Roast Marinated Cornish Hens Recipes

ROASTED CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Combine all the dry rub ingredients together in a small bowl.
• 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 roasting pan add the rosemary, thyme, garlic, onion, and half the lemon slices. 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 thyme, lemon slices and rosemary and serve over mashed potatoes.

ROASTED CORNISH GAME HENS MARINATED IN HONEY AND MUSTARD

Steps:

• Mix the honey, mustard, garlic, 3 tablespoons oil, thyme and cinnamon together in a bowl and set aside. Remove the wing tips from the hens. Roll the hens in the marinade and marinate overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Season the birds inside and out with salt and pepper. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze over each bird. Put a used lemon half in the cavity of each bird. Truss the birds.
• Set a rack in a roasting pan and brush the rack with several tablespoons vegetable oil. Place the birds, breast side down on the oiled rack. Roast for 30 minutes. Turn the birds breast side up, reduce the heat to 350 degrees and roast an additional 15 to 20 minutes or until the hens are cooked through and the skin is brown. Allow the hens to rest 10 minutes before serving.

ROASTED CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Pat the hens dry with a cloth. Slice lemon in half and squeeze juice into a medium bowl. Stuff hen cavities with half lemon, 2 cloves garlic and 1/2 branch of fresh rosemary. Add honey, oil and salt and pepper to lemon juice and blend together. Baste the hens with the lemon honey sauce. Place in a small roasting pan and roast for 20 minutes. Reduce heat and continue roasting for 20 to 30 minutes basting the hens occasionally. Roast the hens until the juices run clear from the thigh. Transfer hens to cutting board and let sit for 10 minutes. Place roasting pan on stove burner and stir in white wine. Bring to a simmer and scrape brown bits from bottom of pan. Stir in chicken stock and simmer. Serve hens hot with sauce.

ROAST MARINATED CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Make marinade:
• Thinly slice lower 6 inches of lemongrass stalks, discarding remainder of stalks
• In a food processor or blender finely grind together sliced lemongrass, coriander, shallot, garlic, and gingerroot. Add sugar, curry powder, pepper, salt, fish sauce, and 1 cup coconut milk and purée.
• Quarter each hen and divide between 2 large resealable plastic bags. Divide marinade between bags and seal bags, pressing out excess air. Put bags in large shallow dish and marinate hens, chilled, turning bag once or twice, overnight.
• Preheat oven to 450°F. and line a large shallow roasting pan with foil.
• Remove hens from marinade, reserving marinade, and arranged hens, skin sides up, in prepared pan. Roast hens 20 to 25 minutes, or until just cooked through.
• While hens are roasting, in a small saucepan combine reserved marinade and remaining 1 cup coconut milk. Cook sauce at a slow boil, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes and strain through a fine sieve into another small saucepan to keep warm.
• Serve hens with marinade sauce and/or sweet chili sauce for dipping if desired.

SPICED YOGURT-MARINATED CORNISH HENS WITH SWEET ONION-ROASTED POTATOES

Steps:

• Combine the yogurt, coconut aminos, garlic, salt, peppercorns, turmeric, and ginger in a blender. Use a Microplane to grate in the zest of both lemons, then halve one and squeeze in the juice. Reserve the re-maining lemon for another purpose. Blend on high speed until smooth, about 1 minute.
• Rinse the hens under cool water, inside and out, and pat dry very well. Put them in a large bowl or pan and spoon about one third of the yogurt marinade into the cavities of the birds, spreading it around as best you can. Pour the rest of the marinade over the hens, using the spoon to make sure they're completely coated, tops and bottoms, including the wings and crevices between the legs and breasts.
• Cover and marinate in the fridge for at least 16 hours or up to 2 days.
• About half an hour before you're ready to cook the hens, remove them from the fridge to take the chill off. Heat the oil in a wide, heavy skillet over medium heat until shimmery. Add the onions and 1½ teaspoons of the salt. Stir well, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions start to soften and release liquid, about 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer, stirring occasionally, until all the liquid has evaporated and the onions have a creamy texture, turn a deep golden color, and taste very sweet, about 20 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 450°F. Spread the potatoes on a large sheet pan, sprinkle with the remaining 1½ teaspoons of salt, and toss well. Add the cooked onion mixture, stir well, and spread them to make a bed for the hens-a snug single layer in the center of the pan.
• Take the hens out of the marinade (don't scrape any off, but do leave behind anything left in the bowl) and put them on the potato-onion mixture, with a few inches of space between each one. Roast until the hens are golden brown with some dark patches and poking the thighs reveals juices with no trace of pink (a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast should register 150°F), 40 to 45 minutes.
• Let the hens rest in the pan for 15 minutes, then transfer to a platter to serve.

MARINATED CORNISH GAME HENS

Steps:

• Remove bags with liver and necks from hens, wash hens well pat dry.
• Rub hens with oil.
• Prepare marinade, place hens in either glass bowl or 2 plastic bags,pour marinade over hens.
• Let hens marinate overnight in refrigerator turning hens or bags over occasionally.
• Next day remove hens from marinade and place onto a roasting rack.
• Roast hens at 400 F for 50 to 60 minutes, turning once during cooking time and baisting with matinade occasionally.
• Check for doneness by piercing with a fork,
• hens should be fork tender and juices should run clear.
• Can serve whole hens or cut hebs in half lenghtwise to double.

HERB-STUFFED ROASTED CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°. Gently lift skin from hen breasts and place sage leaves under skin. Place lemon wedges and a third of the onions in the cavities. Tuck wings under hens; tie legs together. Place in a small greased roasting pan. , Combine butter, oil, lemon juice and garlic; spoon half of mixture over hens. Sprinkle with salt and pepper., Bake 30 minutes. Add potatoes and remaining onions to pan. Brush hens with remaining butter mixture. Bake until a thermometer inserted in thickest part of thigh reads 170°-175° and potatoes are tender, 40-45 minutes longer., Remove hens to a serving platter. Stir potatoes and onions to coat with pan drippings. Serve with hens.

ROASTED POMEGRANATE-MARINATED CORNISH GAME HENS WITH CIPPOLINI AND TREVISO

Steps:

• Trim excess fat in and around cavity of each hen; remove wing tips and reserve. Generously season cavity and exterior of each hen with salt and pepper. Reserving 2 tablespoons, rub hens with marinade and refrigerate, covered, for 6 hours.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees with rack in upper 1/3 of oven. Place onions, carrots, celery, garlic, reserved wing tips and necks, thyme, and bay leaves in a large roasting pan. Position hens on top of vegetables so they are not crowded and tail ends meet in center of pan. Roast until the juices run clear in the legs when pricked with a fork, 45 to 60 minutes. During the last 10 minutes of roasting, baste hens with reserved marinade mixture.
• Remove hens from oven; let rest 15 minutes. Meanwhile, heat a grill pan over high heat. Using a pastry brush, brush cut-sides of pomegranate and treviso with olive oil; season with salt and pepper. Place cut-side down on grill pan, and cook until grill marks appear.
• Transfer some of the onions and treviso to a large serving platter. Top with hens and remaining vegetables. Drizzle with about 2 tablespoons gastrique. Garnish with grilled pomegranate and treviso. Sprinkle with pomegranate seeds, if desired.