Happy beginnings of the holiday madness! While everyone is prepping HUGE birds…I’m posting something a bit different. Cornish hens are much smaller & a lot easier to prepare than you may think. Today I want to share a recipe that looks gourmet but is actually very simple to put together for an impressive meal. With some citrus, honey, & fresh sage touches…get ready to fall in love.
You’ll want to pick out two Cornish hens (or more if necessary!) that are around the same size. I found mine from Tyson packaged in the frozen food center aisle at Smith’s & picked two up. You can also check for coupons from Kroger! Tyson® Premium Cornish Hens are 100% natural & contain no artificial ingredients or preservatives. & zero added hormones or steroids. They’re really easy to prepare- they even have more recipes for you to check out here.
The first step is to create your glaze for roasting! Take your hen & clean it thoroughly then season inside & out with salt & pepper. Set aside & preheat oven to 425 F.
Place the fresh orange juice, lemon juice, honey, & butter to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil & reduce by about 1/3. Remove from heat. Add chopped sage & oregano. Set aside.
Add half a lemon & half an orange to each hen along with a sage leaf, 1/2 tablespoon of butter. Stuff securely into cavity. Add butter, herbs, salt, & pepper between the skin & breast. Arrange in a pan for roasting, I personally use this one for the easy lift-out. I actually roast mine breast side down for about 20 minutes then flip over for a more moist bird. This is, however, optional.
Baste every 10 minutes with the glaze we made earlier. You’ll want to cook for 50 minutes or until cooked through per meat thermometer. Let rest for 10 minutes before carving.
Now to deglaze the pan! Honestly…this will always be my favorite part because…mmm sauce! To start you’ll want to pour off any excess fat from your roasting pan. Set over your burners & whisk in the chicken broth & the 1/2 cup citrus juice. You can use just orange but we really like tangy sauce so we added in lemon as well. That’s were all those pretty skins came from for plating! Whisk in the roasting pan & cook until reduce glaze for a richer sauce.
This makes more sauce then most because we also like it with potatoes & veggies. I like to put it in a spouted container for easy pouring. You don’t want to add it too early so your bird stays crispy. Serve warm! You’ll see here that I paired it with some purple mashed potatoes & fresh asparagus.
- For the bird:
- Two Cornish Hens, about 1.5 pounds each
- Salt
- Pepper
- 3 tablespoons butter, divided
- Sage, chopped or dried
- Oregano, chopped or dried
- For the brushing glaze:
- ¼ cup orange juice, fresh
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon honey
- Fresh herbs added at the end to finish
- For the serving glaze:
- ½ cup citrus juice (all orange or a combination of orange & lemon)
- 1 cup chicken broth
- Optional: Honey or sugar for added sweetness.
- Take your hen & clean it thoroughly then season inside & out with salt & pepper. Set aside & preheat oven to 425 F.
- Place the fresh orange juice, lemon juice, honey, & butter to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil & reduce by about ⅓. Remove from heat. Add chopped sage & oregano. Set aside.
- Add half a lemon & half an orange to each hen along with a sage leaf, ½ tablespoon of butter. Stuff securely into cavity. Add butter, herbs, salt, & pepper between the skin & breast. Roast breast side down for about 20 minutes then flip over for a more moist bird. This is, however, optional if you want to cook breast-side up throughout.
- Baste every 10 minutes with the glaze we made earlier. You'll want to cook for 50 minutes or until cooked through per meat thermometer. Let rest for 10 minutes before carving.
- Pour off any excess fat from your roasting pan. Set over your burners & whisk in the chicken broth & the ½ cup citrus juice. You can use just orange but we really like tangy sauce so we added in lemon as well. That's were all those pretty skins came from for plating! Whisk in the roasting pan & cook until reduce glaze for a richer sauce.
- Top with fresh herbs if desired. & save your bones for stock! Because YUM.
What are your favorite hen recipes? Are you loving “fancy” looking dishes that are actually pretty simple? What holiday meals on your list?
