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    Make It Skinny Please » Recipes » Air Fryer » Air Fryer Cornish Hens

    Published: Apr 3, 2022 · Modified: Oct 5, 2022 by Toni Dash · 9 Comments

    Air Fryer Cornish Hens

    Weight Watchers Points7
    Calories: 350kcal
    Carbs: 5g
    Protein: 29g
    Fats: 24g
    Jump to Recipe

    This post may include affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    air fryer cornish hens in air fryer basket

    Cooking Cornish Hens in the Air Fryer is an easy and delicious main dish idea. Easier than cooking a whole regular chicken, these small chickens make a great meal for two with juicy meat and crispy skin. With only 30 minutes cooking time, perfect for a weeknight dinner or dinner guests!

    air fryer cornish hens in air fryer basket
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    air fryer cornish hens in air fryer basket

    Serving Cornish Hens is always a delight and surprise. Their tiny size and being able to serve a whole or halved hen is sure to impress. It's also a way to break up the monotony of eating chicken regularly. Cornish chicken is an easy dinner for a dinner party and leftover cornish hens are great for meal prepping.

    Using an air fryer is a great way to make a cornish game hen recipe. The circulating hot air of the air fryer cooks the miniature chicken to have tender meat and crisped skin like mini rotisserie chickens. We also stuff the cavity with lemon, onion and fresh herbs which give the meat more flavor.

    It's an easy air fryer recipe and perfect for a holiday meal too. Serve it with our air fryer side dishes or Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes for a complete meal.

    Jump to:
    • What are Cornish Hens?
    • Where to buy Cornish Hens
    • What makes this skinny?
    • Recipe Ingredients Notes
    • Air Fryer Cooking Note
    • How to make Air Fryer Cornish Hens - Step-by-Step
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • How to Store leftovers
    • WW Personal Points note
    • More recipes you'll love!
    • Recipe

    What are Cornish Hens?

    These birds look like mini chickens and are a special hybrid between Cornish chickens and White Plymouth Rock chickens. They are also called Cornish Rock Hens, Cornish Game Hens or Rock Cornish Game hens though they are actually not a game bird.

    The birds weigh in around 1-1 ½ pounds each. Cornish hens are leaner than regular chicken, with more white meat then dark and their meat tends to be juicier. The flavor is very similar to chicken, not gamey as the name suggests.

    They are small enough to halve for a main dish serving or serve whole for a special occasion. These little birds always are a delight to serve and make any meal feel special.

    Where to buy Cornish Hens

    They are sold at most grocery stores year round in the frozen section. At certain times of the year they are also sold fresh in the butcher department (usually during the fall holidays). The hens usually cost between $4.99 and $5.99 making them an affordable main dish.

    air fryer cornish hen on platter close

    What makes this skinny?

    This alternative to whole chicken provides a few benefits.

    • The meat is leaner than regular chicken.
    • There is more white meat than dark meat.
    • Also the small size allows having a whole cornish hen or half for a perfect main dish.
    • Throwing something like this Cornish hen air fryer recipe into your eating plan keeps things interesting (which makes it easier to stay on track if on a weight loss journey too).

    NOTE: the skin is a major source of fat in all poultry. Removing the cooked skin before eating will cut down the calories. Links for each with skin and without are provided in the Recipe Card for WW Personal Points tracking.

    Recipe Ingredients Notes

    air fryer cornish hens labelled ingredients

    Cornish hens. You'll make two (or can just make one). Make sure the birds are fully thawed before cooking. This can take 1-2 days in the refrigerator.

    Poultry seasoning. This adds more flavor to the meat with familiar homey spices. We use our homemade poultry seasoning though you can use a store bought brand too (choose one without salt or pepper).

    Air Fryer Cooking Note

    Every air fryer brand and size cooks slightly differently. We prepared this recipe in a Cosori 5.8 quart air fryer which has a larger air fryer basked and is a higher wattage (1700) air fryer.

