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1
Marinate the Hens In a medium bowl, whisk the rice wine with the soy sauce, peanut butter, lime juice, ginger, garlic, brown sugar, crushed red pepper, 2 tablespoons of peanut oil and 3 tablespoons of cilantro.
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2
Place the Cornish hen pieces in a very large, resealable plastic bag and pour in the marinade.
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3
Press out the air, seal the bag and carefully turn to coat the hens with the marinade.
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4
Refrigerate for 24 hours, turning the bag occasionally.
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5
Meanwhile, Make the Peanut Sauce In a small food processor, pulse the peanuts until finely ground.
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6
In a small saucepan, heat the oil until shimmering.
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7
Add the garlic, tomato paste and sambal oelek and stir over moderately high heat until the garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute.
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8
Whisk in the stock, hoisin sauce, peanut butter and sugar and bring to a simmer.
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9
Cook, whisking, until thick, smooth and slightly darkened, about 3 minutes.
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10
Transfer the sauce to a bowl and let cool completely.
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11
Stir in the ground peanuts and red chile.
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12
Meanwhile, Make the Peanut Sauce Light a grill.
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13
Remove the hens from the marinade and wipe off any excess; reserve the marinade.
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14
Brush the grill with peanut oil and grill the hens over indirect heat, basting occasionally with the reserved marinade for the first 15 minutes and turning often, until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the inner thighs registers 160, about 40 minutes.
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15
Transfer the hens to a platter, season with salt and sprinkle with cilantro.
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16
Serve the hens with the peanut sauce, lime wedges and sticky rice.
