Russian Cornish Hens Recipes

CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Place hens on a rack in a shallow baking pan. Combine the apple juice, soy sauce and browning sauce if desired; pour over hens. , Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 50-60 minutes or until a thermometer reads 180°, basting occasionally with pan juices.

CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Place the sliced onion in the bottom of a roasting pan. Remove the giblets from the hens, and rinse them inside and out. Remove any excess fat and leftover pinfeathers and pat the outsides dry. Place the hens on top of the sliced onion.
• Pack the cavities of the hens with the cornbread stuffing.
• Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the hens. Rub the hens with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Roast the hens for 30 minutes, or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh.
• Melt the butter in a large saute pan. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes over medium-low heat, until translucent. Break the cornbread into pieces and place the pieces in a large bowl. Add the onion mixture to the cornbread. Add the celery, chicken stock, parsley, salt and pepper, and mix together.
• Yield: 2 servings

CORNISH HENS WITH LEMON AND HERBS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place hens in a roasting pan, breast sides up. Place 2 thyme sprigs and 1 lemon half in cavity of each hen. Loosen skin from breast, and place remaining thyme and the parsley underneath. Squeeze remaining lemon halves over hens. Rub butter all over hens. Season generously with salt and pepper.
• Roast hens, rotating pan halfway through, until skin turns golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 180 degrees, 45 to 50 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes. Cut hens in half lengthwise. Garnish with thyme sprigs, and serve with lemon wedges.

EASY ROASTED CORNISH HENS FOR EASTER

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 F.
• Spread out chopped vegetables and rosemary in the bottom of 9 x 13 inch baking dish.
• Rub olive oil lightly over the Cornish hens. Set aside.
• In a bowl, mix together spices and sprinkle generously over the hens, being sure to season the inside cavity as well. ( Want more flavor? See note)
• Place the hens on top of the bed of vegetables.
• Run your fingers under the skin to loosen it.
• Place a slice of butter under the skin of each hen.
• Tie the legs together with kitchen string or foil paper. (I like to sprinkle on more parsley at this point but that's optional)
• Bake for 50-60 minutes, depending on size of hens.
• Let hens rest for 15 minutes before eating.

APRICOT-GLAZED CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• In a large skillet, saute celery and onion in butter until tender; remove from heat. Add the bread, mushrooms and seasonings. Toss with enough chicken broth just to moisten. , Stuff hens. Tie drumsticks together. Place on a rack in a large shallow baking pan. Cover and bake at 350° for 1 hour. , Brush with preserves. Bake, uncovered, 30-45 minutes longer or until meat juices run clear, basting every 10-15 minutes. , If using green onions, first soften them in boiling water or the microwave for a few seconds, then tie over the string used to tie the drumsticks together. Garnish platter with rosemary if desired.

CRISPY FRIED CORNISH GAME HENS (TAPAKA)

Steps:

• With a meat cleaver, poultry shears, or a VERY sharp knife, split open the breast of the Cornish Hen. Carefully remove the breastbone. Cover the hen with waxed paper and pound the flat side of the cleaver or a meat tenderizer to flatten.
• Combine the garlic, lemon juice, paprika, and about 1/4 teaspoon salt. Rub over the hen and refrigerate, covered for at least two hours or as long as overnight.
• Heat the clarified butter in a heavy cast-iron skillet over medium heat.
• Brush the garlic off the hen, then place the hen in the skillet, skin side down. Cover the hen directly with something flat (such as an ovenproof plate) and place a heavy object (such as a brick, a smaller iron skillet, or a pan filled with water) on top so the hen is firmly pressed down.
• Cook until the skin is deep golden brown and crispy, about 20 minutes. Turn the bird, re-weight, and cook on the other side for about 15 minutes. Pierce a thigh with a skewer. the hen is ready when the juices run clear.
• Serve on a bed of lettuce, garnished with the fresh vegetables, and accompanied with the Sour Plum Sauce on the side.
• For the Sour Plum Sauce:.
• In a large nonreactive saucepan, combine the prunes and enough cold water to barely cover. bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, until the prunes are soft, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Drain the prunes, then pit and put them through a food mill. Return the prunes to the saucepan. Add the cilantro, garlic, coriander seeds, fenugreek, red pepper flakes to taste, 1/4 cup lemon juice, and salt. bring to a boil and heat for 2 to 3 minutes, then remove from heat. Yaste and add more lemon juice, if desired.
• Cool the sauce to room temperature and transfer to a sterilized 1 quart jar. Top with the oil. seal. and refrigerate. The sauce should stand for at least 4 to 6 hours before serving. The sauce will keep for up to two months in the refrigerator. This makes about 3 cups.

