Roasted Cornish Hen Recipe

roasted cornish game hens in a dutch oven top view

An elegant and perfectly-portioned Roasted Cornish Hen recipe you can make whenever you want to impress. This Cornish chicken dish is made by marinating Cornish game hens in a lime-juice-garlic-fresh oregano based marinade overnight and roasting them in the oven for over an hour.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Cuban

Diet Gluten Free

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 2

Total Time 2 20

Servings servings

Calories 908kcal

Author Aysegul Sanford

Ingredients

For the Cornish Hen Marinade

2/3 cup freshly squeezed lime juice from 8-10 juice limes - plus 1 more sliced (optional)
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
6 cloves garlic peeled and minced
2 tablespoons fresh oregano leaves chopped - more as garnish
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper freshly ground - plus more for finishing it off
4 Cornish game hens about 1 pound each, rinsed and pat-dried thoroughly with paper towels

To Roast The Cornish Hens:

1 cup water or chicken stock
½ small yellow onion sliced thinly

Instructions

To make the marinade: Whisk together the lime-juice, olive oil, garlic, oregano leaves, cumin, salt and pepper in a bowl.
Divide the marinade in between two 1-gallon resalable plastic bags. Place two hens in each bag, make sure the marinade is distributed evenly (going into the cavity of the hens) and press to get as much air as possible out of it before sealing. Repeat the same process for the other two hens. Place them in the fridge and marinade for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight.
To roast the Cornish hens: Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees.
Arrange slices of onion at the bottom of a casserole dish or a large ducth oven. Place hens, the marinade, and water on the bed of onions. Sprinkle the hens with freshly ground black pepper. If preferred, slice a fresh lime and place it around the birds.
Roast for 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to 375 F degrees and roast for 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes.
Let them rest for 20 minutes, garnish with fresh herbs, and serve.

Notes

Ingredient Substitutions & Variations:

Lemon vs Lime: You can use an equal amount of lemon juice (and lemon wedges or lemon slices) instead of limes.
Fresh herbs: While fresh oregano is delicious in this recipe, you can play with other fresh herbs like Italian parsley, thyme sprigs, and fresh rosemary sprigs.
Extra liquid: This recipe uses a cup of water as an additional liquid to use during the roasting process. If you have it, you can substitute it with chicken broth.
Can I use frozen cornish game hens? Yes, you can, but be sure to thaw them fully in the fridge a day before using them.
To store leftovers: If you end up with leftovers (with all the juices from the pan), you can keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for the next day. When ready to serve, you can warm your hens in a pre-heated 300-degree oven for 10 minutes or until they are warmed thoroughly. I recommend spooning some of the leftover juices over the hens to make sure that they are moist while they are heating.

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