Orange Pecan Cornish Hens Recipes

ORANGE GLAZED CORNISH HEN

Steps:

• Mix olive oil, 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, lemon zest and juice, orange zest and juice, garlic, salt, and black pepper together in a large resealable bag. Add hens, seal bag, and coat hens with marinade. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, flipping the bag 1 or 2 times to redistribute marinade.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
• Mix orange juice, soy sauce, honey, 1/4 cup Dijon mustard, onion, ginger, and black pepper together in a bowl.
• Remove hens from marinade and transfer to a roasting pan, discarding leftover marinade.
• Roast hens in the preheated oven for 50 minutes. Brush hens with orange glaze and roast for 5 more minutes. Flip hens, brush with more glaze, and roast until meat is no longer pink in the center, about 5 more minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted near the bone should read 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).

CONTEST-WINNING ORANGE-GLAZED CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to at 350°. Tie legs of each hen together; turn wing tips under backs. Place on a greased rack in a roasting pan. Brush with butter; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake, uncovered, for 1 hour., Meanwhile, in a saucepan, combine the remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, until thickened, 15 minutes. Spoon over hens. Bake until a thermometer reads 170°, about 15 minutes longer.

CORNISH GAME HENS WITH ORANGE SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 500°F.
• Prepare hens by rubbing mixture of salt and pepper into skin liberally.
• Place on cookie sheet, breast side up.
• Roast for 15 minutes at 500°F.
• Remove from oven and turn breast down; pour 1 1/2 cups water over hens.
• Turn oven down to 425°F and continue to cook for 1/2 hour.
• Meanwhile, use a zester to obtain orange peel without cutting into pith of fruit.
• Slice oranges in half and squeeze juice.
• Place juice in saucepan with zest and heat thoroughly (do not boil).
• Remove hens from oven and turn breast-side up and continue cooking for additional 1/2 hour (total cooking time is 1 hour 15 minutes).
• Blend cornstarch with orange juice/zest mixture and heat to thicken, stirring constantly.
• To serve: Place hen on plate and pour sauce over. Sprinkle with additional orange zest and parsley.

HOLIDAY HARVEST CRANBERRY ORANGE CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• 1. Saute onions in 1 TB. butter until soft. Mix prepared rice, onions, apple, dried cranberries, (...or raisins, golden are nice) and poultry seasoning in a medium bowl.
• 2. Tuck wings of hens behind back. Season hens with salt and pepper. Spoon 1/2 cup stuffing into each hen. Tie legs together with kitchen string. Brush hens liberally with melted butter.
• 3. Place hens, breast side up, in shallow pan. Cook at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Remove hens from oven and baste with orange glaze. Return to oven and glaze again once or twice, discarding glaze after last basting.
• 4. Cook hens until an internal temperature of 170-180 degrees is reached, approximately one hour and fifteen minutes to one and one half hours, depending on the weight of the hens. Tent loosely with foil for 10 minutes and serve.
• 5. Instructions For Glaze: In small saucepan, combine orange juice, brown sugar and 2 TB. butter until sugar has melted and sauce is glossy and thickened.

HONEY ORANGE CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Place game hen halves with skin sides up into a 9x13-inch roasting pan.
• Roast hens in the preheated oven for 35 minutes.
• Stir orange juice, honey, soy sauce, and vinegar together in a small bowl; brush mixture over hens.
• Roast hens for 5 more minutes and baste again with orange juice mixture. Roast until skin is browned and meat is no longer pink inside, about 10 more minutes.

CORNISH GAME HENS WITH ORANGE STUFFING

Steps:

• Finely shred 1/4 tsp peel from the orange.
• Remove and discard the remaining peel.
• Section orange over a bowl, squeezing juice out.
• Halve sections and set aside.
• Add water to the sections to equal 3 tablespoons.
• In a small pan, cook green onion and celery in hot oil until tender but not brown.
• For stuffing, toss together peel, orange sections, onion mixture, stuffing mix and enough of the juice to moisten.
• In a large rectangular cake pan, spoon stuffing into 4 mounds.
• Rinse hens and pat dry with paper towels.
• Place hens, cavity side down over the stuffing mounds.
• Cover loosely with foil.
• Roast in a 375°F oven for 30 minutes.
• Uncover and roast another 20 minutes.
• Stir together honey and 1 tablespoon water. Brush over hens.
• Roast uncovered for another 15 minutes or until hens are tender.
• Use a wide spatula to transfer hens and stuffing to dinner plates.

ORANGE BALSAMIC CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°.
• Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with foil; set a baking rack in each pan.
• Using poultry shears or a sharp chef's knife, cut along both sides of each hen's backbone and discard.
• Open the birds up and turn skin side up, pressing lightly on the breastbones to flatten them a bit.
• Arrange 3 hens on each baking rack, skin side up, and season liberally with salt and pepper.
• Mix the orange juice concentrate, balsamic vinegar, and oil together; pour evenly over the hens, and sprinkle with rosemary.
• Roast hens for 15 minutes at 425°, then decrease heat to 375° and roast for 30 minutes more, OR until the juices run clear (I'd check doneness with an instant read thermometer).
• Let the hens rest for 5 minutes before serving.