Brooklyn1 wrote in rec.food.cooking:

> Ed Pawlowski wrote:
> > jmcquown wrote:
> > > sf wrote:
> > > > Dave Smith wrote:
> > > >
> >>>> I have never seen different sized birds offered in the same
> store here, >>>> though some stores tend to use larger birds than the
> others. FWIW, I >>>> like to do them on the rotisserie on my gas
> grill and I buy the birds at >>>> the store that cooks and sells the
> smallest rotisserie birds because I >>>> like to do the small ones
> that are just enough for one generous portion >>>> for each of us.
> They cook quickly and they are delicious.
> > > >
> >>> One Cornish Game Hen feeds the two of us!
> > > >
> >> Same here! But Cornish hens are not cheap.
> >
> > I make the on occasion more for presentation value than anything
> > else. Nice, when you have dinner guests, to have a half bird on
> > the plate instead of a hacked up chicken . Other than that, I'd
> > just as well h ave a chicken, same flavor at 1/3 the price.
>
> There's no reason for serving "hacked up" chicken, I usually disjoint
> a whole bird and bake all its parts on a rack in a roasting pan,
> everyone can have whichever part and all are nicely browned, none are
> hacked up... or I'll roast a large chicken whole, which is just as
> easy to carve neatly as a holiday turkey at table, or I'll carve it
> all away from guests and place it attactively/garnished on a platter
> for service. As to rock cornish game hens (just a small hybrid
> chicken) I'm not fond of them, they consist primarily of bone and fat,
> they may may make for an attractive presentation but they are messy to
> eat and they contain very little that's edible (~6 ounces of meat at
> best). They are typically sold in twos because that's what's intended
> to feed two small portions although I will eat both and still be
> hungry... if anyone is buying rock cornish game hens that one is two
> servings then they are a vry small eater or it's NOT a true rock
> cornish game hen, probably a broiler. About 50% of a raw chicken by
> weight after cooking is waste... I consider a 6 pound roaster four
> adult servings... there's about twice as much white as dark. For six
> people I'll roast two 6 pound chickens, I like to serve enough so
> there'll left overs, I don't like to run out. Left over chicken is
> never wasted.
> I don't remember ever serving guests rock cornish game hens, they are
> pretentious and people leave hungry... a half is truly an appetizer,
> albeit messy... most guests rather not have to play with their food in
> public so most of the game hen is left on their plate wasted.
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornish_game_hen

Smile, we are not nessecarily talking the true rock cornish hens but
you underestimate the meat or do not like dark meat.

Since everyone here likes the dark meat best (including the dogs and
cat giving me the sad suffering eye if they get only the breast), we
tend more to getting thighs or leg quarters.



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