Deep fried Cornish hens make an excellent year-round dinner for smaller crowds. With their incredibly tender meat that's coated in crispy crunchy fried skin, you can bet there will be no leftovers!
In a medium bowl, whisk together all wet rub ingredients.
Dab the Cornish hens with paper towels to remove any excess moisture. Using gloved hands, rub the oil and spice mixture all over the outside of both hens.
Place a prepared hen into the deep fryer basket, breast side up.
Deep fry hen for 20 minutes. Raise basket and use tongs to flip the hen over. Deep fry for another 15 minutes.
Remove to paper towels and allow to drain and rest for 5 minutes.
Notes
We used two cornish hens each weighing 24 ounces. You will want your hens to be thawed before beginning. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight or until no longer frozen. To help them thaw a little quicker you can add them (in their packaging) to a bowl of cold water, switching the water out as needed to keep it cold.
Depending on the size and brand of your deep fryer, you may have to work in batches. Our basket only holds one Cornish hen at a time.
Cornish hens are cooked through when they reach 165F on an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest portion of the meat.
Store leftover fried cornish hen in an air-tight container kept in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in the air fryer using the reheat function or in the oven set to 350F until warmed through. You can also freeze them for up to 3 months.