Ultimate Smoked Cornish Game Hen Brine and Dry Rub Recipe

Embark on a culinary journey to create the most succulent and flavorful smoked Cornish game hens you’ve ever tasted. This comprehensive guide will walk you through the art of brining and dry rubbing these miniature poultry delights, ensuring every bite is packed with savory goodness and a tantalizing smoky aroma. Preparing smoked Cornish game hens is a fantastic way to elevate your backyard barbecue, turning a simple meal into a memorable feast. Whether you’re an experienced pitmaster or new to smoking, this recipe promises impressive results with its straightforward yet effective techniques.

Cornish game hens are truly a hidden gem in the poultry aisle, often available at fantastic prices, making them an excellent choice for a budget-friendly yet gourmet meal. Their small size makes them perfect for individual servings, adding a touch of elegance to any dinner table. Plus, kids love having their own little “chicken”! These miniature birds are a delightful canvas for capturing smoke flavor and absorbing marinades, transforming into incredibly moist and tender poultry. After a long week, there’s nothing quite like firing up the smoker and infusing these hens with rich, smoky notes.

To achieve the best results, having the right smoking equipment is key. While many types of smokers work wonderfully, a vertical smoker paired with fruit woods, like apple, tends to complement chicken beautifully. You can also achieve fantastic results with a pellet smoker or any other smoker that utilizes wood chips. For those seeking an even deeper smoke penetration and a lower smoking temperature, a simple modification to your smoker’s exhaust can enhance the smoke flow, resulting in an even more flavorful finish. The goal is to cook the hens slowly and indirectly, allowing the smoke to gently permeate the meat and achieve that coveted tender texture.

Vertical Smokers
Bradley Pucks
Meat Thermometer

What is a Cornish Game Hen?

Despite its name, a Cornish game hen is not actually a game bird. It’s a specific breed of young, immature broiler chicken, typically weighing under two pounds. These small birds are celebrated for their tender meat and delicate flavor, making them ideal for single-serving meals. Often found in the frozen section of your local grocery store, Cornish game hens offer a unique dining experience, combining the familiarity of chicken with a refined presentation. Their smaller size also means they cook faster than a full-sized chicken, making them a convenient option for weeknight dinners or special occasions.

The beauty of cooking Cornish game hens lies in their versatility. They readily absorb flavors from brines, marinades, and rubs, allowing for endless culinary creativity. Smoking these hens takes their flavor profile to an entirely new level, infusing them with a deep, earthy essence that pairs wonderfully with a variety of seasonings and side dishes. Their naturally lean meat benefits greatly from brining, which helps to keep them incredibly moist and prevent them from drying out during the long smoking process.

Cornish Hen Brine Recipe Ingredients:

• Cornish Game Hens
• Water
• Salt
• Garlic Salt
• Worcestershire Sauce
• Black Pepper
• Montreal Steak Seasoning
• Ice

Cornish Hen Brine Dry Rub Ingredients:

• Sesame Oil
• Jack Daniels Chicken Rub (or your favorite chicken rub)

Cornish Game Hens Stuffing Ingredients:

• Leeks
• Green Onions
• Celery
• Garlic Herb Butter
• Minced Garlic

How To Make A Brine For Cornish Hens:

Brining is a crucial step in preparing incredibly moist and flavorful smoked Cornish game hens. This process not only infuses the poultry with savory notes but also helps to retain moisture during the long, slow smoking process. Remember that brining requires some advance planning, as the hens need time to soak. This brine recipe is also versatile enough to be used for larger chicken breasts or whole chickens. Always prioritize food safety by following proper thawing and storage procedures for both the brine and the hens.

