Follow my guide to cook super delicious oven roasted Cornish Hens! Simple steps and a few seasonings is all you need for this easy "How to" recipe!
I love Cornish hens and so does my family. Â They bring a little joy to the dinner table and 2 Cornish hens are the perfect size for 2 adults and 2 children or 2 adults! Â These cook up super easily in a casserole dish in the oven and come out juicy every time. Â Let me show you how to make them!
Some amazing sides to pair with the Cornish hens are Keto Creamed Spinach, Keto Bacon Wrapped Asparagus, Fried Radishes with Crispy Bacon, or my personal favorite: Loaded Cauliflower Rice Casserole.
The thing about Cornish hens is that the price per pound is usually more than a whole chicken, but I think cooking Cornish game hens is much easier and sometimes worth the additional cost. Â They are great for special occasions, busy weeknights, or just when you want to feel a little fancy.
How to cook Cornish hens
I like to keep recipes as simple as possible and with minimal ingredients. Â For this recipe I like to use my favorite homemade chicken seasoning that gets rave reviews. Â It is so good! Â It includes smoked paprika, garlic powder, oregano, onion powder, and salt. Â For the ingredient amounts please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Before we get started, we need to pre-heat the oven to 400F and prep the hens. Â Some Cornish game hens come with giblets and some do not. Â If yours does, you need to remove them from the cavity before cooking.
I like to rub the Cornish hens with avocado oil prior to cooking. Â I know a lot of people use olive oil or butter, but they have lower smoke points than avocado oil. Â Since we are cooking these at 400F and the smoke point of olive oil is around 400F (butter has a smoke point of 302F), you might have a plume of smoke exit your oven when you open the door. Â Avocado oil has a smoke point of 520F!
After we rub them down with oil, I place the Cornish hens in a 9x13 casserole dish, I combine the seasonings in a small bowl, and I season both sides.
Now we just put them in the oven for around an hour, or until an internal meat thermometer reads 165F.
How do I make sure my Cornish hens stay juicy?
The trick to keeping any meat juicy and tender, especially chicken, is to cook it until it is the right internal temperature. Â Chicken should be cooked to an internal temperature of 165F. Â We use and internal probe thermometer to test the temperature and pull the Cornish hens out of the oven right when they comes to temp. Â You can see what meat thermometer is my favorite in the recipe carb below.
The next step to insure juicy meat is to let it rest for at least 10 minutes before cutting into it.
Recipe tips and notes
- I know we were all raised to rinse our poultry in the sink with water before cooking but this is actually a good way to spread bacteria. Â There is no need to rinse the Cornish hens or any meat before cooking.
- Throw some root vegetables around the Cornish hens before roasting for the most amazing side dish!
- If you want to use olive oil instead of avocado oil, I would reduce the cooking temperature to 375F
Checkout these other amazing recipes:
- How to Cook Cabbage with Bacon
- Keto Eggplant Parmesan
- Hearts of Palm Pasta with Alfredo Sauce
- Instant Pot Country Style Ribs
How to Cook Cornish Hens
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Ingredients
- 2 Cornish Hens
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F.
- Place the Cornish hens in a casserole dish and coat with the avocado oil. Combine the seasonings in a small bowl and season all sides of each hen.
- Place your Cornish Hens into already preheated oven and cook until internal temperature reaches 165F. This should take 55 minutes to an hour. Check the temperature of the hen by inserting the meat thermometer probe between the leg and breast.
Notes
- I know we were all raised to rinse our poultry in the sink with water before cooking but this is actually a good way to spread bacteria. Â There is no need to rinse the Cornish hens or any meat before cooking.
- Throw some root vegetables around the Cornish hens before roasting for the most amazing side dish!
- If you want to use olive oil instead of avocado oil, I would reduce the cooking temperature to 375F
Nutrition per serving
Nutrition is provided as a courtesy only. Please re-calculate on your own with the ingredients and amounts you used for the most accurate data.
Harry says
The receipt helped a great deal. Hens came out very well.
Barbara says
I love that you keep it simple