This delicious recipe for air fryer Cornish hen is perfect for holiday dinners or casual weeknight meals. Super easy, juicy, and flavorful for a dish that makes everyone smile.
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Cornish hen is well known for its abundance of breast meat, so if white meat is your thing, this air fryer Cornish hen recipe is an easy way to get more juicy meat you love!
Cornish hens are just small chickens that are bred for meat. These young chickens are flavorful with richer breast meat than you would normally taste in a traditional chicken. They are also fun to serve!
How To Cook A Cornish Hen in the Air Fryer
A full printable version of this recipe with ingredient measurements is available at the bottom of this post.
STEP ONE: Preheat your air fryer to 360 degrees F. Prepare two cornish hens by patting their skin dry with a paper towel to absorb any excess moisture.
STEP TWO: Whisk oil, salt, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, paprika, black pepper, and lemon zest in a small bowl and set aside.
STEP THREE: Twist the wings to tuck them under each Cornish hen chicken.
STEP FOUR: Place the cornish hens in the air fryer basket with the breast side down and cook for 35 minutes.
STEP FIVE: For the best results, open the air fryer and turn the hens breast side up, then cook for an additional 10 minutes.
Make sure to check the internal temperature of your Cornish hen in the air fryer with a meat thermometer before removing them. They should reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
Tips for the Best Air Fryer Cornish Hen Recipe
- Pat dry before cooking. It’s important to pat dry your air fryer Cornish hens with a paper towel. Absorbing the extra moisture is key for getting crispy skin when air frying.
- Flip halfway. This is an easy trick when making roasted Cornish hen. It keeps the moisture of the bird in the breast, then creates crispy skin with golden brown color.
- Plan your portions. Known for its succulent meat, this game bird is the perfect size for an individual serving or cut in half for smaller appetites.
What to Serve With Air Fryer Cornish Hen
- Instant Pot Garlic Mashed Potatoes
- Instant Pot Carrots
- Air Fryer Asparagus
- Air Fryer Corn on the Cob
- Air Fryer Carrots
- Air Fryer Green Beans
- Air Fryer Butternut Squash
- Air Fryer Brussel Sprouts
Variations to Cornish Game Hen in the Air Fryer
- Change up the seasoning blend for a lemon pepper seasoning or fresh herbs. Fresh basil, thyme, and parsley are delicious.
- Try another new flavor with poultry seasoning or a spicier option in Cajun seasoning. Either is super tasty on this air fryer Cornish hen!
- Any of your favorite seasonings for regular chicken or rotisseries work great with Cornish hen in the air fryer. My kids actually thought I had made mini rotisserie chicken the first time I served them!
How Long to Cook Cornish Hen in the Air Fryer
Cooking time will be 40-45 minutes. Only cook as many Cornish game hens in the air fryer as you can fit in a single layer in your air fry basket.
Crowding the basket can cause the food to cook unevenly. As with regular chicken, undercooked areas of poultry is not a good idea!
Make sure to test your air fryer Cornish hens with a meat thermometer.
How to Cook Frozen Cornish Hen in the Air Fryer
This is a super easy air fryer Cornish hen recipe. Usually, Cornish hens are sold frozen from the grocery store, so you will need to thaw them overnight in the refrigerator before cooking.
To defrost your air fryer Cornish hens, place them in a bowl or casserole dish — you don’t want the liquid from the thawing frozen Cornish hens to leak into your fridge!
Forgot? No worries! You can cook this air fryer Cornish hen recipe from frozen if you didn’t get it fully thawed. It will add 10-15 minutes to your total cook time. Know that the skin will not be quite as crispy, but it will still be tasty.
How to Reheat Cornish Hen in the Air Fryer
The easy way to reheat your air fryer Cornish hens is in the air fryer!
If your roasted chicken is whole, you will preheat your air fryer to 360F and cook it for 15-18 minutes until heated through. If you split your hens in half, you will only need to heat them for 3-5 minutes.
When you store leftovers, use an airtight container to maintain freshness and moisture. Leftovers still have the same tender meat and roasted chicken flavor, and they make a terrific weeknight dinner or lunch the next day.
More Air Fryer Chicken Recipes
- Air Fryer Whole Chicken
- Ninja Foodi Whole Chicken
- Air Fryer Bone-in Chicken Breasts
- Air Fryer Chicken Fajitas
- Air Fryer Chicken Drumsticks
- Air Fryer Chicken Parmesan
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Air Fryer Cornish Hen
Ingredients
- 2 cornish hens about 1.5 pounds each
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest or 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat your air fryer to 360 degrees.
- In a small bowl, combine the oil and salt, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, paprika, black pepper, and lemon zest/juice.
- Pat the cornish game hens dry with a paper towel then brush them with the seasoning mixture under and on top of the skin. Twist wings to tuck under the bird.
- Place hen(s) in the air fryer basket, breast side down, and cook for 35 minutes.
- Flip the hens and cook for an additional 10 minutes to get the skin crispy. Check internal temperature: hens are done at 165 degrees F. Serve and enjoy!
Love that I can make these from frozen and that they’re so easy.
I love these little hens. They are so fun and the seasoning was great! Especially the lemons zest.
My air fryer oven has a rotisserie option – would using that feature change the cook time or any of the other ingredients/instructions?
I did not use a rotisserie for this recipe, so this would be the directions for using the air fryer without that. If using the rotisserie, I would drop your temperature by about 10 to 20 degrees since it will sit closer to the heating element.