Grilled Cornish Game Hens

1. Stage

Spatchcock the cornish game hens: To grill the hens evenly, you will want to flatten the birds in a method called spatchcocking. To do this, start by trimming off any excess fat and the wingtips from the game hens. Turn the birds over and use kitchen shears to cut out their backbones. Use your hands to flatten the birds. You can stop here, but I like to cut out the ribs and the saber bone — essentially the hen's shoulder blade — to make the hens easier to eat.

2. Stage

Oil and salt the hens, let sit to come to room temp: Pat the hens dry with paper towels, then coat them with the olive oil. Salt well and set aside for 15 to 30 minutes; the hens will cook better if they are at room temperature.

3. Stage

Prepare the grill: While the hens are coming to room temperature, get your grill hot. Make sure the grates are clean. Just before you put the birds on the grill, soak a paper towel in some oil and use tongs to wipe down the grill grates.

4. Stage

Grill hens breast-side up, weighted if necessary: Place the hens down on the grill breast side up (open side down). Watch them: Chances are they will want to arc upward, which you don't want. You want the hens to have good, solid contact with the grill. If they arc, place a foil-wrapped brick on the hen. Grill this way for 10 minutes with the grill cover open. If you don't have bricks handy just squash the birds down on the grill with tongs or a spatula.

5. Stage

Flip hens over and grill the other side: After 10 minutes, flip the birds and place the bricks on them again, if using. Grill for 5 minutes, or until the skin on the birds is nice and browned. Turn the birds back over and cook to your liking breast side up — you shouldn't need the bricks anymore. Depending on the heat of your grill, you may not need much more time, but on cool-ish grills this final step can take as much as another 10 to 15 minutes depending on how done you like your hens.

6. Stage

Season and rest before serving: Move the hens off the grill and grind some black pepper over them. Let the birds rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving. Serve with lemon wedges on the side.