Chicken · oven
Cornish Game Hens
Cornish Game Hens
cooking times
45 min – 1 hr At the most common temperature, 375°F, Cornish game hens takes about 45 min – 1 hr. Pick your temperature below for the full chart. Done is always 165°F internal.
Pick your temperature
When is it actually done?
165°F internal The USDA FSIS safe minimum internal temperature for this cut is 165°F, followed by a rest of about 10 minutes. The clock estimates; the thermometer decides. Every time on this page is a planning range, not a doneness test.
Sizing: Times are per typical 1.25–1.5 lb hen. Four hens on one pan roast in the same time as one — give them space so they roast rather than steam.
Worth knowing before you start
- One hen per person looks generous; a 1.5 lb bird is genuinely two modest servings — halve them along the backbone after resting.
- They are small enough to dry out fast: check early, and probe the thigh exactly as you would a full chicken.
- Everything true of a whole chicken is true here at two-thirds scale, including the 165°F thigh reading.