Spatchcock Game Hens Verde Style with Roasted Potatoes

Prep Time: 30 Minutes

Cook Time: 1 Hour

Yield: 1 hen feeds two adults

"The best part of pairing a white and a red…game hens! One of my favorite meals as kid was getting a game hen for dinner, I didn’t have to worry about wrestling my brother or sister for the dark meat of a roasted chicken. I got the whole thing! Simple and quick with a bit of culinary scissor work!" - Founder/Winemaker Mike Berntsen, WildEye Winery

Try this recipe from WildEye Winery with both of their award-winning wines, the 2018 Lodi Red Blend and 2018 California White Blend. 

Ingredients

Preparation

Spatchcock the Hens:

1. Defrost the bird(s) the day before in the refrigerator, rinse with cold water to remove any remaining innards and pat dry. 
2. Use kitchen shears or heavy scissors to cut the back bone out. 
3. Lay the bird breast side down, neck toward you. 
4. Simply use your shears and cut along the backbone on the rib side all the way to legs to separate, do it again for the other side to remove the back bone. 
5. Spread the bird out on a work surface breast side down, use a chef’s knife to score the sternum vertically down the sternum, press down to flatten the breasts & any spring in the rib cage.

Cooking the Hens:

1. Mix some olive oil, salt, ground black pepper, lemon zest in a small bowl. 
2. Chop fresh sage, rosemary & thyme to taste and add to oil mixture.
3. Rub hen(s) all over with olive oil mixture inside and out. Set on a baking rack or roasting pan.
4. Roast in oven at 425ºF for 45-50 min or until you reach 165°F (test with metal thermometer stuck into thickest part of leg without touching the bone) or until juices run clear (not pink).
5. Remove from oven and rest for 10 min.
6. If serving only ½ a bird, take a chef’s knife and split bird with the breast side up, press firmly to separate.

Potatoes:

1. Cut the potatoes into halves or quarters (depending on size), place in a bowl with olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, toss well to coat potatoes. 
2. Set out on a baking pan in one layer. Roast in oven for 45-60 min until browned & crisp, flip 1-2 times during roasting to even browning. 
3. Garnish with sprinkling of rosemary or parsley greens.

Chimichurri Verde (optional):

1. Combine all seasonings, olive oil, and red wine vinegar. Adjust seasonings to taste. 
2. Refrigerate (can be made a day in advance to meld together or served fresh).

Plating

Place serving of Spatchcock game hen in center of plate, spoon on a dollop of Chimichurri Verde sauce onto center of serving. Take a serving spoon full of roasted potatoes and lay up against the hen.

Serve Wildeye California White Blend chilled at 50-55º F or a room temperature Wildeye Red Blend from Lodi, either wine will complement this dish!

We love to receive feedback from our wine club members! If you make this recipe, please let us know what you think and snap a photo to share with other wine club members.