Recipes and Cooking How to Cook Cooking with Meat & Poultry Butterflying a Cornish Hen By Sheena Chihak, RD Sheena Chihak, RD Instagram Sheena Chihak is a registered dietitian, former food editor and current edit lead for BHG with over 15 years of writing and editing experience for both print and digital. Learn about BHG's Editorial Process Published on June 9, 2015 Share Tweet Pin Email When you butterfly your chicken, it greatly reduces its cooking time. Roasted Cornish hens are great stuffed, of course, but for quicker cooking, butterfly them. Butterflying simply means removing the backbone so the hen can be opened up like a book and laid flat. The greater surface area exposed when the birds are flat allows them to cook faster. Related: Cornish Game Hen Side Dish Ideas Instructions: 1. To butterfly a Cornish hen, place it back side up on a cutting board. 2. Using poultry shears, cut closely along one side of the backbone. 3. Repeat on the other side; discard backbone. Turn breast side up. 4. Open the bird so the drumsticks point out. Press the breastbone firmly to flatten. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit