Roasted Guinea Hen

Name: Roasted Guinea Hen
Total time: 1 h
Yield: Enough for 2 for dinner and lunch the next day
Ingredients: 1 guinea hen, about 4 pounds, rinsed and patted dry (if you have the time, place on a baking rack, uncovered, in the refrigerator for 24 hours); 4 teaspoons olive oil; 3/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt; 1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper; 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves; 3 cloves garlic, skin left on and lightly crushed; 1 cup chicken broth

By Amanda Hesser

Total Time: 1 hour
Rating: 4 (73)
Notes: Read community notes

Featured in: Food Diary; The First Supper

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Ingredients

Yield:Enough for 2 for dinner and lunch the next day

1guinea hen, about 4 pounds, rinsed and patted dry (if you have the time, place on a baking rack, uncovered, in the refrigerator for 24 hours)
4teaspoons olive oil
¾teaspoon coarse sea salt
½teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
2tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
3cloves garlic, skin left on and lightly crushed
1cup chicken broth

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the guinea hen in an iron skillet large enough for it to fit or in a heavy roasting dish. (Enameled cast iron is best.) Using your hands, rub 2 teaspoons of the olive oil all over the bird, inside and out. Season again all over with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with thyme leaves. Scatter the garlic cloves around the pan.
Step 2

Place in the oven and roast 15 minutes. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil and roast, basting every 10 minutes with pan drippings, until a thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the thigh reads 160 degrees; this should take 40 to 50 minutes.
Step 3

Remove the hen from the oven and transfer to a cutting board. Drain excess fat (leaving some!) from the pan and place over medium-high heat. Pour in the chicken broth. Using a wooden spoon, scrape up the pan drippings and bring to a boil. Reduce until the sauce is syrupy. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cut the hen into 6 pieces and pour the juices from the cutting board back into the sauce. Serve on a platter and pass the sauce with a big spoon.

Ratings

4 out of 5

73 user ratings

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Cooking Notes

RonaUSA3 years ago

So, you didn't follow the recipe in the least?

Jo foster 9/11/2020, 11/21/203 years ago

Followed African Woman’s You tube video, could forget the ginger, loved what she did with garlic, rosemary infused oil. Started at 400 for 15 minutes & switched to 350 . Took about 1 hr 15 minutes. Not a lot of meat on legs or wings. Not worth the $ 33. 12/7/20

Jonathan A Weiss3 years ago

Bake it in clay.

Walter Sobchak4 years ago

Pan Sauce!

Bill Haynos4 years ago

Used a cast iron skillet. Stuffed the cavity with lemon, thyme and sage after oiling and seasoning the inside thoroughly. Along with garlic, I threw in some onion, herbs and lemon into the pan and added a splash of water. I cooked the bird in my pellet smoker at high heat. Took about an hour. Worked out really well. The white meat was not abundant but it was very tender and flavorful. Far better than "factory" chicken. Pan sauce was great. Will definitely cook guinea hen again. Thanks NYT.