My mother used to make this for Easter dinner. The rice stuffing is a perfect partner for the hens. Packaged wild rice mix can be used as well.
Hello! We have updated the cook time for the rice in this recipe. We hope this helps with some of the problems that have been noted in the reviews. - The Staff
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These hens turned out really bland for my tastes. I did add a little paprika on top for coloring and that was all the flavor this dish had. I don't think I'll make this again without using more spices.
Read MoreHello! We have updated the cook time for the rice in this recipe. We hope this helps with some of the problems that have been noted in the reviews. - The Staff
This was a great recipe. My boyfriend, who had never tried cornish game hen even liked it. I did the following: Added a tbsp. each of mushroom & celery & 1/8 tsp. of garlic (in jar). Also threw in ½ tsp. fresh rosemary leaves in step 1. Added pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, lemon pepper, & poultry seasoning in step 3. Turned heat down to 350 degrees 15 minutes after start. At step 4, I added ½ cup chicken broth (for 2 servings). Served with additional rice (was a kroeger wild rice with seasoning package box), steamed broccoli, & green beans (from can) with butter, salt, & pepper.
In the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook, 'Cooking for Two' (1968), the rice listed is long grain rice with a cooking time of 20 - 25 minutes. It also calls for a teaspoon of lemon juice to be added after the bouillon cube, and to baste the birds with the 1/4 cup of butter during the last 15 minutes of roasting time.
Delicious! I made a few modifications to the recipe. I used a regular 4 lb. chicken, and added rosemary, oregano, and black pepper to the outside of the bird. I also substituted celery for the almonds in the stuffing (don't care for almonds) and added a clove of minced garlic. The stuffing is good enough to serve as a stand-alone side dish. This made a wonderful meal on a chilly autumn evening, thanks for posting it!
I found this recipe a couple weeks ago and then my grocer put cornish game hen on sale, so I've tested this recipe twice! This one is a real winner. Easy to prepare, but remember to start this a couple hours before you want to eat. As a great bonus it makes your house smell great. A couple of substitutions that I made were using 1/3 cup of wild rice pilaf instead of just wild rice, this worked out perfectly. I also used 1 cup of low sodium canned chicken broth instead of the bouillon and water which worked well too. Also, I liked adding 2 Tbls of golden raisins to the butter, almonds, and onions for the rice stuffing. It gives it a nice sweet dimension. Also, if you don't have any slivered almonds on hand you can use any others nuts. I just chopped some mixed nuts and used those and it was still yummy! Thank you for sharing this great recipe!!
The hens turned out pretty good. I added mushrooms, onion, celery to white rice as well as the chicken broth. I also added seasoned rice and chicken with a little poultry season, salt and pepper. I basted the hens with more broth after the first 1/2 hour and each 1/2 hour after. The rice was very tasty and the hens were juicy and flavorful. I saved the leftovers and made rice muchroom soup. Turned out great.
I used this recipe for my 2 year annniversary. As a beginning cook I found this recipe very easy to follow, and very delicious. My husband absolutely loved the cornish hens. The only thing that I changed (for time constraints) was the wild rice. I used the Uncle Bens Microwave Rice to start the cooking on the rice and then I added butter and cooked it on the stove top to get the long grains softer. A tip that I would give anyone that uses this recipe is to make sure the rice is cooked thoroughly before you stuff the hens, and make sure you do leave the skin on while baking; otherwise your hens will get dry. Overall I would say that this recipe was very good. A+
I have grilled Cornish Hens many times but this the first time I stuffed them with rice. They turned out to be the best I've ever done. I only changed a couple of things. I used half long grain and half wild rice as I wasn't sure how my kid would like straight wild rice. I also added chopped celery to the rice. This recipe was a big hit and I will definitely make this again.
This was fabulous. The hens came out really tender and everyone raved about the rice!
I'm not a great cook and even I wowed my guests! Really easy and great for entertaining as it doesn't require alot of babysitting. Thanks!
