Recipe: Cornish Hens with Spicy Salsa Verde
This recipe is a bit involved, but you can skip the marinating part if you’d like to eat the hens sooner. You’ll love the result either way.
Cornish Hens with Spicy Salsa Verde
This Cornish Hen recipe is a little more involved, but well worth the effort.
Ingredients
For the hens
- 1/4 cup olive oil, extra-virgin
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed and peeled
- 1 jalapeño pepper, chopped
- 2 sprigs rosemary, needles removed
- Kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 2 Cornish hens (about 1 1/2 pounds each), split in half through the breast and backbone to make 2 halves.
For the Spicy Salsa Verde:
- 2 cups fresh parsley leaves, loosely packed
- 3 scallions, chopped
- Zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1 jalapeño pepper, chopped
- 1 garlic clove, smashed
- 1/3 cup olive oil, extra-virgin
- Kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- For the hens, whisk the olive oil, jalapeño pepper, garlic, and rosemary in a large nonreactive container. Season with 1 teaspoon salt and a generous grinding of black pepper. Add the hens and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours or up to overnight, tossing occasionally.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. For the Salsa Verde, combine the parsley, scallions, lemon zest and juice, jalapeno pepper, and garlic in a bowl of a food processor. Pulse to make a chunky paste. With the machine running, add the olive oil in a slow, steady stream to make a smooth, bright green sauce. Season with salt and pepper.
- Remove the hens from the marinade. Season with salt and pepper. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper and brush it with olive oil. Place the hens, skin side up, on the parchment paper. Roast for about 25 minutes, then flip and continue to roast for another 25-30 minutes until the skin is crisp and the meat is 165 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer stuck into the thickest part of the thigh. Serve the Spicy Salsa Verde on the side for drizzling; add veggies of your choice.
Nutrition
Calories: 750kcalCarbohydrates: 4gProtein: 40gFat: 63gSaturated Fat: 13gPolyunsaturated Fat: 10gMonounsaturated Fat: 37gCholesterol: 227mgSodium: 157mgPotassium: 755mgFiber: 2gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 2937IUVitamin B12: 1µgVitamin C: 52mgVitamin E: 6mgVitamin K: 536µgCalcium: 81mgIron: 4mgMagnesium: 59mgSelenium: 27µg
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