RUSSIAN CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Cut the hens lengthwise alongside the backbone, and open them up. Place them cut side down on a flat surface covered with plastic wrap, and arrange additional plastic wrap over the birds to cover them.
• Using a heavy flat-bottomed pan or a meat pounder, pound the birds until they are flattened to about equal thickness throughout. Sprinkle the skin side of the hens with salt, pepper and savory.
• Heat two nonstick skillets, one large enough (about 12 inches) to accommodate two hens without overlap, and a second skillet (8 to 9 inches) to accommodate the third hen. Place the hens, skin side down, in the hot skillets. Cover and cook for 3 minutes over medium to high heat, turn the birds over, and cover and cook for 10 more minutes. Meanwhile, wrap three bricks (each about 4 pounds) with aluminum foil.
• Turn the birds over again in the skillet so they are skin side down, and place a brick on each bird. Cook, uncovered, over medium heat for 20 minutes. (The skin of the birds should be well browned and crisp.)
• Remove the birds from the skillets, cut them in half, and arrange the six halves on a platter. Discard all but 1 tablespoon of fat from each skillet, and stir half the water ( 1/4 cup) into each. Bring to a boil for 1 minute, and pour over the hen pieces. Sprinkle on the lemon juice. and serve immediately with the salad.

CORNISH HENS A L'ORANGE

Steps:

• 1 For the hens: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees
• 2 Grease the bottom of a large, shallow roasting pan with cooking oil spray
• 3 Alternatively, a large ovenproof skillet can be used
• 4 Coat the Cornish hens inside and out generously with the oil, then the salt and garlic powder
• 5 Coat them on the outside with paprika
• 6 Arrange the birds breast sides down in the pans
• 7 Roast for 20 to 30 minutes, then use tongs to carefully dislodge and turn then over, without tearing the skin
• 8 Increase the heat to 425 degrees; roast for 30 to 40 minutes, or until your instant-read thermometer inserted into the thigh meat (taken away from the bone) registers 165 degrees
• 9 Meanwhile, rinse the oranges, then cut them into thin rounds
• 10 When the hens are done, transfer them to a platter and tent loosely with aluminum foil to keep warm while you make the sauce
• 11 For the sauce: Drain the fat from the roasting pan but leave the browned bits
• 12 Place on the stove top, over medium heat
• 13 Add the wine, stirring to dislodge those browned bits
• 14 Cook for 5 to 8 minutes or until the wine has reduced by half, then stir in the orange juice and the bouillon base, until well incorporated
• 15 Reduce the heat to low
• 16 Whisk together the cornstarch and orange liqueur in a liquid measuring cup, until smooth; this is your slurry, to thicken the sauce
• 17 Increase the heat to medium; pour the slurry into the pan and stir until the sauce is bubbling, and is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon and leaves a trail when you run your finger through that coating
• 18 Lay half the orange slices in the sauce
• 19 Taste, and season with salt, as needed
• 20 When ready to serve, uncover the hens
• 21 Cut them in half for serving, if desired
• 22 Drizzle with them with the sauce and arrange all the orange slices (sauced and not sauced) on and around them
• 23 Serve warm

CORNISH GAME HENS WITH GARLIC AND ROSEMARY

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 °F.
• Rub 1 tablespoon of olive oil into the hens and season with salt and pepper. Place a sprig of rosemary and a lemon quarter inside the cavity of each hen.
• Place the hens in a roasting pan and arrange the garlic cloves around the hens. Roast for 25 minutes.
• Mix the wine, chicken broth, and the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil together in a large jug or mixing bowl. Pour it over the hens.
• Reduce the temperature to 350°F and continue to roast for 25 minutes more. Baste the hens frequently with pan juices until they are golden brown and the juices run clear.
• Remove hens from the roasting pan and drain the juices from the cavities back into the pan. Place the hens on a large serving plate and cover loosely with foil.
• Pour the pan juices and garlic cloves into a saucepan and boil the mixture for 5-6 minutes until the liquid reduces to the consistency of a sauce.
• Serve the hens halved on a serving plate with the garlic and sauce poured around hens. Garnish with sprigs of fresh rosemary.

CORNISH HENS WITH RICE STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place a cooling rack on top of it.
• Cook the rice according to package instructions.
• Melt 1 Tablespoon of butter in a skillet. Add the onion. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for 3-5 minutes, until the onions are translucent and tender.
• Add the carrot and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for another 3-5 minutes.
• Add to the rice. Add the cheese. Mix the rice.
• Season the Cornish hens with salt and pepper on the inside and the outside. Stuff the chickens with rice, about ½ -3/4 cup into each cavity.
• Place the rest of the rice in a buttered baking dish, about 1 quart.
• Tuck the wings behind the back of the chicken and tie the legs together.
• Place the Cornish hens on the cooling rack and bake in the preheated oven for about 20-25 minutes.
• Halfway through, about 10-15 minutes after you place the cornish hens in the oven, place the rice in the oven also.
• After baking the chicken for 20-25 minutes, rub the chicken with a Tablespoon of softened butter.
• Increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees. Bake for another 10-15 minutes, until the skin is golden and crisp.
• Allow the chicken to rest for about 10 minutes.