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CornisSweet Potato Oven Fries - Thanksgiving Sides | WednesdayNightCafe.com

Cornish Hen Under a Brick

Cornish Hen Under a Brick gives you super crispy skin and juicy meat. No actual brick required! Can be made with chicken too. Sweet and salty sweet potato oven fries on the side.

Course Dinner, Main Dish
Cuisine American
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings 2
Calories 675 kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 (2 pound) whole Cornish hen
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 tablespoon grapeseed or canola oil
  • 2 large sweet potatoes, cut into thin fry shapes (peel first if you prefer without skin)
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons corn starch
  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray 2 sheet pans with cooking oil spray and set aside.
  2. Pat Cornish hen dry with paper towels. Now we are going to make 2 flat pieces. (See the pictures in this post for an illustration.) Turn the bird upside down and use kitchen shears to cut along each side of the backbone to remove the backbone. Use a paring knife to cut along both sides of the breast bone (the soft, cartilage-like bone) and then use your fingers to pull it out. (You can also use shears or a knife at the end where it’s harder.) Then cut the hen completely in half along the line where the breast bone was. Slip a paring knife under the rib bones and cut them out from each half. Lastly, cut off the tips of the wings. Your 2 pieces should now life flat. If not, you can help it along by giving it a good smack with a heavy-bottomed pan. Season with salt and pepper.
  3. Heat grapeseed or canola oil in your larger cast iron pan over medium-high heat. Place the hen halves in the pan, skin side down. Put a second, smaller cast iron pan over the hens and press down. Put something in the top pan to weigh it down. I used my teapot filled with water. You could also use canned goods. Turn heat down to medium and cook for 17-20 minutes, until the skin is a deep golden brown.
  4. While hen is cooking, prepare sweet potato fries. Put sweet potatoes in a large Ziploc bag with corn starch, paprika, garlic powder, and salt and pepper. Shake so all the fries are coated evenly. Then divide the sweet potatoes between the 2 sheet pans. Pour 1 tablespoon olive oil over each pan. Mix with your hands so the fries all get coated evenly with oil. Spread out so fries are in a single layer. Bake for 15 minutes. Turn fries over with a spatula and bake for another 10 minutes.
  5. After hen has been cooking for 17-20 minutes and skin is golden brown, remove the weights and top pan. You won’t need them anymore. Use a spatula and carefully ease it under the skin to turn over the hen without breaking the skin. (That’s just for aesthetics. If it does break, it will still taste great.) If you have a splatter guard, I suggest you use it. If not, stand back! Cook for another 5 minutes, until hen is cooked through (internal temperature of 165 degrees). Let rest 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Recipe Notes

If you prefer, you can make this recipe with a whole chicken. I’ve made it with a 4 pound chicken. After you flip the chicken over in step 5, transfer the whole pan to the 400 degree oven and bake 15 – 20 minutes, until chicken is cooked through or reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees.