Cornish Hens

[Guest]

This afternoon I purchased 3 Cornish hens from the local supermarket. I plan to smoke them tomorrow WSM-style, but since it's my first attempt with Cornish hens I wanted to check-in for some do's and don'ts.

I am not comfortable with butterflying them just yet so I plan to cook them whole after removing the giblets.

My question concerns brining or marinading.
At first I thought I would brine them for about 3 hours prior to cooking, but then I read in the recipe section of this forum that some have had a lot of success with salad dressings.

After checking the cupboard I found some McCormick's garlic herb salad dressing that my wife often uses for fettucini and I plan to use it as a marinade rather than brining.

How long should I marinade?
Is overnight too long?

All in all I will have 5 lbs of Cornish hens.
How long should I plan on smoking?
Should I "mop" the hens during cooking with the salad dressing or just cook them until done?

Any tips will be appreciated.

 

[Jim Minion]

marinade overnight is ok. Butterfling is quite simple, simply cut out the backbone and lay flat.
You can use a knife or scissors to do the job.
Jim

 

[Guest]

I finished the hens about 3:00 this afternoon.

They cooked faster than anticipated and are in the Igloo awaiting supper in a while.