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–+ servings
Roasted Cornish hens with compound butter, surrounded by fresh herbs.
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5 from 1 vote

Roasted Cornish Hens

Cornish hens seasoned with compound butter and roasted to golden, juicy perfection. Perfect for the holiday's or a Sunday family dinner.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time1 hour 27 minutes
Course: Dinner, holiday
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Chicken, One pan, thanksgiving
Servings: 4
Author: August DeWindt

Ingredients

Oven prep:

  • ½ lemon cut into slices
  • 1 yellow Onion cut into quarters
  • 4 cloves garlic smashed
  • 4 Potatoes quartered, red or yellow
  • 4 sprigs thyme
  • 3 sprigs rosemary

Chicken:

  • 2 cornish hens giblets removed, over 1.5lbs at least
  • Salt to taste
  • Pepper to taste

Compound butter:

  • 2 tsp cajun seasoning
  • ½ tsp lemon pepper seasoning
  • 1 tsp honey
  • ½ tsp paprika
  • ½ tsp red pepper flakes
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 tsp rosemary chopped
  • 1 stick unsalted butter softened

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 400F.
  • Grease an oven safe dish with butter or non-stick cooking spray. Add all the oven prep ingredients to the dish and spread out.
  • Pat dry the hens and cut the back bone out. Then gently press down on the breast to flatten the hen. Sprinkle with salt & pepper to taste. If your cajun seasoning's first ingredient is salt, you don’t need to add too much salt during this step. Let the hens sit out for about 10 minutes, if it’s too cold it's a bit harder to spread the compound butter on it.
  • In a bowl combine the ingredients for the compound butter and mix together until smooth. Lift the breast skin and add some butter underneath. Then spread the remaining butter all over the Cornish hens.
  • Place the hens in the prepared oven safe dish. Roast in the oven for 50 minutes, basting every 15 minutes. The meat should be 165 degrees when done. I highly suggest using an oven safe thermometer to monitor the temperature while the hens are roasting.
  • Serve with your favorite sides and enjoy!

Video

Notes

If using an oven safe thermometer, stick it in the thickest part of the thigh meat. 
This will serve 2-4 people. Two with leftovers. Some people will serve a whole bird per person, but I think half is fine. 

Nutrition

Calories: 647kcal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Protein: 44g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 14g | Cholesterol: 227mg | Sodium: 157mg | Potassium: 1549mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 993IU | Vitamin C: 55mg | Calcium: 79mg | Iron: 4mg