View source for Cornish game hen

{{Short description|Breed of chicken}}
[[File:Rock_Cornish_Hen.jpg|thumb|250px|A roasted Cornish game hen]]
[[Image:Poussin.JPG|right|thumb|200px|A Cornish game hen ready for the oven]]

'''Cornish game hen''' (also '''Rock Cornish game hen''') is the [[USDA]]-approved name for a particular variety of [[broiler chicken]], produced from a [[Crossbreed|cross]] between the [[Cornish chicken|Cornish]] and [[Plymouth Rock chicken|White Plymouth Rock]] chicken breeds, that is served young and immature, weighing no more than two pounds (900&nbsp;g) ready to cook.<ref name=USDA>{{cite book |title=United States Classes, Standards, and Grades for Poultry AMS 70.200 et seq. Effective August 5, 2018 |publisher=United States Department of Agriculture |chapter=70.201 Chickens |url=https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/PoultryStandard.pdf |page=3 |access-date=January 19, 2022 |archive-date=January 23, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220123001740/https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/PoultryStandard.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="chef">[http://www.ochef.com/27.htm "What is a Cornish Hen?"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110520045512/http://ochef.com/27.htm |date=2011-05-20 }} [http://www.ochef.com/27.htm Ochef.com] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110520045512/http://ochef.com/27.htm |date=2011-05-20 }}. Accessed July 2011.</ref>

Despite the name, the Cornish game hen is not a [[Game (food)|game bird]]. The name is doubly a  misnomer because both males and females are served as Cornish game hens, meaning that many are not actually hens.<ref>{{cite news | last =Nosowitz | first =Dan | title =The Cornish Game Hen Is a Tiny Liar | newspaper =[[Modern Farmer (magazine)|Modern Farmer]] | location = | pages = | language = | publisher = | date =March 16, 2016 | url =https://modernfarmer.com/2016/03/cornish-hen/ | accessdate =September 18, 2022 | archive-date =September 20, 2022 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20220920173127/https://modernfarmer.com/2016/03/cornish-hen/ | url-status =live }}</ref>
Bred to develop a [[Macromastia|large breast]] over a short period of time,<ref name="chef"/> the [[fowl]] weighs roughly {{convert|2.5|lb|kg|abbr=off}} when slaughtered at four to six weeks of age<ref name="chef"/> and typically commands a higher price per pound than mature chicken.<ref name=NYT/> Adult Cornish game hens are not smaller than standard broiler chickens; the size of cooked Cornish game hens is due solely to the very young age at which they are slaughtered. The Cornish game hen is known for its tender meat, which absorbs marinades and seasonings readily. 
<ref name=NYT>{{cite news | last = Tanis| first =David | title = Cornish Game Hens Are Worth the Splurge   | newspaper = [[New York Times]] | location = | pages = | language = | publisher = | date =October 23, 2015 | url = https://nyti.ms/1PGj6ql| accessdate =September 18, 2022 }}</ref><ref name=Fisher/>

==History==
According to [[SFGate]], ''[[Saturday Evening Post]]'' credited Alphonsine "Therese" and Jacques Makowsky of [[Connecticut]] with developing the small fowl in the mid-1950s.<ref name=Doyle/> The couple crossbred [[Cornish (chicken)|Cornish]] game cocks with other varieties of chicken and game bird, including the White Plymouth Rock hen and the [[Red junglefowl|Malayan fighting cock]], to produce a succulent bird suitable for a single serving.<ref name=Doyle>{{cite news | last =Doyle | first =Jim | title =Te Makowsky – original breeder of the Rock Cornish game hen | newspaper =[[SFGate]] | location = | pages = | language = | publisher = | date =December 1, 2005 | url =https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Te-Makowsky-original-breeder-of-the-Rock-2592006.php | accessdate =September 18, 2022 | archive-date =September 20, 2022 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20220920172931/https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Te-Makowsky-original-breeder-of-the-Rock-2592006.php | url-status =live }}</ref>

The pianist and comedian [[Victor Borge]] was an early investor in and promoter of the concept,<ref>{{cite book |title=Legendary Locals of Southbury |first=Virginia |last=Palmer-Skok |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |date=2013 |isbn=9781467100687 |page=46 |chapter=The Danish Clown Prince |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z5fpWWxDAcoC&pg=PA46}}</ref><ref name= Fisher>{{cite book| last1 = Fisher| first1 = M.F K.| authorlink = M.F.K. Fisher| last2 = Fussel| first2 = Betty| title = Masters of American Cookery: M.F.K. Fisher, James Andrew Beard, Raymond Craig Claiborne, Julia McWilliams Child| publisher = [[University of Nebraska Press]]| series = | volume = | edition = | date = 2005| location = | pages = 236| language = | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=vJAA00t91uQC&dq=Cornish+game+hen+Victor+Borge&pg=PA236| doi = | id = | isbn = 9780803269200| quote = The witty pianist Victor Borge revived their use in our time when he marketed them commercially| access-date = 2023-03-19}}</ref> leveraging his personal popularity to transform the dish from an exotic menu item into a common household meal.{{citation needed|date=November 2018}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Stack|{{Commonscat|Cornish game hen}}}}
{{Portal|Food}}
* [http://www.wattagnet.com/146546.html USDA revises poultry definitions for broilers, roasters<!-- Bot generated title -->]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150201201229/http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usda/usdahome?q=cornish+game+hen&navid=SEARCH&Go_button.x=21&Go_button.y=11&site=usda&x=20&y=13 USDA Search Results | USDA<!-- Bot generated title -->]
*[http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELDEV3004377 USDA Standards and Grades for Poultry] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150111222401/http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELDEV3004377 |date=2015-01-11 }}
*[http://homecooking.about.com/library/weekly/aa101199.htm Cooking Information and Recipes] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060426173913/http://homecooking.about.com/library/weekly/aa101199.htm |date=2006-04-26 }}

[[Category:American chicken dishes]]
[[Category:Chicken crossbreeds]]