Roasted Game Hen with Onion Sauce

Ingredients

• 4 game hens (about 400 g each)
• 200 g shallots
• 5 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp finely chopped carrots
• 2 tbsp finely chopped leeks
• 2 tbsp finely chopped celery stalks
• 2 tbsp finely chopped chanterelles
• 1 tbsp Tomato Paste
• 250 ml poultry broth (from a bottle)
• 200 ml red wine
• 3 thyme sprigs
• Salt
• ground pepper
• 400 g knollensellerie
• 200 ml vegetable broth
• 50 g Heavy cream
• Salt
• ground pepper
• nutmeg

Instructions

1. 1.

   Preheat the oven to 175 °C (350 °F) with top and bottom heat. Wash the game hens inside and out, pat dry, season with salt and pepper. Peel the shallots and cut them lengthwise into slivers. Heat 3 tbsp olive oil in a roasting pan, brown the hens all over, then remove them. Add the remaining olive oil to the pan, toss in carrots, leeks, shallots, celery stalks and chanterelles, and sauté briefly. Stir in tomato paste and cook for a few minutes. Deglaze with 200 ml poultry broth, add 150 ml red wine and thyme sprigs, scraping up any browned bits. Place the hens breast‑side up in the pan and roast at 175 °C for about 35 minutes, gradually adding the remaining stock and wine as they reduce.

2. 2.

   For the puree, peel the celery stalks, cut into 2 cm pieces, and simmer in vegetable broth for 15 minutes. Stir in cream and blend until smooth with a hand blender or food processor, seasoning with salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste.

3. 3.

   Remove the hens from the pan and keep warm. Pour the sauce into a small saucepan, reduce slightly, then puree if desired and adjust seasoning. Plate the hens, drizzle with sauce and serve alongside the celery puree.