1. Begin by filling a large container or bowl with water. This container should be large enough to fully submerge the hens and ideally have a lid for easy storage in the refrigerator.
2. Add all the brine ingredients – salt, garlic salt, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper, and Montreal steak seasoning – to the water.
3. Give the water and brine mixture a thorough stirring with a whisk until all ingredients are well combined and dissolved.
4. Carefully place your frozen (or thawed, depending on your preference and food safety guidelines) Cornish game hens into the chicken brine solution. Ensure they are completely submerged. Keep the container refrigerated until you are ready to smoke them. If refrigeration isn’t possible, maintain a consistent ice bath around the chickens to keep them at a safe temperature.
5. Keeping the brine cold is essential for the chicken to absorb the flavoring effectively and to season the cavities of the birds.
6. Allow the hens to brine for at least overnight, or up to two days for maximum flavor penetration and moisture retention. A longer brine period can lead to exceptionally juicy and tender results.
7. Approximately a couple of hours before you plan to smoke, remove the brined hens from the refrigerator. Let them sit at room temperature, which helps them cook more evenly in the smoker.
8. Once you’ve removed the hens, discard the used brine. It’s important not to reuse the brine for food safety reasons.
9. After removing the Cornish game hens from the brine, place them on a pan or a pan lined with aluminum foil to prepare for the next steps.
10. Pat the hens thoroughly dry with paper towels. A dry surface is crucial for achieving crispy skin and allowing the dry rub to adhere properly.

How To Dry Rub Cornish Game Hens:

The dry rub is the final layer of flavor before smoking, adding depth, texture, and a beautiful crust to your Cornish game hens. Combining the brine with a dry rub creates an unparalleled taste experience, taking these little birds to a gourmet level.

1. First, lightly rub or brush the dried hens with sesame oil or olive oil. This step is vital for two reasons: it helps create that desirable crispy skin during smoking, and it prevents the hens from sticking to the grill grates.
2. Next, generously season the hens with your chosen dry rub. For this recipe, we recommend a robust chicken rub like Jack Daniels, but feel free to experiment with other high-quality rubs from brands like Spiceology to find your favorite flavor profile.
3. Once seasoned, allow the hens to rest for a bit at room temperature (about 15-30 minutes). For an even deeper flavor, you can place them back in the fridge for a few hours, or even overnight, to let the dry rub fully penetrate the meat. This extra resting time will contribute to a more profound and complex taste in your smoked Cornish game hens.

How To Make Smoked Cornish Hens:

Smoking Cornish game hens is a rewarding process that results in tender, juicy meat infused with an incredible smoky essence. Achieving perfectly smoked poultry involves careful temperature control and a few key preparation steps.

1. Preheat your smoker with water and your preferred wood pucks (apple wood is excellent for poultry) until it’s producing a steady, consistent smoke. Aim for a temperature around 225 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. While the smoker heats, prepare your smoking racks by spraying them with a nonstick spray or rubbing them with oil to prevent the hens from sticking.
3. Chop your celery, leeks, and green onions into roughly equal lengths, ensuring they are small enough to fit inside the hens. These aromatics will not be eaten but will contribute to moisture and subtle flavor from within.
4. Using kitchen twine, tie small bundles of the chopped celery, leeks, and green onions. These bundles will be used to stuff the hens, helping to keep the meat moist during smoking. Spreading your ingredients on a cutting board can help organize your stuffing process.
5. Prepare the garlic butter by combining cold butter with minced garlic. Start with about 4 tablespoons of butter and adjust the amount of garlic to your liking. You can continue adding butter until you reach your desired consistency and quantity.
6. Using a cookie scoop (like a Wilton cookie scoop), form balls of the garlic butter blend. These butter balls should be sized to fit comfortably into the cavities of the Cornish game hens.

7. Gently open the posterior cavity of each hen. Insert a garlic butterball, add a little extra minced garlic if desired, and then tuck in one of the green aromatic bundles. This internal stuffing will melt during smoking, basting the meat from the inside out and enhancing its moisture and flavor.
8. It can be helpful to stand the hens on their upper end during the stuffing process to make it easier to fill their cavities.

