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A turkey burger with lettuce, tomato, red onion, pickles, and aioli in a bun, served on a metal tray.
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The Best Air Fryer Turkey Burgers Recipe

Let's talk turkey (burgers): The ones that made us—charcoal-obsessed grill snobs—actually put down our tongs! These air fryer burgers are juicy, flavorful, and embarrassingly easy. We're spilling our secrets on which ground turkey is worth buying, the mix-ins that make ALL the difference, and why these have become our "too tired to fire up the grill but still want something delicious" go-to dinner.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Resting Time2 minutes
Total Time22 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 204kcal
Author: Kita Roberts

Equipment

Ingredients

For the turkey burgers:

  • 1 lbs ground turkey we look for 85% lean ground turkey for good burgers
  • ½ cup pork panko or panko breadcrumbs
  • 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp Salt
  • 1 tsp Garlic powder
  • 1 tsp Onion powder
  • ½ tsp Pepper

Burger Toppings:

  • Sliced white cheddar cheese or your personal favorite
  • Brioche buns
  • Chipotle Aioli
  • Lettuce iceberg, finely chopped or your personal fav
  • Tomato sliced
  • Red onion sliced into thin rounds
  • Pickles because all burgers need a good pickle

Instructions

  • Combine the ground turkey with the turkey burger ingredients in a large bowl.
  • Mix well.
  • Divide the mixture into four equal portions, about 4 oz each.
  • Form the mixture into patties about a half-inch wider than your bun.
  • Place the patties on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, preheat your air fryer to 350 degrees F.
  • Spray the basket with oil.
  • Arrange the patties on the basket in a single layer.
  • Air fry for 12 to 15 minutes, flipping once halfway through.
  • Use a digital meat thermometer to make sure that the turkey patties have reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
  • If adding cheese, place the cheese over the patties and return to the air fryer for 30 seconds longer.
  • Carefully remove the turkey burgers from the air fryer and place them on your burger buns with all of your favorite burger toppings.

Notes

  • We tested with Costco ground turkey and do not recommend it. It was very, very wet, and we had to increase the panko to a full cup to try to absorb the liquid, and even then, the burgers were still sticky and hard to handle.
    We found the ground turkey at our regular market to have a texture similar to ground beef, making it much easier to form the patties.
  • Once formed, we put each burger on a small sheet of parchment paper. We found it made flipping the burgers into the air fryer super easy. We placed them paper side down, then used the parchment paper to easily flip the burgers at the halfway mark.
  • Ground turkey is a blank canvas for big, bold flavors. We found this combo great with our homemade aioli recipes, like our chipotle aioli, our roasted garlic aioli, or even our rosemary truffle aioli, which is a perfect hack for making these burgers fit whatever flavor profile you're craving.
  • For a little more heat, try adding diced roasted hatch chiles like we do in our favorite pork burger (this trick has become a staple for burger night in the Girl Carnivore Meat Lab)

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 204kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.03g | Cholesterol: 103mg | Sodium: 810mg | Potassium: 427mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 92IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 43mg | Iron: 2mg