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Grilled Cornish Hens with Tomato-Orange Sauce

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  • Prep 20 min
  • Total 1 hr 45 min
  • Servings 8
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A sweet-savory sauce gives extra flavor to these elegant, basil-flavored game hens.
Updated Aug 25, 2017
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Ingredients

Cornish Hens

  • Vegetable oil
  • 4 Rock Cornish hens (about 1 1/2 lb each)
  • 2 tablespoons basil-flavored or regular olive oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Sauce

  • 1/2 cup orange marmalade spreadable fruit
  • 1/2 cup orange juice
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon pepper
  • 2 cups Muir Glen™ organic diced tomatoes (from 28-oz can), drained
  • 1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh or 1 tablespoon dried basil leaves

Steps

  • 1
    Brush grill rack with vegetable oil. Heat coals or gas grill for direct heat. With kitchen scissors, cut each hen in half along backbone from tail to neck.
  • 2
    Brush hen halves with basil-flavored oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Insert barbecue meat thermometer so tip is in thickest part of inside thigh muscle and does not touch bone.
  • 3
    Place hen halves, skin side down, on grill rack. Cover and grill over medium heat 30 to 40 minutes, brushing occasionally with basil-flavored oil and turning once, until juice of hens is clear when thickest pieces are cut to bone (at least 165°F). Let stand loosely covered about 15 minutes before serving.
  • 4
    While hens are grilling, make sauce. In 1-quart saucepan, heat all sauce ingredients except basil to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer uncovered about 25 minutes or until sauce thickens slightly. Stir in basil. Simmer 5 minutes. Serve warm with hens.

Tips from the Betty Crocker Kitchens

  • tip 1
    Rock Cornish hens, also know as Cornish hens and game hens, are chickens specially bred to weigh 1 to 1 1/2 pounds and have only white meat. Look for them in the freezer case.
  • tip 2
    Look for basil and other flavors of olive oil in gourmet cooking shops or near the gourmet foods in your grocery store. Use them in sauces and marinades and to stir-fry vegetables.
  • tip 3
    Roasting Directions: Heat oven to 350°F. Do not cut hens. Place hens, breast side up, in shallow roasting pan before brushing with oil. Roast uncovered 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, brushing occasionally with oil, until thermometer reads 180°F and juice of hens is no longer pink when center of thigh is cut. Let stand 15 minutes for easiest carving. Cut each hen in half along backbone from tail to neck, using kitchen scissors.

Nutrition

555 Calories, 37 g Total Fat, 41 g Protein, 16 g Total Carbohydrate

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: 1 Serving
Calories
555
Calories from Fat
335
Total Fat
37 g
Saturated Fat
10 g
Cholesterol
240 mg
Sodium
400 mg
Potassium
570 mg
Total Carbohydrate
16 g
Dietary Fiber
1 g
Protein
41 g
% Daily Value*:
Vitamin A
8%
8%
Vitamin C
10%
10%
Calcium
4%
4%
Iron
12%
12%
Exchanges:
1 Fruit; 1 Fat;
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
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