The cornish hens were on sale so I thought waht the heck -- I've never cooked hens before. This recipe made me look like a gourmet chef! The hens were nice and juicy and tender. Real butter is the way to go - don't skimp. Add extra herbs if you feel like it. If you are able to, always boil rice and pastas in a broth that compliments your dish -- In this case I used chicken broth. Delicious, simply delicious!
Very nice dish, so tender and moist. I changed it up a bit. Instead of butter, I used olive oil. I didn't use almonds or a bouillon cube in the rice. I used long grain white rice because that's all I had on hand but would love to try it with the wild rice next time as that sounds delicious too. In the rice stuffing I made, I used diced carrots, zucchini, onion, and a tbsp of chopped cilantro. Atop the hens with olive oil and salt, I added freshly ground black pepper and a slight sprinkling of Cajun herbs and spices. And when I baked it, I didn't cover it at all, but baked for an hour at 350 degrees F, and then increased the temp to 400 degrees F the last ten minutes of cooking time. I served it alongside gently boiled potato medallions with sour cream sauce. Thanks for posting this recipe.
I left out the salt and only used a very scant tsp. of granular bouillon because of low-salt restrictions. I added mushrooms and garlic to use them up and added a pinch of poultry seasoning for flavor because of no salt. I also used brown rice because that's what I had. My husband raved about this (very unusual!). Thank you, I will make this again.
We used instant brown rice cooked in low sodium chicken broth instead of bullion, added a 1-oz box of golden raisins and substituted walnuts for almonds. Excellent...good enough for special company.
This was a really tasty dish. I did add a little garlic to the rice mix and seasoned the hens with lemon juice and thyme. Thanks for sharing!
This is an awesome recipe that has gotten me high praise each time I've made it. I've altered it just a tiny bit though; I use thinly sliced almonds instead of slivered, season the hens (inside and out) with salt, fresh cracked pepper, and garlic, and add a little garlic to the rice while it's cooking. I also have to cook the rice longer than indicated... usually 45 minutes to an hour. Maybe I'm not cooking it on a high enough heat... in any case, it's a smash hit every time!
These hens were DELICIOUS! I also followed some of the modifications suggested by other reviewers. I used some "brown wild rice" that I picked up from Trader Joe's a while back. I added minced garlic in with the onions. I left out the almonds simply because I didn't have any. I did not salt the birds as suggested in the recipe. It ends up salty enough, I couldn't imagine adding more salt. For the outside, I melted about 2 tablespoons of butter (not 1/4 cup), some minced garlic, juice from a fresh squeezed lemon, and some basil. It came out SOO good! The hens looked beautiful. I made it a few days ago and my girlfriend and I have been craving it ever since! The rice is certainly good enough to eat on its own. I think mushroom would also go nicely into the rice so I may try that next time. This recipe was easy and SOOOO GOOD! Defintely a new favorite.
This was great and pretty simple. I rinsed and salt/peppered my chickens before stuffing them and I added a little lemon and rosemary to the butter. I put raisins in the rice like another reviewer suggested and it was great! (I also basted chickens before the last half hour) Make sure to follow the instructions on the rice package--mine took way longer than the recipe said and the rice was a little chewy. Thanks for the recipe!
I also took the advise of other reviewers and used more spices. I used celery and cayenne pepper with the rice also paprika on top of the hens and some chicken broth to the bottom of the pan. I always turn the breast down for cooking, this makes the breast juicy and flavorful. Great base recipe, thanks.
Delicious. I was a little nervous two of these little hens would feed 4, but it worked out great. I was also concerned about using only 1/3 cup rice (I used long grain white), but that was plenty too. I had more than enough to stuff the birds and put the rest on the bottom of the pan. I added chopped celery and carrots to my stuffing at the same time as onion, because it's just not stuffing without. I used a thermometer to monitor the hens after an hour in the oven. I didn't quite need the whole cooking time for the hens. I did think the rice was a little too flavored and would go 1/2 on the bullion (if any) next time. Served asparagus with cream sauce as a side. Perfect spring dinner. May have to make again for Resurrection Sunday.
These hens turned out really bland for my tastes. I did add a little paprika on top for coloring and that was all the flavor this dish had. I don't think I'll make this again without using more spices.
