Guinea Fowl Recipe

Guinea hen, also known as African pheasant, has long been the staple of European dinner tables. Demand for guinea hen is growing from chefs to discriminating home cooks. While breeding stock is imported annually from France, a growing number of guinea hen are farm raised in the U.S.A. They are raised without hormones on a diet of corn, soy, and wheat and are harvested at 10-12 weeks.

Guinea Hen is succulent with light-colored breast meat that has more flavor and character than chicken. Is the only game bird available with 50/50 meat to bone ratio and 50% less fat than chicken. Even though the leg meat is dark, it is tender and exceptionally rich and flavorsome.

The helmeted guinea hen has been raised for food since the fourth century B.C. They are native to Africa and thought to have originated in Guinea in western Africa. These birds were once enjoyed by early Greeks and Egyptians, then by Romans who gave them the name gallina faraona or ‘Pharaoh’s hen’. When the Roman Empire collapsed, the birds fell out of favor.

When the Portuguese conquered Guinea in the sixteenth century, the traders ‘discovered’ the bird with the uniquely colored feathers and called them pintada meaning painted. By the time they were brought to France the name had been corrupted to pintade.

The names faraona, pintada and pintade are still in use today. But by any name, guinea hen refers to both the male and female of the species. They are about the size of chickens but, because guineas have never been fully domesticated, the meat is a little darker and actually more flavorful. Guinea hen also have far less fat so they are best cooked with a moist-heat method and/or well basted to maintain their juicy sweetness. The ‘Pearl Chicken’ is the variety of helmeted guinea hen most often raised in the U.S. today and reaches a roasting size of 3 pounds in as little as 10 weeks.

Guinea hen are frozen individually to ensure consistent flavor, quality and freshness. To use, simply place the frozen hen, while still in the package, into the refrigerator overnight to thaw slowly. They should be cooked to an internal temperature of 155 to 160 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove the hen from the heat source. Place the hen on a warm plate or platter, cover with foil to keep warm and let it rest for five minutes. The carry-over cooking will finish it to the appropriate temperature of 165 to 170 degrees Fahrenheit for serving.

The internal temperature of meat continues to rise even after it has been removed from the heat source. This is because the outside of the meat is hotter than the inside. This heat continues to be conducted into the meat until the temperature is equalized throughout. This process is known as carry-over cooking.

Remove the meat from the heat source (grill, broiler, oven) when the internal temperature is still 5 to 10 degrees Fahrenheit lower than the appropriate doneness to prevent overcooking. Place the meat on a warm plate or platter, cover with foil to keep warm and let it rest for five minutes. The carry-over cooking will finish it to the appropriate temperature for serving.