    Always monitor recipes in your air fryer and for meat use a digital thermometer to take the internal temperature to determine doneness.

    How to make Air Fryer Cornish Hens - Step-by-Step

    Printable full instructions are in the recipe card at the end of the post.

    STEP 1. Preparation

    Preheat air fryer to 400 degrees for 5 minutes.

    Remove hen from wrapping and drain liquid. Remove any giblets (if included). Pat the hens dry with paper towels (do not rinse them).

    air fryer cornish hens recipe steps 1-4

    STEP 2. Stuff Hens

    Mix the salt and pepper together (photo 1). Season the hen's cavity with some of the salt and pepper (use a liberal amount).

    Evenly divide the stuffing ingredients and place in the cavity of each hen: lemon slices, onion and herbs (photos 2-3).

    STEP 3. Prepare the hen for cooking

    Lightly spray the outside of the hens with olive oil spray.

    Mix the remaining salt and pepper with the poultry seasoning. Dry rub into the outside of the Cornish hens (photo 4).

    air fryer cornish hens recipe steps 5-8

    STEP 4. Cook

    Place the prepared hens breast side down in the basket of the preheated air fryer (photo 5). Cook for 20 minutes at 380 degrees BREAST DOWN (photo 6 - after cooking breast down).

    Then gently turn the hens over (using tongs works great)(photo 7) and cook 10 additional minutes with the BREAST UP (photo 8 - after cooking breast up).

    Check to ensure the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F using a meat thermometer or instant read food thermometer.

    STEP 5. Rest

    Remove them from the air fryer and allow to rest (sit) for 10 minutes. Halve the hens lengthwise and discard the stuffing ingredients before serving.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Does it matter which way I put the Cornish hen in the air fryer?

    It does. Though it will cook either way we position the breast side purposefully and flip it part way through for best results (moist cooked meat and crispy skin).

    Why does the recipe start with breast down?

    This allows the juices to gather in the breast as it cooks assuring moist, tender breast meat. Also the largest portion of the meat covered with skin is the breast. This ensures crispy skin with the Cornish hen cooking breast up for the last part of the cooking time.

    How many people does one Cornish hen serve?

    It would serve 1-2 people. The hens can vary slightly in size. A hungry person could eat a whole hen but one hen is usually halved to serve two people.

    air fryer cornish hen in basket

    How to Store leftovers

    Store any leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4-5 days in the refrigerator. Reheat in the microwave before serving.

    WW Personal Points note

    The easiest way to calculate and track your points is based on the amount in weight of the Cornish hen consumed. There are two tracking links in the recipe card: one for eating the hen WITH skin, and the second (in the notes section) for not eating the skin. The difference is significant!

    You will not eat the stuffing ingredients so they are not included. Salt, pepper and poultry seasoning will not have points.

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    Recipe

    air fryer cornish hen on platter

    Air Fryer Cornish Hens

    Weight Watchers Points7
    Click to track Weight Watchers Points
    Air Fryer Cornish Hens are an easy, exciting main dish. These delicious tiny chickens are cooked to perfection in the air fryer with juicy meat and crispy skin. Serve them halved or whole as an easy main dish on weeknights or when entertaining company.
    5 from 141 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Main Course
    Cuisine: American
    Diet: Gluten Free, Low Calorie, Low Fat
    Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes
    Resting Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 50 minutes minutes
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 350kcal
    Author: Toni Dash
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    Equipment

    air fryer

    Ingredients

    • 2 cornish hens fully thawed
    • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
    • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
    • olive oil spray
    • 2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
    • 1 small lemon rinsed and sliced
    • ½ small yellow onion peeled and halved or quartered
    • 4 sprigs fresh thyme
    • 2 large sprigs fresh rosemary cut in half
    • 4 large sage leaves