I have made this exact recipe for over 30 years for Christmas dinner. Even when my six kids were all little, it was fast and elegant. No dishes to pass around the crowded table, and everyone got their favorite part (white meat, dark meat, breast, thigh, leg)and ALL the kids got a wishbone (unlike Thanksgiving, when they fight over it). I always bought 2 more birds than needed since they are inexpensive and fast to prepare, so I was always covered in case we had an unexpected guest. I learned to prepare the rice recipe according to the number of guests, so there is plenty of extra rice (for 2 people, double it; for 6 people, multiply all ingredients x6). Add a vegetable (green bean casserole or candied yams), rolls, 2 candles and a bottle of wine, and it is such a lovely meal that you didn't spend all day cooking.
This is a very easy recipe and tastes great..
Had cornish hens in place of turkey for Thanksgiving this year, these were very moist and tasty. Will make again.
This recipe is very easy to follow! I used a store bought Apple Walnut Rice Stuffing to stuff the hens, and added white wine and carmelized onions to baste with! Came out fantastic!!
We enjoyed the rice stuffing; I'd recommend making a double batch of it and saving whatever doesn't fit in the hens to serve on the side. As for the hens themselves, I left them covered with foil for the entire cooking time, and they came out tender and delicious.
Very good taste - only suggestion is to decrease the amount of melted butter for basting - 1/4 cup seemed a bit much more than is needed. I also had to cook the rice mixture a bit longer than was suggested before the liquid was absorbed.
A new favorite with everyone. Definitely use the advice from "dragngirle" review.
I never picked a bird cleaner than I did with this, sooo tasty! I took advice of others and added mushrooms, celery, and about a clove of garlic to the rice. My husband wished there was more rice, next time I'll make extra.
We like this. The rating is more based on the fact that the Hens taste like chicken. The rice was good. I added mushrooms, celery, onion, and almonds to the rice.
This turned out great! I'm reviewing it now, but I made it for Valentine's Day. For the Stuffing, I used wild rice, diced almonds, onions, and chicken broth. I cooked it all together and made my stuffing that way. I stuffed the hens and cooked. Turned out great! Easy recipe that looks very elegant.
This is delicious and different from hum drum chicken and rice. Even my husband, who prefers everything fried, likes it. Thank you for sharing.
I love this recipe! It seems like a gourmet meal but is very easy to make. I don't leave it in quite as long as the recommended time and it turns out juicy and delicious.
First time that I had made Cornish Game Hens...they turned out great...didn't cook for another hour after taking off the cover...just 30 minutes...then broiled to get the crispy skin. Also, I used Uncle Ben's 15 minute wild rice as stuffing...and cut in half to serve...will definetly experiment with this recipe more.
made for xmas dinner - turned out PERFECT! very tender.only change was that i added mushrooms to the rice stuffing
very easy and delicious. I have made this several times, and I always just use, regular white rice and put large chunks of carrot and onion around the cornish hens. The hens, rice, and roasted veggies are always so delicious!
My first attempt ever at CGHen. THANK YOU! Super yummy. I took out a lot of the fat, added some chicken broth to the pan to keep it all moist. I am now HOOKED on the Hen :) Thank you.
I had so much fun making this!!! My mom used to make cornish hens when I was a little girl but this is the first time I made it myself. I used white rice instead of wild rice, but it was sooo good!!! I had yams and cheese bread on the side. Great an easy recipe!!!!
This was an excellent recipe! This was our Christmas dinner and my hubby is a notoriously picky eater and he ate everything on his plate! I didn't add the almond slices because my best friend doesn't handle nuts well and I used 1 cup chicken I make from scratch instead of the one cup water and chicken bullion, I also took a few tips from the comments and added celery and onion
Very easy to prepare, and very delicious! I will be saving this recipe for sure -- and this could become our new Thanksgiving tradition. Thanks for submitting.
