Published December 13, 2024. This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
This Smoked Cornish Hen Recipe dry brines Cornish hens with a simple seasoning blend before they’re smoked to flavorful, juicy, and crispy perfection. I love surprising dinner guests with this easy yet impressive dish.
I’m not sure I would call myself a pitmaster, but I am a huge fan of backyard BBQs and all the fixings that come with them. If you’re the same, you should brush these smoked hens with my Homemade BBQ Sauce and complete the meal with a side of Creamy Coleslaw. Or, if you don’t have a smoker or prefer an indoor approach, this Cornish Hen Recipe or this Brined Cornish Hens Recipe has you covered.
Smoked Cornish Hens
A Cornish hen, also known as a Cornish game hen, is a small breed of chicken known for its tender meat and delicate flavor. With its petite size, one hen makes the perfect individual serving for each of your dinner guests. They’re also an easy-to-prepare alternative to the typical Thanksgiving turkey or roast chicken.
Roasting is popular for these small birds year-round, but smoking is perfect for the summer grilling season. I dry-brined them in a seasoned salt rub to enhance their moisture retention, ensuring they stay moist, juicy, and tender even after smoking.
While the 4-ingredient seasoning rub is super simple, its rich flavors combined with the natural smoke from the smoker lead to mouthwatering results (something roasting can’t quite replicate). From fancy dinner parties to casual backyard get-togethers, these smoked cornish game hens will surely become a new favorite.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Seasonings – You’ll need coarse salt, paprika, and ground black pepper to make the seasoning salt rub. Salt helps draw the moisture in the meat to the surface, reabsorbing it back into the protein to make it juicy, tender, and more flavorful. As for the paprika, you can use either sweet or smoked paprika here, depending on the level of smokiness you like.
- Sugar – The sweetness from the sugar balances the savory spices and helps caramelize the skin to give the chicken a golden brown and crunchy exterior. You can use granulated white sugar or brown sugar for deeper layers of flavor.
- Cornish hens – You will need two frozen and thawed or fresh Cornish game hens. Make sure they each weigh roughly 1.25 to 1.5 pounds.
How to Smoke Cornish Hens
Combine the salt, black pepper, paprika, and sugar in a small bowl.
Pat the hens dry on all sides with a paper towel, then coat them evenly with the spice rub. Be generous, and get into all the nooks and crannies.
Transfer the hens to a rack placed over a sheet tray. Tie the legs together with butcher’s twine.
Transfer the hens to the fridge and let them dry brine for 12 to 48 hours.
When you’re ready to cook, fire up the smoker to 250°F. Place the hens directly on the smoker grates and smoke until the thickest part of the breast reaches 120°F.
Turn the heat to 350°F and continue smoking until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. When done, set the hens aside to rest off the heat for 10 to 15 minutes.
Serve the smoked Cornish hens with Baked Macaroni and Cheese, Homemade Cornbread, Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes, and Classic Caesar Salad for a BBQ-style dinner everyone will love.
Make-Ahead and Storage
Make-Ahead: Leave the hens in the fridge to dry brine for 12 to 48 hours before smoking them. The hens can also be smoked up to 1 hour before serving. Tent them loosely with aluminum foil and warm them in a 200°F oven.
How to Store: Once cooled, transfer the hens to an airtight container and store them in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. They also freeze well for up to 2 months. Let them thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating and serving.
Reheating: Place the hens on a wire rack in a baking dish with 1/2 cup of water poured on the bottom. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and reheat in the oven at 325°F for 20 to 25 minutes or until hot.
Chef Notes + Tips
- Swap the seasonings in this recipe for BBQ rub seasoning, poultry seasoning, blackened seasoning, all-purpose chicken seasoning, or Cajun seasoning to customize the flavor to your liking.
- Short on time? You can dry brine the hens for only 4 hours instead. They’ll still be somewhat flavorful and tender.
- You do not need to rinse the hens underwater after they’re done brining. Don’t worry—they won’t taste overly salty.
- Trussing the legs helps the hens cook evenly throughout. If you haven’t trussed poultry before, my guide on trussing a chicken with butcher’s twine will help.
- Smoke the hens using applewood, cherry, hickory, maple, and pecan wood pellets to complement the savory spice rub.
- Smoking the hens at low heat gently infuses them with smoke while keeping the meat moist. Finishing them on high heat crisps the skin while ensuring the hens are cooked.
- Two Cornish hens typically take 1.5 to 2 hours to reach an internal temperature of 120°F when smoking at 250°F. After cranking up the heat to 350°F, they’ll need another 30 to 45 minutes to reach 165°F internally.
- Use a reliable meat thermometer to monitor the internal temperature of the hens. Poultry should always be cooked to an internal temperature of 165°F.
More Smoker Recipes
Smoked Cornish Hen Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 tablespoons coarse salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 Cornish hens
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the salt, pepper, paprika, and sugar.
- Pat the hens down well on all sides with a paper towel.
- Coat the hens in and on all sides with the spice rub.
- Transfer them to a rack over a sheet tray, tie the legs together with butcher’s twine, and dry brine in the fridge uncovered for 12 to 48 hours.
- When you’re ready to cook them, preheat the smoker to 250°.
- Place the hens on the grates of a smoker and smoke until the thickest part of the breast reaches 120°.
- From there, turn the heat to 350° and smoke until it reaches 165° internally. Remove them and let them rest at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes before serving.
Smoked Cornish Hen Recipe