    Instructions

    • Pat the Cornish hens dry with paper towels (outside and inside the cavity). Mix the salt and pepper together, season the inside of the hens with a liberal amount of the salt and pepper mixture.
    • Preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees F.
    • Divide the stuffing ingredients (lemon slices, onion wedges and herbs). Insert the stuffing into each hen's cavity.
    • Lightly spray the outside of the hens with olive oil spray. Combine the poultry seasoning with the salt and pepper.
      Rub the mixture into the outside of the hens.
    • Place the hens in the preheated air fryer basket BREAST SIDE DOWN. Cook for 20 minutes at 380 degrees F.
    • When the cooking cycle is complete, flip the hens over (use tongs for easiest method) to cook BREAST SIDE UP for 10 mintues at 380 degrees F.
      When cooking it complete check the internal temperature in the thickest part of the hen (usually the breast) to ensure it reaches 165 degrees F.
    • Remove the Cornish hens from the air fryer basket (again tongs work great) and allow them to rest for 10 minutes.
      Remove and discard the stuffing ingredients. Halve the hens (or serve whole for a large serving) and serve.

    Notes

    Weight Watchers Points note
    When using the WW app the easiest way to calculate the points is based on the amount in weight of the Cornish hen eaten (as with other meats).
    The links provided will allow you to enter the amount to track. Because every hen is a slightly different size and the portion eaten isn't fixed, this will be the most accurate way to track your points (if any).
    The link above includes eating the skin. Use this link if removing the cooked skin from the Cornish hen before eating it. The difference is significant.
    How to Store
    Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days. Reheat in the microwave.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 350kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 170mg | Sodium: 685mg | Potassium: 470mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 97IU | Vitamin C: 17mg | Calcium: 27mg | Iron: 1mg
    air fryer cornish hens in air fryer basket
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    ABOUT THE AUTHOR

    TONI DASH
    Toni Dash head shot

    Toni Dash, is a Certified Nutritional Coach and certified Weight Loss Specialist, writer/blogger, photographer, chief recipe developer and creator of Make It Skinny Please. She has been developing easy to make, well-tested recipes since 2010. Her slimmed down recipes using real food ingredients bring excitement to the dining table and never taste like 'diet food'. Toni has been featured in numerous publications and on culinary websites for her creative, delicious recipes and travel features. For more details, check out her About page.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      5 from 141 votes (133 ratings without comment)

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      Recipe Rating




    1. Cate says

      April 06, 2022 at 8:25 am

      5 stars
      This turned out amazing and so easy to make.

      Reply
    2. Kim says

      April 05, 2022 at 10:54 am

      5 stars
      This is such a great recipe. The whole family loved it.

      Reply
    3. Tayler Ross says

      April 04, 2022 at 9:45 am

      5 stars
      I made these cornish hens for dinner last night and they turned out perfectly! I'll never make them another way again!

      Reply
    4. Gina Ceraso says

      April 04, 2022 at 8:34 am

      5 stars
      Seriously, cooked to perfection. I am absolutely making these again!

      Reply
    5. Heather Johnson says

      April 04, 2022 at 8:25 am

      5 stars
      love this recipe - cornish hens are my favorite - my dad used to make them when i was a kid - felt so fancy to have a whole bird for myself! these were just as yummy!

      Reply
    6. Helen says

      April 04, 2022 at 8:24 am

      5 stars
      This is a delicious and super-impressive dish! The herbs and lemon make it really flavourful.

      Reply
    7. Juliane says

      April 04, 2022 at 8:15 am

      5 stars
      Juicy and undeniably delicious! Will definitely make again

      Reply
    8. Emily Flint says

      April 04, 2022 at 7:54 am

      5 stars
      We loved these cornish hens in the air fryer! How did we ever live without this gadget???

      Reply
      • Toni Dash says

        April 05, 2022 at 5:15 pm

        I really don't know!

        Reply

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    Welcome! I’m Toni. I'm a Certified Nutrition Coach and NASM certified Weight Loss Specialist. I'm excited to share Classic Recipes made more calorie friendly using real food!

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