What are cornish hens?
Ronald Leng BMNU
I was looking for a recipe for Guinea fowl (size of a large
fowl (domestic), black and white speckle, small head,
absolutely no brain, gamey flavour) and kept coming across
mention of them. By the look of the recipes, I don't -think-
they're Guinea fowl, but I'd like to be sure.
Whilst on the subj, has anyone a good recipe for guinea fowl,
please? I imagine any of those for game might be candidates; I
have a feeling, too, that I saw one in a Time-Life collection,
although I won't swear to it.
Ron.
Henry Troup
the size of a partridge. The thing easily available in north America is
a 'Rock Cornish Hen' - a cross between the true CGH and the Plymouth
Rock Chicken. Developed about 1920, I think. They run about one pound,
over ready, and are usually only had frozen - here, at any rate. The
taste is slightly more like game than like chicken.
As with Guinea Fowl, overly elaborate recipes should generally be
avoided so as to not smother the flavour. Any recipe for pheasant
should work for GF, or CGH for that matter. Even most chicken recipes
work well.
Last night's dinner was one CGH each, roasted about 75 minutes, stuffed
with brown rice, walnuts, and stuff (my wife cooked them, so I'm unclear
on details).
Best thing I ever did with Guinea Fowl was a recipe for chicken stuffed
with seedless green grapes, out of some recipe book.
Henry Troup - BNR owns but does not share my opinions | The .signature is the
P.O. Box 3511, Stn. C. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1Y 4H7| lowest form of humour
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roger campbell
>home?
>
>I was looking for a recipe for Guinea fowl (size of a large
>fowl (domestic), black and white speckle, small head,
>absolutely no brain, gamey flavour) and kept coming across
>mention of them. By the look of the recipes, I don't -think-
>they're Guinea fowl, but I'd like to be sure.
>
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Ron,
Cornish hens are a species of poultry raised in the United States ( I
don't know if they are raised elsewhere.) which are sold ready-to-cook
(killed, plucked, cleaned). The size is usually around 3/4 pound (approx.
12-15 US ounces) They are very small, maybe 4 inches in diameter, 6 inches
lengthwise, just the right size for a whole bird per serving. They are
usually broiled, sometimes roasted, similarly to broiled or roasted
chicken.
I hope this explanation is clear. Happy recipe hunting.
Roger.
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Eric Pepke
(wild rice, celery, mushrooms, water, salt, whatever herbs you have, boiled
until the rice is tender), sprinkle with black pepper, and roast them. They
make a good gravy, too--not as greasy as duck, not as parsimonious as turkey.
Eric Pepke INTERNET: pe...@gw.scri.fsu.edu
Supercomputer Computations Research Institute MFENET: pepke@fsu
Florida State University SPAN: scri::pepke
Tallahassee, FL 32306-4052 BITNET: pepke@fsu
Disclaimer: My employers seldom even LISTEN to my opinions.
Meta-disclaimer: Any society that needs disclaimers has too many lawyers.
Ed Felton
}
}I was looking for a recipe for Guinea fowl (size of a large
}fowl (domestic), black and white speckle, small head,
}absolutely no brain, gamey flavour) and kept coming across
}mention of them. By the look of the recipes, I don't -think-
}they're Guinea fowl, but I'd like to be sure.
}
Hi Ron. First here is my non-cook wife's (she only does food to survive, not
enjoy) non-technical definition of a Cornish Game Hen:
"Oh, you mean those tiny little chickens?"
What can I say? Cornish game hens are small, chicken shaped birds, that
are about the same flavor and texture of chicken. Best when stuffed with
a wild rice stuffing, and baked for about 1 - 1 1/2 hours at about 375F
Serve one per person, with candle light, wine and your choice of
fancy veggies/salad etc. One good thing, is that I can find them on sale
for about 2/$1, and they are usually just about 1 pound each. Very Classy
if you want to impress a date/spouse, and not too much work. Just remember,
like turkeys and chickens, there's a little paper sack in side with the
"giblets" <- What a euphemism!
Good Luck and Bon Appetit!
Stavros Macrakis
Ronald Leng BMNU writes:
}
}I was looking for a recipe for Guinea fowl (size of a large
Hi Ron. First here is my non-cook wife's (she only does food to survive, not
enjoy) non-technical definition of a Cornish Game Hen:
Sorry, there is a HUGE difference between a Guinea fowl (pintade(au)
in French) and a `Cornish Game Hen'.
A Cornish Game Hen is basically a little chicken. What's more, it has
the typical taste and texture of mass-produced chicken, namely almost
none. It certainly has nothing to do with `game'! If you insist on
buying CGH, just roast it quickly. It will fall apart if you try to
cook it in liquid. By the way, this is almost as true of
mass-produced chicken. Buy farmer chicken whenever you can, but don't
forget to adjust your recipes.
A Guinea fowl is not at all like a little chicken. It is not as gamey
as a pheasant, but it is more so than a chicken. I've had very good
experience with Guinea fowl in France, not so good in the US. The US
Guinea fowl I've tried were very tough and dry, whereas the French
ones are juicier. In both cases, they do very well with moist heat
(covered dish in the oven with vegetables and liquid (stock or wine)).
French ones are also good simply roasted, but you'll want to make some
sauce because they're still rather dry.
