Roasted Cornish Hens Recipe

roasted cornish game hens over slices of lemons, shallots, and roasted garlic cloves in a baking dish

4.85 from 157 votes

Delicious tender juicy Cornish game hens packed with flavor. Perfect for a holiday dinner, keto and low-carb diet friendly, and easy enough for even beginner cooks!

Prep Time5

Cook Time45

Total Time50

Course: Main Dishes

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chicken, christmas, game hen, main dish, poultry, roasted chicken, thanksgiving

Servings:

Author: Courtney O'Dell

Equipment

ThermoPro TP19H Waterproof Digital Meat Thermometer for Grilling with Ambidextrous Backlit and Motion Sensing Kitchen Cooking Food Thermometer for BBQ Grill Smoker Oil Fry Candy Thermometer
ThermoPro TP-02S Instant Read Meat Thermometer Digital Cooking Food Thermometer with Super Long Probe for Grill Candy Kitchen BBQ Smoker Oven Oil Milk Yogurt Temperature
Morton & Bassett Italian Herbs 0.8 ounce
USA Pan Bakeware Half Sheet Pan, Set of 2, Aluminized Steel
Webake Enamelware 9x13 Baking Pan Oblong Cake Pan Enameled Steel Roasting Pan Baking Dish Lasagna Pan Food Containers, Solid White with Blue Rim

Ingredients

4 Cornish game hens
salt and pepper to taste
2 lemons sliced into rounds
1 onion or shallot sliced into thin rounds
2-4 sprigs thyme rosemary, and sage, some minced, some whole
4 sprigs fresh rosemary to stuff in hens
1 tbsp Italian Herb Seasoning Blend
1 tbsp butter softened
20 cloves garlic

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450F.
Pat chickens completely dry.
Rub chickens with 1 tablespoon of butter.
Lightly season chickens with salt, pepper, and the minced herbs.
Place slices from 1 lemon, 4 garlic cloves, and the whole herbs in cavity of each hen.
Arrange slices from 1 lemon, sliced rounds of shallot or onion, and the remaining 4 garlic cloves in baking dish, roasting pan without rack, or dutch oven.
Roast for 25 minutes.
Reduce oven temperature to 350F.
Continue roasting about 25 minutes longer, or until hens are golden brown and juices run clear - and chicken's internal temperature is 170 degrees.
Remove hens from oven when they reach 170 degrees with an instant-read digital thermometer.
Tent hens with aluminum foil as hens carryover cook, do not carve for at least 10 minutes.
Serve individual chickens on diners' plates, and encourage them to carve table-side for a fun dinner!

Nutrition

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