, while very novel, are a good way to mix up the meat/protein for our meals. The sauce was really flavorful and compliments the jasmine rice perfectly. At first, my partner was sure this would be our one and only time having cornish hens for dinner, but after cooking and eating this wonderful meal, he is ready to put it in the regular rotation (and even called it a great meal for a dinner party)!

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Top 23 cornish hen recipes from across the web

The most viewed cornish hen recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Roasted Cornish Hen

Grilled Cornish Hens with Lemon and...

Cornish Hen

Butterflied Cornish Hens with Sage ...

Easy Instant Pot Cornish Hen

Dad's Roasted Cornish Hens

Samgyetang (Ginseng Chicken Soup)

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