Friday, August 26, 2005

Roasted Rock Cornish Game Hens

A really simple meal that my mother often made when I was a child: cornish game hens roasted in a paper bag. It must be the equivalent of roasting fish in parchment; there's something about the paper bag that allows some of the skin to crisp while the juices keep the bird moist. I found myself craving this the other night and asked her for the recipe. It's a great thing to make when you're tired or short on time:

1 rock cornish game hen
breadcrumbs to coat chicken
3-4 Tblsp. melted butter or margarine
1 brown paper lunch bag

Heat oven to 400. Salt and pepper game hen generously inside, a little outside. Melt butter and rub all over chicken. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over all, pressing in to help adhesion. Then place the game hen in a paper bag and tie with twine at the top (I only had a big paper grocery bag on hand, so I cut it off at the top and folded it over instead). Place in a roasting pan, turn oven down to 375, and roast for one hour. This was nice with chipotle mashed sweet potatoes (sweet potatoes mashed up with a tablespoon of finely minced canned chipotle pepper, butter, and salt) and a salad.

2 comments:

Jon (was) in Michigan said...

Mmmmmmmm! That does sound very good! I have a gas oven and the flame is exposed so I would have to do some adjustments so the bag doesn't catch fire. I see those little game hens in the store and always think about buying a few and cooking them. Then I get lazy and just buy boring split chicken breasts and grill them.

I should try this!

Unknown said...

that sounds great i always cook rock cornish hens in the fall weather on sundays i can't wait to try it*******