Cornish Game Hen with Whisky and Cream Pan Sauce
Cornish game hen is the perfect last-minute get-together dinner meal. Easy to prepare, with half of a hen being the perfect balance between white and dark meat
Cornish game hen is the perfect last-minute get-together dinner meal. Easy to prepare, with half of a hen being the perfect balance between white and dark meat
- 1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
- salt and pepper
- 2 tablespoons butter
- olive oil
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 large cornish game hens 1 â½ to 2 pounds each
- herbs de province
- 2 medium shallots finely sliced
- ⼠to ⽠cup of whisky (i used jack daniel’s)
- â½ cup heavy cream
- Carbohydrate 3.98545833321424 g
- Cholesterol 239.03606250654 mg
- Fat 46.8452006277725 g
- Fiber 0.138999998665772 g
- Protein 30.0465593753352 g
- Saturated Fat 20.5228672515815 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (249g)
- Sodium 252.001208437147 mg
- Sugar 3.84645833454847 g
- Trans Fat 3.40434412518651 g
- Calories 593 calories
Step-by-step
- Preheat the oven at 450º and position the rack in the middle of the oven.
- Place a hen, breast side down on a cutting board. Remove the backbone by cutting along both sides with shears or large sharp knife. Flip the hen and flatten it by pressing down on the breastbone with your palm. Split the hen in two along the breastbone. Repeat with the remaining hen.
- Place on a heavy baking dish and spread on each half, ¼ of a teaspoon of butter, Herbs de Province, salt and pepper and a drop of olive oil. Place in the hot oven and cook for 30 to 45 minutes. Poke the hen while cooking to release any juices.
- When done, remove from the oven, place the hen in a dish and cover with aluminum foil and let rest.
- Place the unwashed cooking pan over the stove and add the remaining 2 tablespoon of butter and let it melt. Lower the heat and add the whisky, very slowly. With a wooden spoon scrape up any bit on the pan. Add the shallots and cook until tender, 1 minutes. Add the Worcestershire sauce, mustard and raise the heat to medium high. Bring to a boil stirring constantly. Add the heavy cream and the lemon juice. Taste the sauce and season with salt and pepper.
- Serve hot over the Cornish hen.
Why is the skin refusing to crisp at minute twenty? Splitting birds down the backbone and flattening them removes the insulating cavity, exposing more skin to direct heat. Yet managing a 450-degree oven while timing the pan sauce requires strict kitchen choreography. High heat demands close attention.
- Position the oven rack strictly in the middle of the cavity so heat circulates evenly around the baking dish without scorching the herbs.
- Let the cooked hens rest under foil for at least ten minutes to redistribute moisture through the muscle fibers before serving.
- Add the whisky slowly to avoid violent sputtering when it hits the hot pan fat.
- Store leftover poultry in an airtight container for no longer than three days, and separate the meat from the sauce if possible to prevent sogginess.
Reheating cooked game hen without drying out the delicate meat is notoriously difficult. Strip the meat from the bones entirely before warming it gently in a skillet with a splash of chicken broth rather than blasting the whole bird in the microwave.