-s
Josh Hodas
>In article <7...@eng3.UUCP> fel...@eng3.UUCP (Ed Felton) writes:
>
> Ronald Leng BMNU writes:
> }
> }I was looking for a recipe for Guinea fowl (size of a large
>
> Hi Ron. First here is my non-cook wife's (she only does food to survive, not
> enjoy) non-technical definition of a Cornish Game Hen:
>
>Sorry, there is a HUGE difference between a Guinea fowl (pintade(au)
>in French) and a `Cornish Game Hen'.
>
>A Cornish Game Hen is basically a little chicken.
One small correction:
I believe that a Rock Cornish Game Hen is indeed a special bird, but it is
not what one sees in the stores anymore.
Look closely, all the commercial (and I believe most of the farmer's market
as well) birds are simply marke "Game Hen", and all they are are small
(3 week old if I recall) chickens.
If you can find real "Rock Cornish Game Hens" these should be different and
have some real floavor. They may in fact be the same thing as French
Guinea hens, I don't know.
Josh
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Josh Hodas Home Phone: (215) 222-7112
4223 Pine Street School Office Phone: (215) 898-9514
Philadelphia, PA 19104 New E-Mail Address: ho...@saul.cis.upenn.edu
Henry E. Schaffer
>In article <MACRAKIS.90...@diderot.gr.osf.org> macr...@gr.osf.org (Stavros Macrakis) writes:
>>A Cornish Game Hen is basically a little chicken.
Well, all of these things are chickens of one sort of another. I'll
give some more information below for anyone who really cares.
> ...
>I believe that a Rock Cornish Game Hen is indeed a special bird, but it is
>not what one sees in the stores anymore.
> ...
There is a breed of chicken called "Cornish" which is considered
a "game fowl" and so it often referred to as a Cornish Game Fowl
or (for the female) a Cornish Game Hen. It is an excellent bird
for eating (with respect to good flavor and texture) but it grows
a bit slowly and so would be relatively expensive to raise. I
think it also reproduces a bit slowly, which adds to the costs.
Another good breed for meat is the Plymouth Rock (the common
Barred Rock is a member of this breed) which grows well, reproduces
well, and has good meat, but to many people's tastes it is not
quite as tasty as the Cornish.
Wouldn't it be nice to cross these two, and get the advantages
of both - well that is exactly what was done, and the cross is
called a "Rock Cornish" or "Cornish Rock". It is a very good
table bird, and is nice in sizes from very little (sizes
appropriate for a single bird per serving) to roaster.
--henry schaffer n c state univ
Stavros Macrakis
In article <MACRAKIS.90...@diderot.gr.osf.org> macr...@gr.osf.org (Stavros Macrakis) writes:
>A Cornish Game Hen is basically a little chicken.
^^^^^^^
Well, all of these things are chickens of one sort of another. I'll
give some more information below for anyone who really cares.
I spoke with Schaffer by E-mail. We appear to agree, actually, that:
1. Rock Cornish Game Hens and ordinary chickens are from the same
genus (and probably the same species) of bird.
2. They do taste different.
3. Guinea hens are not only a different genus, but a different family
within the order Galliformes.
What I would add is (Schaffer has not eaten Guinea hen):
4. The difference in taste and cooking behavior between Guinea Hen and
the other two is _much_ greater than the difference between the two
(chicken and Rock Cornish).
5. I don't find the taste of Rock Cornish special, and from what I
remember, you can never get them fresh, only frozen.
Scott Fisher
|>
|> If you can find real "Rock Cornish Game Hens" these should be different and
|> have some real floavor. They may in fact be the same thing as French
|> Guinea hens, I don't know.
Having just found (and prepared) a fabulous recipe for guinea
hen, I can say they're nothing like a Cornish game hen. Guinea
hens are roughly 3 pounds (1.5 kg), with a rich and sweet but
not terribly gamey flavor -- tastier than pheasant, richer than
chicken, about as fatty as a roasting chicken.
The recipe (from memory; it's in Larousse Gastronomique, if you
want to check my technique; I'm adapting for one hen/two people):
Guinea hen with chestnuts
1 2-1/2 to 3-pound guinea hen
12 - 15 chestnuts
3 slices bacon, minced fine and blanched
3 shallots, minced fine
4-6 ounces light pinot noir ("red Burgundy" in LG, but that
would have cost more than the bird :-)
A bouquet garni (oh, so *that's* why he knew what it was :-)
Split the hen, dry and season with salt and pepper. In a large
flameproof casserole or Dutch oven, melt butter and brown the
bacon and shallots. [1] Brown both sides of the bird lightly,
then reduce heat to medium-low and cook gently for 40 minutes, turning
occasionally.
When the timer goes off, add the wine, the bouquet garni, and the
chestnuts. Simmer for an additional ten to fifteen minutes, adding
more wine if necessary to keep the liquid level up. Then remove the
bouquet garni, bind the sauce with a little butter and serve from
the casserole.
Notes
1. The recipe called for minced pork belly. Not having any, I
committed a crime against Dittmer's and blanched three slices of
their wonderful smoked bacon to remove most of the smoke flavor,
which this dish doesn't call for. If you can find pancetta or
fresh pork belly, use that instead.