Spatchcocked Sriracha Glazed Cornish Hens

I’ve always passed up Cornish Game Hens because I thought they were too much work and took too long to cook, when I finally slowed down and took another look at them I realized that they actually cook up in about an hour. And if you Spatchcock them, remove the backbone and press the bird flat, they cook in roughly 30 minutes. Add a spicy sweet glaze in the last ten minutes of cooking and you’ve practically got a gourmet meal on your hands. Oven to table in 30 minutes? That’s a quick cooking meal in my book any day! Spatchcocked Sriracha Glazed Cornish Hens, they’re fancy enough to be served to guests yet your kids will be impressed with them as well. Either way they’re a win in my book.

When I think about cooking a nice sit down meal I always consider what kind of prep work it takes and how long I’ll be spending in the kitchen in total. I don’t mind a lot of kitchen work, I just need to know what I’m looking at and if I can trim it down in any way. After I purchased my Tyson® Premium Cornish Hens at Fred Meyer I came home and did my research, what was I looking at in terms of total time spent? Hmmmm, normally bakes up in an hour, how can I cut that time for a weeknight meal? Then I happened upon Spatchcocking, something I’ve done in the past to chickens to cut grilling time, essentially you turn the bird over, use kitchens shears and cut the backbone out, turn it back over and gently press it flat, and grill. Could I pull it off with Cornish Hens?

Well it was worth a try in my book if it meant I could reduce the time in the oven. I’m glad I went ahead with my experiment because by the time I’d finished cooking up the Sriracha Glaze, the Spatchcocked Cornish Hens were ready to be glazed! I’d cut the cooking time nearly in half, which is a WIN in my book and for anyone who wants to throw together a I-worked-so-hard meal while hardly breaking a sweat.

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Now about that hot sauce glaze, before you get worked up, thinking it’s too hot, it is spicy but my kids were able to tolerate the heat for the most part. Sriracha is not a brand name however and you can use any chili-garlic-vinegar hot sauce you prefer, so have fun choosing something you like! But then again if too much spice worries you, you can absolutely cut down on the heat by using less hot sauce or eliminating it all together. I would personally suggest trying it with less to begin with if you do like a little heat. Or here’s another option, use your favorite barbecue sauce and forget the heat.

Spatchcocked Sriracha Glazed Cornish Hens

4 from 2 votes

Cuisine: American

Servings: 4

Author: Laura

Print Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 Tyson® Premium Cornish Hens thawed, drained, rinsed and patted dry
• 1 tsp olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 TBSP sriracha style hot sauce-see note above
• 1/4 cup honey
• 3 TBSP oy sauce
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp garlic granules
• 2-3 drops sesame oil

Instructions

• preheat oven to 350˚
• lightly grease the bottom of a 9×13 baking pan with the olive oil
• to spatchcock the hens lay them breast down on a cutting board, use kitchen shears to cut along each side of the backbone and remove it entirely
• turn the hen over, gently flatten with your hand
• sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper on both sides and place in the baking pan
• repeat with the second hen
• cover with foil
• place in the oven and set the timer for 20 minutes
• make or reheat the glaze
• when the timer goes off increase the oven heat to 400˚ and set the timer for 10 minutes
• remove the foil and brush the glaze over the hens 2-3 times in the last ten minutes of baking
• when the timer rings check to make sure the internal temperature of the birds in 165˚ if not cook five more minutes or until cooked through
• remove to a serving dish and drizzle with more glaze or serve with warm glaze
• To make the glaze: whisk the balsamic vinegar, hot sauce, honey and soy sauce in a small sauce pan over medium heat until well combined, add the rest of the ingredients and let it come to a light boil, then reduce the heat and let it cook down until it's thick and coats the back of spoon, roughly 10 minutes

Notes

The glaze can be made ahead of time, just reheat it to make it spreadable because it gets thick as it cools. Store in the fridge until ready to reheat. Make sure to cook the birds in a 9×13 baking dish or you’ll crowd them in the pan and they won’t finish cooking the glaze is spicy but not too hot, cut down on the sriracha style hot sauce if you’re worried about it

Nutrition

Serving: 4Servings