Air Fryer Turkey Breast

Air Fryer Turkey Breast is golden brown, super juicy, and on the table in 40 minutes! It's so easy, even beginners will conquer turkey dinner with this mostly hands-off method.

Turkey breast in the air fryer is the quickest, hands-free way to make a satisfying entree the whole family loves! Just like air fryer chicken breast and air fryer pork tenderloin it only takes 5 minutes of prep and cooks in half the time of my roasted turkey breast.

Cooking turkey breast in your air fryer aslo frees up your oven and allows enough time to make mashed potatoes, Brussels Sprouts Salad, and gravy, of course! This turkey entree is perfectly sized for family meals or smaller holiday dinners. Don't forget the fresh green bean casserole!

Ingredient notes

Get ingredient amounts in the printable recipe card below.

• turkey breast - choose a 3 lb. bone-in turkey breast half or a 3 lb. boneless breast (usually sold frozen). IMPORTANT: The height of the meat must be at least 1 ½" away from the heating element, preferably 2" or more. I have never found a whole, bone-in turkey breast that sits low enough to clear the heating element an any of my air fryers without needing to cut it in half at the breast bone. If you find one that does, you'll need to add 20-30 minutes of cook time and always confirm a minimum internal temperature of 165°F on a quick read the monitor inserted next to the bone.
• olive oil - Feel free to use any cooking oil, or use softened butter. You can even make the herb butter from my baked turkey recipe.
• salt and pepper - Sea salt and fresh cracked peppercorn are my go-to.
• poultry seasoning - I love this for turkey, especially around the holidays. I kept this recipe super basic in case you want to customize the seasonings.

Step 4: Air fry an additional 10-20 minutes for bone-in breast or 40 minutes for boneless breast. The goal for poultry is to always cook it until it registers an internal temperature of 165°F on an instant read thermometer.

Note: Boneless breast takes longer to cook because it's thicker. Because of this, it likely sits closer to the heating element. So, check it and flip or rotate as often as needed to promote even browning and prevent burning.

Step 5: Transfer breast out of the fryer, cover, and rest 5-10 minutes to lock in the juices before cutting.

Slice the turkey breast against the grain and to your preferred thickness. Look how tender and juicy this thing is! Also, if using bone-in breast, save the bones and make this delicious turkey stock.

What temperature is turkey done?

Whether you're cooking bone-in or boneless breast, it should register 165°F internal temperature on an instant read thermometer inserted in the thickest part or next to the bone.

Pro tip: You can remove turkey from the heat source when it hits 160°F, cover, and rest, which allows carryover cooking to bring it to 165°F.

Recipe tips

• thaw completely - Air fryers cook faster than ovens. Therefore, always thaw frozen turkey for this recipe because the center may not fully cook or reach a safe internal temperature. This applies to bone-in and boneless breast.
• remove the chill (optional) - I always allow uncooked meat to rest at room temperature to promote even heating and cooking efficiency.
• remove moisture - Use paper towels to remove all excess moisture before adding oil and seasoning because it helps achieve a crispier finish.
• seasonings - Use any seasonings you like for this turkey recipe. I kept the recipe super simple for you to customize the flavors, if desired.
• don't overcook - Not all fryers are equal. I encourage you to open the cooker and test the internal temperature at the 30 minute mark (for bone-in) or 45 minutes (for boneless) because the turkey may be fully cooked. Even 5 minutes of unnecessary cooking can result in overcooked meat.

Get the right size turkey breast for your air fryer

A bone-in breast half (what you see in my pictures) is about 9" long and 4" high. It fits in my Cosori XL basket (corner to corner is 10.5"). It fits in my Instant Vortex Pro and the Instant Omni Plus (14" corner to corner mesh tray).

As mentioned earlier, I have NOT found a whole bone-in breast that sits low enough to clear the heating element in any of these air fryers. So, I recommend cutting the whole breast in half right at the breastbone.

I have found that the bone-in breast requires only one flip during the cook cycle. A boneless breast is taller and requires more flipping to avoid burning because it sits closer to the heating element.

Recommended sides

• Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes
• French Bread
• Shaved Brussels Sprouts Salad
• Healthy Green Bean Casserole
• Instant Pot Mac and Cheese
• Broccoli Bacon Salad