Orange-Tarragon Cornish Game Hens: With Roasted Beets And Pistachios
20m prep 1h 10m cook 1h ready
Roasted Cornish game hens with a citrus-tarragon butter, served over roasted beets and shallots with pistachios and orange segments. The beets are sweetened by the pan drippings, making this a flavorful and elegant dish.
Ingredients
- 1 Cara Cara or navel orange
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter melted
- 1 tbsp fresh tarragon chopped
- 1 tsp honey
- red pepper flakes
- 4 medium shallots thickly sliced
- 2 large beets peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
- 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- Kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 2 Cornish game hens
- 1/4 cup toasted pistachios
Nutrition (per serving, estimated)
Estimated based off 7 of 12 identified ingredients (per 100 g food data, scaled by amount).
Vitamins & minerals
- Calcium: 19.6 mg
- Iron: 0.45 mg
- Magnesium: 5.88 mg
- Phosphorus: 29.4 mg
- Potassium: 78 mg
- Zinc: 0.22 mg
Let's Cook
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Step 1.
Preheat the oven to 400°F with the rack at the lowest position.
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Step 2.
Grate 2 teaspoons of zest from the orange and set aside. Remove the peel and pith from the orange, then cut the orange into segments and cut the segments into 1-inch pieces; set aside.
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Step 3.
In a small bowl, combine the melted butter, orange zest, half of the chopped tarragon, honey, and red pepper flakes. Set aside.
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Step 4.
In a 10-inch oven-safe skillet, toss the thickly sliced shallots and peeled, 1-inch beet chunks with the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Place the Cornish game hens, breast side up, on top of the vegetables. Season the hens liberally with salt and pepper and baste with some of the butter mixture.
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Step 5.
Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast until the hens reach an internal temperature of 165°F and the beets are tender, 60 to 70 minutes. Baste the hens with the butter mixture every 15 minutes during roasting.
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Step 6.
Transfer the cooked hens to a plate and let rest for 10 minutes. While the hens rest, toss the beet mixture in the skillet with the pan juices, toasted pistachios, reserved orange segments, and the remaining tarragon. Serve the hens over the beet mixture.
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