Main Dishes
CORNISH HENS WITH COCONUT CURRY SAUCE AND
BASMATI RICE CAKES
MAKES 4 SERVINGS
Ingredients
Marinated
Hens
4
Cornish hens (about 1 pound each)
½
cup olive oil
2
shallots, thinly sliced
2
garlic gloves, crushed
4
fresh thyme sprigs
1
teaspoon whole black peppercorns, crushed
½
teaspoon salt
Curry
Sauce
2
tablespoons olive oil
½
cup finely chopped onion
¼
cup finely chopped celery
¼
cup finely chopped carrot
¼
cup finely diced banana
¼
cup finely diced ripe pear
¼
cup
¼
cup fresh orange juice
1
tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1
cup chicken stock or canned low-sodium broth
2
tablespoons unsweetened Coco Lopez ® Coconut
Milk
1
tablespoon Major Grey’s ® chutney
½
cup heavy cream
Rice Cakes
1
tablespoon unsalted butter
2
shallots, finely chopped
1
cup Basmati or Texmati rice
2
tablespoons finely chopped fresh coriander (cilantro)
1
tablespoon finely chopped chives
1
¾ cups chicken stock or canned low-sodium broth
Salt
2
tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
Cut
up and marinate the hens; using kitchen shears, cut out the backbone from each
hen. Then cut through the breastbone
to divide each hen in half. Remove the whole legs from each
bird by cutting through the hip joints; you should have two breast
sections and two leg sections from each of the birds.
In
large dish, combine the oil, shallots, garlic, thyme, peppercorns and salt. Add
the hens; turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate
overnight .
Make the curry
sauce:
Heat
the olive oil in a medium non-reactive saucepan. Add the onion, celery and
carrot. Cook over high heat,
stirring occasionally, until slightly softened for about
4 minutes. Add the banana and the pear to the saucepan and cook, stirring
until nearly disintegrated, about 3 minutes. Stir in the curry
powder and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
Add
the orange and lemon juices to the saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir in the
chicken stock, coconut milk and chutney, and bring
back to a boil. Add the cream and simmer for 5 minutes. Strain
the sauce, pressing down on the solids, and return in to the saucepan.
Boil
over moderately high heat until reduced to ¾ cup, about 7 minutes.
Make the
rice cakes:
Melt
the butter in a saucepan. Add the shallots and cook over moderate heat until
translucent, about 2 minutes.
Stir
in the rice, coriander and chives. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Cover
and cook over moderate heat until the rice is
tender and all the liquid has been absorbed, about 25 minutes. Season with salt.
Line
a medium baking sheet with foil and brush lightly with olive oil. Brush the
insides of 4 metal ring molds measuring about 3 inches
across and 1 inch high with olive oil and set them on the baking
sheet. Divide the rice evenly among the ring molds, packing it tightly
so that it is flush with the top of the rings.
The recipe
can be prepared to this point up to 1 day ahead; cover and refrigerate
the curry sauce and the Basmati rice cakes.
Preheat
the broiler. Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skilled. Add the rice cakes
in their rings and fry over moderate heat until the
cakes are browned and crisp on the bottom, about 3 minutes. Turn
the rice cakes over in their rings and brown the other side for
another 3 minutes. Transfer the cakes to paper towels to
drain; keep warm.
Remove
the hens from the marinade and pat them dry with paper towels. Place the hen
pieces, skin side down, on a baking sheet
and broil for about 12 minutes, until well browned; shift the
pan as necessary so that the pieces will brown evenly. Turn the hens
skin side up and broil for about 10 minutes longer, or until the
skin is browned and the juices run clear when a thigh is pierced with
a fork.
To
server the Cornish hens, re-warm the curry sauce. Set
each rice cake in the center of a large warmed plate and remove the ring
mold. Spoon the curry sauce around the rice cakes. Arrange 2 legs
and 2 breast halves around each of the rice cakes and serve at
once.
Represented by permission of David
Ruggeri’s Le Chantilly Restaurant