This was my first time trying Cornish Game Hens and it won't be my last. This recipe was so easy to follow. I didn't have any wild rice on hand, so I cheated with a box of Uncle Ben's that I had on hand and it worked out beautifully. My kids loved being able to have little drumsticks! :)
This is an EXCELLENT recipe. I cooked a single hen using 1-1/2 servings (3/8 cup) of brown rice with the almonds, onion, a little fresh rosemary, one minced garlic clove and two medium white mushrooms; then added 1 cup water, chicken bouillon and salt (go easy on the salt). This is a very good rice recipe. I stuffed this into the hen (a perfect fit) and cooked as per the instructions. I made sure the hen was brushed under the skin with a little lemon juice, salt (again: go easy) and the melted butter. In my oven I cooked covered for 30 minutes and then again for the last 15 minutes as the hen was browning nicely (see submitted photo). An hour and one-half was just right at 400 F. Thanks mommy… for a wonderful recipe.
I added celery instead of almonds and used chicken broth instead of water. The meat turned out tender and moist, but the rice stuffing that I was looking forward to eating was crunchy and very salty. Not what I had hoped for. If I were to use this recipe again, I would not include the chicken bouillon.
Mmmm! Very yummy! The stuffing was a bit overly salty, but the meat was wonderful! I didn't put almonds in the stuffing, but it was still good.
This was the first time I made cornish game hens. Wow, this recipe was so good! Very easy to prepare and it tasted great too! The meat was tender and the skin on the hens was golden brown and crispy, we almost didn't want to eat them- they looked so pretty! I will definitely make this recipe again!!
This was absolutely delicious! I used a little less butter than called for and rubbed the birds with thyme and rosemary prior to stuffing which added a nice subtle flavor to the rice. My picky boyfriend devoured this!
This recipe is now the ONLY way we cook cornish hens! Delicious rice and very tender not over cooked hens.
Made this as a Valenitines dinner for my wife. We both enjoyed. Made minor adjustments to the recipe to suite our tastes. Very good recipe. Will use again.
Was very good changed it quite a bit added tumeric tablespoon of ginger used fried rice and carrots with original seasonings broiled last four minutest awesome crust on hens
This was a wonderful recipe and I followed it exactly. We were both very pleased with the results. Heartily recommend it!
Hello? What kind of wild rice did you use anyway? I've been cooking mine for over an hour and it still isn't fluffy. I'm cooking my game hens without the stuffing. Is something missing in the recipe?
This was my first time cooking cornish game hens and I have to say this recipe was very helpful and turned out delicious. The rice tasted amazing although it did have to cook much longer than 45 minutes to get tender. My hens actually cooked about 30 minutes less than the recipe called for so be sure to keep an eye on them. All in all, this is a great recipe and was very popular with my family.
My husband and I really liked this recipe and it was our first time eating cornish hen. Similar to other users, I also used brown rice and added mushrooms in Step 1. For the hen seasoning, I also used tarragon, black pepper and garlic powder.
I loved this as a base recipe, but I always tweak a little something. We had a gorgeous jar of chicken stock we'd boiled down last week so I used that in lieu of half the water and bouillon. As it turned out then I had to add water a few times before the rice was close to 'fluffy.' That step was more like an hour than 45 minutes. Seasoned the hens with a a little sagey poultry mix too. Also didn't have a rack so just cozied them up to one another in some Corningware. FANTASTIC!
Very good! Rubbed a few herbs on the hen, but otherwise stuck to the recipe. Will make it again!
The timing was spot-on for my two Perdue hens. I didn't use the wild rice recipe, however, but rather Uncle Ben's long grain and wild rice blend for the stuffing, to which I added chopped onion, celery and carrot (delicious). Brushed with the melted butter and sprinkled with poultry seasoning.
It was very good but the rice does take longer to cook. You might have to add more water depending on the wild rice.
There is very little spice in this dish so I was actually worried when making it that it wouldn't have much flavor. I was wrong. Not only tons of flavor but very tender and just so good. I will make this again.
The hen was terrific. I used Uncle Ben's wild rice. It came with an herb seasoning so I bypassed the bouillon cube and salt in the recipe. It was terrific. In my opinion having the bouillon cube and salting the hen is too much salt for me. I just put salt on the hen and it was just fine.
