Grilled BBQ Cornish Game Hen

By magspags

Grilled BBQ Cornish Game Hen
A Cornish game hen is a chicken raised for 28 to 32 days, as opposed to the 42 days necessary for a full-grown bird. It is half the size of a standard chicken, has more white meat and weighs an average of 1¼ pounds, bone-in—the perfect individual portion size. This recipe riffs on the elements of traditional chicken salad: cucumber, grapes, walnuts and honey. Verjus, used in the vinaigrette, is the tart juice of unripe wine grapes; a lighter alternative to vinegar, it is available at specialty grocers.

Ingredients

• For the Cornish game hens:
• Total Time: 1 hour Serves: 6
• Enlarge Image
• Grilled BBQ Cornish Game Hen Jody Horton/SMOKE by Tim Byres, Rizzoli New York, 2013
• 6 1 1/4-pound Cornish game hens
• 6 shallots, thinly sliced
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley or cilantro, stemmed
• For the garnish:
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 bunch red grapes, separated into 6 smaller bunches
• For the vinaigrette:
• 1 large red bell pepper, finely diced
• 1 medium English cucumber, finely diced
• 1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
• 2 cups verjus
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 cup walnut oil

Preparation

Step 1

do a chimchurri, like with the turkey, add more salt.



1. Use a pair of kitchen shears to remove the backbone from each hen, then open hens and lay flat, skin-side up. Toss remaining ingredients together in a bowl and tuck mixture under skin of breasts and thighs.

2. Prepare a grill for cooking over medium-high heat. Lay hens skin-side down on grill and cook 2 minutes, then rotate hens 90 degrees to create hash marks on exterior and cook 2 minutes more. Flip hens and continue to cook until golden and a meat thermometer inserted into breast meat reads 160 degrees, about 20 minutes. Remove hens from grill and set aside to rest, uncovered, 10 minutes.

3. Make garnish: Add oil to a skillet set over high heat, then add grapes and cook, shaking pan often to ensure even cooking, until skins blister slightly, 3-5 minutes.

4. Make vinaigrette: Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Ladle a generous amount of vinaigrette with vegetables onto each plate. Place 1 hen on each plate and top with a small bunch of grapes.

—Adapted from "Smoke: New Firewood Cooking" by Tim Byres (Rizzoli)