9. Once stuffed, place your Cornish game hens breast-side down on the racks in the preheated smoker. This position allows the breast meat, which can dry out more easily, to benefit from the moisture dripping down during cooking.
10. Maintain your smoker’s temperature at approximately 225 degrees Fahrenheit. Cooking on indirect heat is crucial for juicy meat and deep smoky flavor. While higher temperatures can cook hens faster, a medium-low, consistent temperature provides the best results for tender, moist, and flavorful smoked poultry.
11. Keep a close eye on the smoker’s temperature throughout the cooking process. Use a reliable meat thermometer to check the internal temperature of the thickest part of the breast. Do not remove the hens until they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
12. The total cook time for smoked Cornish game hens is typically around 3.5 hours, but always remember to cook to temperature, not to time. This ensures your hens are perfectly cooked and safe to eat.

Once your smoked Cornish game hens reach the perfect internal temperature, remove them from the smoker. They are truly a sight to behold, with their beautifully bronzed and crispy skin adding an extra layer of irresistible flavor. Each hen is the perfect size for an individual serving, eliminating the need for carving and making for an elegant presentation.

The skin on these hens was falling off, and the meat was incredibly juicy! The combination of the flavorful brine and the aromatic dry rub truly takes these birds to the next level.

There’s nothing quite like a home-cooked meal shared with family, especially after some time away. Our first dinner back in town featured this delightful spread, with these smoked Cornish game hens as the star. I even doctored up some BBQ sauce to my liking, coating the hens for an extra tangy kick. With satisfying sides like pasta salad, smoked potato salad, and fluffy rice, no one left the table hungry!

What’s your favorite way to prepare Cornish game hens? Have you tried smoking them before? Share your tips and experiences in the comments below!

How to Store Leftover Smoked Cornish Game Hens

Proper storage is essential to enjoy your delicious smoked Cornish game hen leftovers. Store any remaining meat in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two to four days. For longer storage, you can debone the Cornish game hens and freeze the meat. Frozen meat should be used within 30 days for optimal quality and flavor. Investing in quality storage solutions can help preserve your culinary creations.

My preferred method for storing leftovers is using a food sealer for maximum freshness. If a food sealer isn’t available, an airtight container or a Ziploc bag works well for refrigerated storage. For freezing, opt for an airtight container or freezer-specific Ziploc bags. I also find a food scale helpful for portioning out leftovers into convenient serving sizes.

Other Brine Ingredient Options:

While our brine recipe delivers fantastic flavor, feel free to experiment with these alternative ingredients to customize your Cornish game hens:

• Quartered Lemon Slices
• Brown Sugar
• Garlic Powder
• Fresh Garlic Cloves
• Chicken Broth
• Orange Juice
• Apple Cider Vinegar
• Lemon Zest
• Apple Juice

What To Serve With Smoked Cornish Game Hens:

The versatility of smoked Cornish game hens means they pair beautifully with a wide array of side dishes. From classic starches to fresh vegetables, the options are endless. For a full list of ideas and inspiration, check out our dedicated article: What to serve with Cornish game hens. Here are some of my favorite pairings:

• Side Dishes: Caesar Salad, Rice, Smoked Baked Potatoes, Smoked Deviled Eggs, Grilled Twice Baked Potatoes, Smoked Potato Salad, Oven Roasted Potatoes, and Deviled Egg Macaroni Salad.
• Desserts: Pumpkin Bundt Cake, Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bakes, Pink Fluff, Oreo Fluff, 2 Ingredient Peanut Butter Fudge, Cake Mix Cookies, Ice Cream Floats, Triple Chocolate Bundt Cake.

More Smoked Cornish Hens Recipes:

If you love these smoked Cornish game hens, you’ll be thrilled to explore other flavor variations. These recipes are consistently excellent and can be easily adapted to any pellet smoker or traditional smoker, allowing you to continually experiment with new and exciting tastes:

• Sweet And Spicy Smoked Cornish Game Hens
• Mediterranean Smoked Cornish Game Hens
• Cold Smoked Cornish Game Hens
• Smoked Cornish Game Hens With Brine And Dry Rub
• Coca-Cola Smoked Cornish Game Hens
• Smoked Cornish Game Hens With Brine