Air Fryer Cornish Hen

Name: Air Fryer Cornish Hen
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 55 min
Ingredients: 1 Cornish hen (about 1.5 pounds); 1 tablespoon olive oil; 1 teaspoon garlic powder; 1 teaspoon onion powder; 1 teaspoon paprika; 1 teaspoon dried thyme; 1 teaspoon dried rosemary; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/2 teaspoon black pepper; 1 lemon (quartered); Fresh herbs (optional, for garnish)

Cooking up the whole Cornish hen does not seem to be a problem anymore. Air fryer Cornish hen is the easiest way to prepare the Cornish hen with all the divine and delicious flavors like Caramelized Chicken Tenders. Learning to cook the Cornish hen has seemed to be an actual problem. Obtaining the succulent and tender flavor of the hen is not an easy task. One needs to learn the proper tricks and techniques to make the perfect tender and juicy Cornish hen as coconut shrimp . Making the Cornish hen at home in your air fryer is the most convenient way of preparing it. Follow the same recipe to make a full-fledged cooked and tenderized hen with heavenly delicious flavors like fried chicken breast.

The Cornish hen is a healthier meal as it contains all the essential meals required for your body like London Broil. Therefore, you should make such healthier meals more often. Grilled Cornish hens and the slow roasted hens are the earlier but great ways of preparing the Cornish hen but the air fryer method tops them all like chicken fried steak. The cooking time decreases to half when you are using an air fryer. Serving some side dishes and salads alongside the Cornish hen complements its flavors like Reverse Sear Steak.

Cornish Hen which is seasoned with paprika, thyme, onion and garlic should have a delicious crispy skin along with the tasty meat like boneless short ribs. Cornish hen meat is easily available in the frozen sections of the supermarkets and stores and you must get yourself the fresh ones. If you use fresh meat it will be more juicy and tender as Paneer Tikka. The small size of the Cornish hen is ideal for the air fryer basket and for serving on the dinner table to your guests. Try out the recipe and I am sure you will eventually get perfect at it.

Ingredients for Making the Air Fryer Cornish Hen

The air fryer Cornish hen required several types of seasonings for marination. Most of these seasonings are already present in your kitchen. All you have to buy is one fresh Cornish hen along with the freshly chopped parsley. The seasonings including paprika, black pepper, salt, garlic onion powder and olive oil are easily available.

Cornish Hens

Two Cornish hens of suitable size like one pound to one and a half pounds would be good enough to make a good meal. You can either keep them in the freezer or buy the fresh ones for this air fryer recipe as Air Fryer Recipes PDF.

Smoked paprika

One tablespoon of smoked paprika is a major seasoning to be added to the Cornish hen. It gives a good smoky flavor to your dish like homemade beef ribs . Do not add more than one tablespoon or your dish will lose its flavor.

Garlic powder and Onion Powder

Other than smoked paprika one tablespoon of garlic powder and onion powder is great to be added in almost all of your dishes. The flavor you get from the garlic and onion powder is unbeatable. No one should ever skip these two spices in it.

Kosher Salt

One tablespoon of salt is good enough to marinate your Cornish hen. Salt is a mandatory seasoning for every sort of recipe.

Olive oil

Extra virgin olive oil is required in this recipe for greasing purposes. You can use the olive oil and brush it in the air fryer basket or simply can use the olive oil spray. Olive oil is also required to brush the hen so that it will get a beautiful glaze brown color like frozen burritos.

Black pepper

One tablespoon of black pepper is a good approach for this recipe. You must not add black pepper in extra quantities or you will lose all the flavor of your hen. Freshly grated black pepper would be greatly appreciated.

Freshly chopped parsley

Use freshly chopped parsley to garnish the hen before serving. Using such herbs would add a great flavor to your dish along with a good essence and aromatic effect.

Instructions to Make the Air Fryer Cornish Hens

For making the air fryer Cornish hen you have to follow a certain series of steps which includes the cleaning and preparation of the hen, seasoning it and then cooking it in the air fryer. Air frying carefully at a suitable time and temperature is essential for every air fryer recipe for better results.

