Cornish Game Hens
Okay, let's get it over with. Cornish Game Hens are just little chickens. So, from here on, I am just going to say "chicken" so I don't have to type "Cornish Game Hen" over and over. Chickens are yummy! Tonight I roasted two wee chickens.
Do you need a recipe for roasting wee chickens? I don't think you do.
My husband doesn't like rosemary quite as much as I do, so he requested just salt, pepper, & olive oil, with fresh tarragon after they were done. I like a nice garlicky, rosemary-covered bird, so I decked mine out with chopped garlic and lemon juice and fresh rosemary.
A salad is a no-brainer side dish, but let's talk about how stupid I am. I asked my husband, "What do you want on the side? Potatoes or something?" He was like, "Nah, I think I'm good with just a salad." Listen to your instincts. Don't be fooled by thinking the bird will fill you up, there's not as much meat there as you think. It's like eating a decent sized chicken breast, if that. Make roasted potatoes! Or a loaf of crusty bread! Or pilaf, or something, or you'll still be hungry when you're done, like I was.
So, seriously. This is kind of a no-brainer. Rather than a recipe, I am just offering you the suggestion: eat some game hens.
Prep:
We bought pre-packaged organic hippy-dippy "minimally processed" free range birds. They were about 4 bucks a pop. Not too expensive, in my opinion. I rinsed them, and patted them dry with paper towels. Chopped off the necks, (ew! yeah, they had necks on 'em.) checked inside for guts (no guts) and placed them in an oiled casserole dish.
Hubby's bird had sea salt & cracked pepper rubbed onto it, and a drizzle of olive oil, with fresh tarragon sprinkled on top after it was cooked.
My bird had chopped garlic, a few cloves shoved up in there (you know, UP IN THERE), fresh rosemary, & salt and pepper, drizzled with lemon juice and white wine.
For a regular chicken, I think the general rule is 20 minutes in the oven per pound. I pre-heated the oven to 425f, and since I'm an idiot and tossed the packages before I checked the weight of the birds, I estimated that they weighed about 2 lbs each (a generous estimation. they were probably more like 1-1.5 lbs) and gave them 40 minutes. Do you want crispy skin on your bird? I don't even eat the skin because I am grossed out by it, but aesthetically, who doesn't love a nice brown skin? Basting is your friend. Baste the hell out of those birds (I did it every 5 minutes, but I like to hover over my food, what can I say?) and you'll get a nice brown crisp on them. 40 minutes in the oven and they were cooked to perfection, hella moist.
Served on a bed of arugula, with a big salad on the side. Seriously though, make a pilaf or something to go with it. I can't have dinner without a carb or I'm hungry in like 20 minutes.
Making tiny chickens is fun and kind of fancy. It's not something I'd do every night, (actually, this is the first time I've done it) but it's fun every once in awhile. Roasting your own bird is so easy, and you can do it however the hell you want. I like to go the rosemary/lemon/white wine route, but you could dress it up with any old herb. With tender herbs like tarragon or basil, wait until the bird is cooked before you throw the herbs on, or they'll burn. With hardier herbs like rosemary or thyme, just throw them on for aromatics while the bird roasts. I like to roast a whole head of garlic in with the chicken too, so if I have some fancy bread, I have something nice to spread on it. Fresh roasted garlic spreads just like butter, yummm.
Do you need a recipe for roasting wee chickens? I don't think you do.
My husband doesn't like rosemary quite as much as I do, so he requested just salt, pepper, & olive oil, with fresh tarragon after they were done. I like a nice garlicky, rosemary-covered bird, so I decked mine out with chopped garlic and lemon juice and fresh rosemary.
A salad is a no-brainer side dish, but let's talk about how stupid I am. I asked my husband, "What do you want on the side? Potatoes or something?" He was like, "Nah, I think I'm good with just a salad." Listen to your instincts. Don't be fooled by thinking the bird will fill you up, there's not as much meat there as you think. It's like eating a decent sized chicken breast, if that. Make roasted potatoes! Or a loaf of crusty bread! Or pilaf, or something, or you'll still be hungry when you're done, like I was.
So, seriously. This is kind of a no-brainer. Rather than a recipe, I am just offering you the suggestion: eat some game hens.
Prep:
We bought pre-packaged organic hippy-dippy "minimally processed" free range birds. They were about 4 bucks a pop. Not too expensive, in my opinion. I rinsed them, and patted them dry with paper towels. Chopped off the necks, (ew! yeah, they had necks on 'em.) checked inside for guts (no guts) and placed them in an oiled casserole dish.
Hubby's bird had sea salt & cracked pepper rubbed onto it, and a drizzle of olive oil, with fresh tarragon sprinkled on top after it was cooked.
My bird had chopped garlic, a few cloves shoved up in there (you know, UP IN THERE), fresh rosemary, & salt and pepper, drizzled with lemon juice and white wine.
For a regular chicken, I think the general rule is 20 minutes in the oven per pound. I pre-heated the oven to 425f, and since I'm an idiot and tossed the packages before I checked the weight of the birds, I estimated that they weighed about 2 lbs each (a generous estimation. they were probably more like 1-1.5 lbs) and gave them 40 minutes. Do you want crispy skin on your bird? I don't even eat the skin because I am grossed out by it, but aesthetically, who doesn't love a nice brown skin? Basting is your friend. Baste the hell out of those birds (I did it every 5 minutes, but I like to hover over my food, what can I say?) and you'll get a nice brown crisp on them. 40 minutes in the oven and they were cooked to perfection, hella moist.
Served on a bed of arugula, with a big salad on the side. Seriously though, make a pilaf or something to go with it. I can't have dinner without a carb or I'm hungry in like 20 minutes.
Making tiny chickens is fun and kind of fancy. It's not something I'd do every night, (actually, this is the first time I've done it) but it's fun every once in awhile. Roasting your own bird is so easy, and you can do it however the hell you want. I like to go the rosemary/lemon/white wine route, but you could dress it up with any old herb. With tender herbs like tarragon or basil, wait until the bird is cooked before you throw the herbs on, or they'll burn. With hardier herbs like rosemary or thyme, just throw them on for aromatics while the bird roasts. I like to roast a whole head of garlic in with the chicken too, so if I have some fancy bread, I have something nice to spread on it. Fresh roasted garlic spreads just like butter, yummm.
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