What makes a cornish hen

Broiler-fryer chickens are very tender and they can serve persons. You can cook them in a lot of ways, like frying, broiling, and grilling. Roasters are more flavorful than broiler-fryer chickens, so they are perfect for roasting. Stewing chickens have a tougher meat texture so you need to cook them slowly to create stews and soups. Since Cornish hens are younger than chickens, they contain less fat and fewer calories. The white meat is rich in niacin while the dark meat is rich is riboflavin.

All poultry are rich in protein which is essential for the development of our muscles. They can be a great source of B vitamins that help prevent cataracts, skin diseases, and heart disorders.

Vitamin D helps strengthened the bone while Vitamin A is essential for good eyesight. Make juicy roasted Cornish hens by seasoning the hens with spices and olive oil. Bake them in a casserole dish with vegetables at the bottom. A capon is a large castrated rooster that weighs 6 to 10 pounds, butchered at about 6 months of age.

They have large breasts and more fat than most chickens, making them meaty and flavorful. Kimm Hunt has been writing professionally since She has written for businesses, government agencies and nonprofit organizations, and previously served as the editor of a weekly suburban Chicago newspaper. Hunt holds a B. She is also a professional dog trainer. By using the site, you agree to the uses of cookies and other technology as outlined in our Policy, and to our Terms of Use.

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Total Due. View Cart Checkout By submitting your order, you are confirming that the address you entered is acceptable under our shipping policy and conditions. To achieve an extra-crispy skin, apply a glaze: Start the hen in a F oven for about 25 minutes, then lower the temperature to F for another 25 minutes, adding the glaze, if using, with about 15 minutes left. There are many ways you can cook this tasty little bird, but here are some of the most common methods:.

Cornish game hen tastes like delicate, sweet chicken with a soft, falling-off-the-bone texture that practically melts in your mouth. Notwithstanding the creative name, there is nothing whatsoever gamy about it. Cornish game hen is the smallest of the commercial chicken family at between 1 and 2 pounds and less than five weeks old. The next step up is a broiler-fryer at about seven weeks old and 2.

There is a great difference between the two, both in terms of taste and the texture of the meat. While a young broiler is tender, a Cornish game hen is even more so. Besides size and age, the particular cross of the Cornish game hen creates larger breasts and more fat, which naturally bastes the meat while it cooks, making it even more tender. One could say that because the Cornish game hen is so young, it is not as flavorful as an older chicken that has had more time to develop flavor, but that is a question of personal taste.

A poussin chicken also known as a spring chicken , which must be less than four weeks old and weigh less than grams 26 ounces , could be considered comparable in many ways to a Cornish game hen, but the poussin chicken is not USDA rated and the breeding is different. Among the USDA recognized categories, the one closest to Cornish game hen in terms of moistness and flavor is, ironically, the biggest and oldest of them all—a capon —whose large breasts and soft, buttery flesh most closely resemble that of the little Cornish game hen.

As with most poultry these days, Cornish game hen can be conventionally raised, certified organic , or free range. These are different protocols for raising animals and do not necessarily indicate a hierarchy of taste or quality.