Preparing the Hens

First of all, you have to prepare the Cornish hens. For this purpose, let them thaw first and then use the paper towels to pat dry them properly. After drying the Hen, put it aside to prepare the seasoning rib for marination.

Seasoning the Hen

Take a small mixing bowl and start adding the seasonings into it one by one. First of all, add some onion powder into it and then mix in the garlic powder. Then add a little amount of salt and paprika along with some black pepper.

Oiling the Meet

Use the olive oil to rub the Cornish hens with oil. You can either brush the oil on the meat, rub it or spray it. Make sure not to forget to fill the cavity with the oil. You should also sprinkle the seasoning into the cavity to deliver better flavor to the core.

Preheating the Air Fryer

Set the temperature of the air fryer to 350 degrees and preheat it at this temperature for a few minutes. Preheating is an essential step in every single air fryer recipe.

Stuffing the Hen in the Air Fryer Basket

Bring the air fryer basket and put the seasoned Cornish hen in the prepared air-fried basket. The breast of the hen should be upside down. Make sure the size of the hen is exactly according to the size of the air fryer basket. It should be perfectly fit in the basket.

Air Frying the Hen

Start air frying the hen and continue the process for about 20 minutes. Flip the hen during cooking. You must check the internal temperature of the hen and it should be 165 degrees. The hen will take almost 15-17 minutes to get cooked properly. As soon as the skin of the hen gets golden brown, take it out of the air fryer.

Serving the Air Fried Cornish Hen

Your Cornish hen is ready to serve. Remove the Cornish hen from the air fryer and let it stand for 8-10 minutes. Garnish the hen with the freshly chopped parsley and serve it while hot.

Storage and Reheating of the Air Fryer Cornish Hen

You can simply store the Cornish hen in air-tight containers in your refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. But most importantly make sure to bring the Cornish hen to the room temperature before putting it in the container. This would help to retain the flavor of the hen like air fryer batter. Storing the leftovers is very easy. Talking about the reheating of the Cornish hen, you need to be careful in this matter.

The two methods of reheating the cornish hen are either by using the air fryer or by the oven method.

Air Fryer Method

For reheating the Cornish hen in the air fryer you have to maintain the temperature at 400 degrees. Before reheating you must preheat the air fryer for about 3-4 minutes. This would help to provide uniform heat to your hen. Put the hen in the air fryer and let it heat until the required internal temperature is reached. Flipping in between the reheating is also essential for the uniform transfer of heat.

Oven Method

The use of an oven is a conventional method to reheat your meals like the Cornish hen. The temperature of the oven should be at 350 degrees. While you put your Cornish hen in the baking dish you must add a little quantity of water into it. This will prevent the Cornish hen from drying out. It will take almost 8-10 minutes in the oven to properly reheat the Cornish hen.

Expert Tips to Follow While You Make the Cornish Hen

To make the most tender, juicy and crispy hen at home, you must follow the pro tips and techniques.

You must make sure to properly dry the chicken before putting it in the air fryer basket. Paper towels can be used to absorb the excess liquid. This would help to get a more crisp outer layer like orange chicken.

Thawing the chicken completely would be great for getting the required internal temperature and texture of the hen. It should be crispy on the outside while tender and juicy on the inside.

Let the chicken rest for a few minutes before serving. This would give enough time for the chicken to absorb most of its flavors and therefore it results in more delicious and finger-licking flavors.

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FAQS

What is the correct way to eat the Cornish hen?

Serving the Cornish hens as a single serving or you can split it in half when you pair it up with the side dishes. Pairing up the air fries Cornish hen with the roasted sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts and fried vegetables. A lot more ideas for fried snacks can add to this list like tortillas, roasted veggies etc.

Do we need to rinse the Cornish hen before cooking?

Rinsing the Cornish hen before cooking is not a good approach. Rinsing will result in the spread of bacteria on the countertop and around the skin. Rather than rinsing, it is better to use paper towels to clean the Cornish hen. You can also use the wet paper towels for this purpose.

Do you prefer the Cornish hen over the chicken?

People usually find the Cornish hen more tender than the fried chicken. Cornish hens are not more healthier than the chicken. But still, it provides fair amounts of nutrients and minerals to the body and therefore is consider a healthy meal.