The rice stuffing is awesome!!!! The game hen was kind of boring but good. I will make this again.
This recipe was very good. I used more rice (about a third of a cup more, used the appropriate amount of water and butter also). Very tender and yummy and most of all EASY! Next time I will try some different spices on the meat, just to enhance it a little more. The best part (versus a turkey or chicken), no leftovers. The rice was great!
Very simple and very flavorful! I should have cooked it less as mine was a little dry (I only baked one bird), but overall really great flavor. I sauteed onions first, then deglazed with wine, sauteed the rice, then cooked the rice in chicken stock.
Very, very good. I added celery and cooked the rice in chicken broth. I will serve this many times again over the years.
25 minutes for wild rice is way underestimated. I ended up adding instant rice to soak up the liquid. Way too much salt.
This was a very nice dish. The hens came out tender & moist and the rice was a great combination. I used a long grain & wild rice mix and just prepared it according to the package (I didn't add almonds or onions). I brushed the outside of the hens with olive oil instead of butter. They ended up being done after about 1 hour total, so be sure to check them before cooking for 1.5 hrs or they may get overdone.
I did not do the game hens, used a whole chicken instead. This was a great substitute for the traditional turkey for our Thanksgiving meal (there's only two of us now) and I used purple sticky rice instead of the wild rice but it still was wonderful!
LOVE! :) I only wish cornish hens didn't leave such a massacre on my plate, haha! Thank you so much for the delicious recipe--it will definitely be a repeat experience.
I had never made cornish game hens before. This recipe was very easy with simple ingredients that I already had on hand. It's lovely as is. I've also added some extra fresh rosemary that I had on hand into the hen cavity and added a little bit to the butter used to baste the skin. My husband loves it everytime I make this.
I don't know what kind of wild rice you guys used, but I followed the directions, and the wild rice did NOT fluff up the way it's supposed to. I am disappointed with this recipe
The rice was ok but the cornish hen meat was great! I did make a gravy with thr drippings and dipping that with the meat was the best part. Just added flour to half of fhe cooled drippings, pour remaining drippings, and heat until thickened.
this recipe was very good I mixed cwild rice and couscous for the stuffing we enjoyed it very much
This came out great. I used boxed wild rice. Also added baby bella mushrooms to the stuffing. The cooking times have been updated and mine came out a little dry. Overall excellent and will definitely make again.
Simple flavor, but this turned out much better than I expected. I broiled the hens for the last 10-15 minutes to make the skin more crisp.
While this recipe tasted good and came out well it nearly ruined Christmas. The time is WAY OFF. I looked at the times and glanced over the recipe before preparing and left myself an extra hour. Good thing I did because it takes according to the recipe an hour and 25 minutes to cook alone...and that is if you like the wild rice VERY bony. Maybe most people used a mixture, not sure, but it said wild rice so I found wild rice and it took over an hour to cook. At any rate, good recipe, everyone enjoyed it, but it actually takes closer to 2 hours to be ready.
Loved this stuffing! I didn't have any wild rice so i substituted jasmine rice and a little red quinoa. That cooks in about 20 minutes so saves a little time too. I mixed a handful of dried cranberries into the mixture just before stuffing the bird. I had a 1.25 lb game hen and all of the stuffing fit in this one bird, tightly packed for sure, but I would double the recipe if i was making 2. This recipe is gluten free, so even I could eat it, and even my picky eaters loved it!
Super easy and super delicious!! I added extra salt, pepper and chopped up rosemary to the sauce before cooking. After cooking I blended the sauce in the blender then reduced it. Amazingly DELICIOUS!!
The time required to cook the wild rice is no way accurate, nor is the amount of liquid. I have given up and put my hens in the oven sans stuffing. I used to make cornish game hens with wild rice stuffing years ago, but lost the recipe. I had hoped this would be as good. Poor fool I was. It appears that most of the people who reviewed this did NOT use wild rice.
This is a faboulas recipe! I make this every Christmas and there is never any left:) Would reccomed this to anyone
I loved this recipe. My wife asked me to make it again and again. So easy and so tasty!!
