Best 8 Barefoot Contessa Cornish Hens Recipes

TUSCAN GRILLED CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Sprinkle the Cornish hens with 1 teaspoon salt on each side.
• Combine the olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, rosemary, and 1 teaspoon pepper in a ceramic or glass dish just large enough to hold the flattened hens. Add the hens, and turn to coat. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight, turning once or twice.
• When ready to grill, prepare a hot charcoal fire on one side of a grill (or turn a gas grill on low heat). Spread 1/4 of the coals across the other side of the grill. Place the hens on the cooler side skin-side up and weigh them down with a gratin dish with a foil-wrapped brick inside.
• Cook for 12 minutes, until the underside is golden brown. Turn the hens skin-side down, weigh them down again, and cook for another 12 minutes until the skin is golden brown and the hens are cooked through.
• Place the lemon halves on the cool side of the grill, cut-side down, for the last 10 minutes of cooking. Remove the Cornish hens and lemons to a plate or cutting board, cover with aluminum foil, and allow to rest for 5 minutes. Cut the hens in half, sprinkle with fleur de sel, and serve with the grilled lemon halves.

LEMON TARRAGON ROAST CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450°F.
• Rinse hens and pat dry, then arrange, skin sides up, in a large shallow baking pan (1 inch deep). Stir together butter, shallot, zest, tarragon, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper in a small bowl.
• Loosen skin from meat all over hens (including thighs and legs) with your fingers, being careful not to tear skin. Rub half of butter under skin and remaining half on top. Sprinkle hens with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Roast hens in middle of oven until cooked through and skin is golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes.

EASY CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Mix 1/3 cup lemon juice, melted margarine, 1/2 teaspoon thyme, garlic powder, cumin, and red pepper flakes in a bowl. Pour and rub lemon juice mixture over Cornish hens. Mix 1/2 teaspoon thyme, salt, and black pepper in a bowl; sprinkle over Cornish hens.
• Pour chicken broth and 1/3 cup lemon juice into a slow cooker.
• Place about 1 tablespoon chilled margarine in the cavity of each hen; place hens in the slow cooker. Arrange the remaining margarine cubes in the chicken broth mixture.
• Cook hens in the slow cooker on High for 4 hours or Low for 8 hours.

MOROCCAN-STYLE CORNISH HENS WITH COUSCOUS

Steps:

• Mix 3 tablespoons of the oil with the paprika, 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Rub inside surfaces of hens with 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice, then smear them, inside and out, with the spice paste. Set aside 1 hour.
• Sauté onions in remaining oil in a skillet over medium heat until golden. Stir in raisins and remaining cumin and cook until onions are lightly browned. Fold in cooked couscous and season with salt and pepper.
• Preheat grill or heat oven to 375 degrees. If grilling, sear hens on the skin side over medium heat, then turn them over, basting a couple of times with remaining lemon juice, until cooked through, about 35 minutes. If using oven, roast hen halves skin side up in a roasting pan until cooked through, 35 to 40 minutes, basting a couple of times with remaining lemon juice.
• Reheat couscous, fold in cilantro, and mound on a platter. Arrange hen halves around couscous and serve hot or warm.

CORNISH GAME HENS WITH GARLIC AND ROSEMARY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
• Rub hens with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Lightly season hens with salt and pepper. Place 1 lemon wedge and 1 sprig rosemary in cavity of each hen. Arrange in a large, heavy roasting pan, and arrange garlic cloves around hens. Roast in preheated oven for 25 minutes.
• Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a mixing bowl, whisk together wine, chicken broth, and remaining 2 tablespoons of oil; pour over hens. Continue roasting about 25 minutes longer, or until hens are golden brown and juices run clear. Baste with pan juices every 10 minutes.
• Transfer hens to a platter, pouring any cavity juices into the roasting pan. Tent hens with aluminum foil to keep warm. Transfer pan juices and garlic cloves to a medium saucepan and boil until liquids reduce to a sauce consistency, about 6 minutes. Cut hens in half lengthwise and arrange on plates. Spoon sauce and garlic around hens. Garnish with rosemary sprigs, and serve.

ENGAGEMENT ROAST CHICKEN (BAREFOOT CONTESSA)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Remove and discard the chicken giblets.
• Pat the outside dry. Liberally salt and pepper the inside of the chicken.
• Cut the lemons in quarters, place 2 quarters in the chicken along with the garlic and reserve the rest of the lemons.
• Brush the outside of the chicken with olive oil and sprinkle the chicken liberally with salt and pepper.
• Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken.
• Place the chicken in a small (11 by 14-inch) roasting pan. (If the pan is too large, the onions will burn.)
• Place the reserved lemons and the sliced onions in a large bowl and toss with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Pour the mixture around the chicken in the pan.
• Roast the chicken for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and a thigh.
• Remove the chicken to a platter, cover with aluminum foil, and allow to rest for 10 minutes while you prepare the sauce, leaving the lemons and onions in the pan.
• Place the pan on top of the stove and turn the heat to medium-high.
• Add the wine and stir with a wooden spoon to scrape up the brown bits. Add the stock and sprinkle on the flour, stirring constantly for a minute, until the sauce thickens.
• Add any juices that collect under the chicken. Carve the chicken onto a platter and serve with the lemons, onions, and warm sauce.

CORNISH HENS WITH CORNBREAD STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400*F.
• To make stuffing:.
• Melt butter in a medium saute pan, add the onion, and cook over medium low heat for 8 minutes, until translucent. Remove from heat and add celery, parsley, cornbread, and chicken stock. Mix well, set aside.
• For the hens:.
• Rinse them inside and out, removing any pin feathers, and pat outsides dry. In a roasting pan that's just large enough to hold the hens loosely, toss in the onions and then place the hens on top, breast side up. Sprinkle the insides of the hens with salt and pepper and loosely fill the cavities with the stuffing. If there is any stuffing leftover, bake it in a separate pan until heated through.
• Tie the legs of each hen together and tuck the wings under the bodies. Brush with melted butter, sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast for 50-60 minutes, until skin is browned and the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh.
• Remove from oven, cover with foil and allow to rest for about 15 minutes. Serve a whole hen per person. Enjoy!

SPATCHCOCKED CORNISH GAME HENS WITH LEMON AND OLIVE RELISH

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine lemon zest, garlic, salt, pepper, and olive oil. Divide mixture between 2 large resealable plastic bags. Place 2 hens in each bag and seal. Turn to coat hens with marinade. Let marinate, refrigerated, at least 1 hour or up to 4 hours.
• Preheat a grill pan or a grill over high heat. Remove hens from marinade, wiping off any excess zest or garlic. Cut along each side of the backbone to remove it. Place hen, breast side up, on a cutting board. Flatten with the palm of your hand to break the breastbone and collapse the hen. Make a small incision between each leg and bottom end of the breastbone and pass the ends of the legs through the incisions to hold them in place. Repeat with remaining hens.
• Place hens, skin side down, on grill and immediately reduce heat to low. Place a brick or heavy cast iron pan on top of each hen and grill, rotating frequently, about 15 minutes. Turn hens over and grill until cooked through and the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve immediately with lemon and olive relish.