Cornish game hens split, marinated, grilled and basted, they were delicious. The easiest way to prepare them after you’ve rinsed them in cold water is to “split” them down the middle. Quit easy, just take a good, sharp knife and literally “split” them down the back bone to form two pieces. We had 4 people to feed, I purchased 4 game hens, which gave me 8 pieces when split and I had an entire game hen (2 pieces) left over. A big eater will handle an entire game hen, but usually one half a game hen per person with side dishes should do the trick.

Cornish Game Hens Split

Cornish Game Hens
Hot Box Grill

The marinade: Combine all ingredients:

• 1/4 cup of olive oil.
• 1/4 cup of soy sauce.
• 1/4 cup of Worcestershire sauce.
• 2 tablespoons of light brown sugar.
• 3 garlic cloves minced.

Hens in Zip Lock Bags With the Marinade

• 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
• 2 tablespoons of butter.
• 1 large onion diced and sauteed till soft.
• 2 tablespoons of minced garlic.
• 2 tablespoons of light brown sugar.
• A splash of good white wine and salt and pepper to taste.

Heat all ingredients over a medium heat then simmer for 15 minutes then transfer to a container for basting your birds.

YOU’LL BE USING DIRECT AND INDIRECT GRILLING TECHNIQUES WHEN GRILLING YOUR GAME HENS

When you’re ready to grill, heat your grill to high and place your hens skin side down over direct heat to get a good sear on the skin sides. You will also need to prepare a place on your grill that is cool. (No coals, indirect heat) because you will be moving your hens from direct heat to indirect heat after the searing process is finished.

BASTING: Brush on the basting sauce 2 or 3 times while waiting for the internal temperature of the birds to reach 165 degrees in the thickest part of the birds. When you reach that 165 degree internal temperature, remove the hens from the grill, let rest for 10 minutes and serve. If you have additional basting sauce left, reheat in a sauce pan and serve on the side.

Cornish Game Hens
Hot Box Grill

BON APPETIT!