Cornish Hens with Cranberry Sage Stuffing and Gravy

A great alternative to turkey for the Thanksgiving meal or as a special main for a holiday dinner, these Cornish hens hang out in the fridge, generously salted and uncovered, for 12 hours before roasting atop aromatics, resulting in crisp skin and moist, savoury meat. Butter helps further bronze and burnish the birds, which are filled with a cranberry-sage stuffing made with rye bread and served with a drizzle of quick pan gravy.

If you’re not familiar with Cornish hens, you might know them by one of their other names, such as rock hens or the more recent name of game hens-but they are not game meat, like, say quail. They are small, succulent chickens weighing two pounds or less. Each guest gets their own bird (or half of one split down the spine if it’s on the larger side). Buy hens that are roughly the same size so they roast in the same amount of time.

4-6 game hens, room temperature
sea salt
4-6 cups Cranberry Sage Stuffing
4-6 Tbsp. butter, room temperature, divided
black pepper, freshly ground
1 small onion, quartered
2 ribs celery, cut into 2” pieces
fresh thyme sprigs
2¼ cups turkey or chicken stock, divided
3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour, unbleached

Pat the skin and cavities of hens dry with paper towels. Generously season cavities with salt and refrigerate, uncovered, at least 12 hours and up to 2 days ahead.

Remove from the refrigerator and let stand for 1 hour. Pat dry inside and out. Loosely fill cavity of each hen with 1 cup Cranberry Sage Stuffing; tie legs with twine to secure.

Preheat oven to 450°F (230°C/210°C fan, Gas Mark 8).

Rub 1 Tbsp. butter all over the skin of each game hen; season with salt and pepper. Scatter the onion, celery and thyme in a roasting pan. Arrange hens in the pan over aromatics.

Roast for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°F (180°C/160°C fan, Gas Mark 4) and continue roasting, basting with pan drippings twice, until hens register 165˚F on a meat thermometer inserted into thickest part of thighs and into the center of the stuffed cavities, 25-30 minutes more, depending on size. Transfer hens to a board or platter and loosely cover to keep warm.

Make the Gravy:
Whisk together ¼ cup stock and flour to create a slurry. Discard vegetables and thyme in pan. Add remaining 2 cups stock to pan and bring to a boil over medium- high heat, scraping to loosen any bits on the bottom of the pan. Whisk slurry mixture into pan and cook, whisking occasionally, until gravy thickens to desired consistency.

Season to taste (strain, if desired, for a smooth gravy) and serve with hens and stuffing.

Makes 4-12 servings.