This Air Fryer Turkey Breast with Herb Butter is the quickest and easiest way to make the most deliciously moist turkey for your holiday dinner. It takes less than one hour and comes out tender and juicy with crispy skin and so much rich buttery herb flavor you’ll want to make it for every meal. This recipe works for boneless or bone-in turkey breast.
Table of contents
Thanksgiving Turkey - Big and Small
Yes! You can cook a turkey breast in the air fryer! And it's amazing! Why air fry a turkey breast? Turkey breasts are the perfect size for two or small families but also work well when you need extra servings for Thanksgiving dinner or large family gatherings.
It's also a quick and easy way to get a delicious and healthy dinner on the table in less than an hour. With a little help from herb butter made with fresh herbs, you'll be amazed at the flavorful, tender, and juicy turkey breast that results.
Are you a crispy skin lover? I got you covered! You won't believe how nicely brown and crispy the skin comes out. Bonus - cleanup is a breeze with just a swish of soapy water and a drying towel, your air fryer is clean and ready to go another round. In fact, I don't know if I'll cook a turkey breast any other way from now on!
Tip: If you're having a small holiday celebration another easy meal and the perfect size for two is our Air Fryer Cornish Hen. Try it, you'll like it!
Why Use an Air Fryer
- Cooking time is short and sweet. Approximately half the time as roasting in the oven.
- The circulating air of an air fryer aids in cooking the turkey more evenly and still gives you that brown, crispy skin everyone loves!
- It frees up your oven space for all your favorite side dishes like corn pudding and green bean casserole.
- Cleanup is a breeze!
Ingredients
Turkey Breast - is a low-calorie, low-cholesterol meat option with its share of protein. In this air fryer turkey breast recipe, you can use either a half-breast or whole turkey breast, bone-in or boneless turkey breast, and with or without skin.
Butter - I like to use unsalted butter and add my own salt to know how much salt is being added.
Poultry Herbs - it wouldn't be Thanksgiving without adding these fragrant herbs to the mix. I like to purchase a packet of poultry herbs containing fresh rosemary, sage, and thyme, sold at the grocery store but, if you can't find them, you can substitute poultry seasoning.
Salt & Black Pepper - enhances the flavor of both the turkey and the herb butter.
See the recipe card below for the exact quantities.
How to Cook a Turkey Breast in the Air Fryer
How to Make Herbed Butter for Turkey
Gather ingredients for herb butter mixture making sure butter is softened to room temperature. Leaving it sit on the counter for one hour is usually sufficient.
- In a small bowl, combine softened butter with fresh poultry herbs or opt for 1 ½ tablespoons of poultry seasoning.
- Stir until well blended. Set aside.
Preparing butter roasted turkey breast
While you are prepping your turkey breast, turn on the air fryer and preheat for 4 minutes at 350 degrees.
- Grab the herb butter and divide it into two portions.
- Take one-half of the herb butter mixture and push between the turkey skin and the turkey meat.
- This step will help season the breast and result in juicy meat.
- Use the remaining butter and slather it over the entire top of the turkey breast. This will ensure that nice crispy skin that the family will fight over.
- Spray the air fryer basket with cooking spray. Place the herb buttered turkey breast flesh side or skin side down into the bottom of the air fryer basket.
- Air fry for 20 minutes.
- Turn the breast over and baste with juices from the bottom of the air fryer.
- Air Fry for 15-30 minutes depending on the weight and size of the turkey breast used. See notes in the recipe card for specifics.
Let the air-fried turkey breast rest for 10-15 minutes. Place the turkey on a cutting board and, using a sharp knife, carve this gorgeous bird up for a delicious dinner. If you want to know how to start carving it, check out this great tutorial on how to carve a turkey breast.
An easy dinner for any day of the week and delicious enough for company too. This meal takes less than an hour to pull together and comes out even better than an oven-roasted turkey. Enjoy!
Top Tip: Measure the size of your air fryer before shopping for your turkey breast. If the breast you bought is too large, try removing the ribs with scissors so you are able to flatten it a bit more.
Variations
- Garlic Herb Turkey Breast - add 2 cloves of minced fresh garlic to the herb butter
- Lemon Butter Turkey - mix 4 tablespoons of butter with 3 tablespoons lemon juice, 2 teaspoons lemon zest, 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, and salt and pepper in lieu of herb butter
- Sage Butter Turkey - add 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage, salt, and pepper to 4 tablespoons of butter
Frequently Asked Questions
You want to make sure the one you purchase will fit into the basket of your air fryer. Most 5-quart air fryers will fit a 3-5 pound turkey. Also, look for breasts that are flatter and less domed.
You can use any type of turkey breast. it can be with skin or skinless, boneless or bone-in, and full or half breast. I love to leave the skin on to help keep the turkey moist as well as for the extra crispy skin to enjoy.
The timing depends on the weight and type of turkey breast you are using. A bone-in half breast will take less time than a full bone-in breast while a boneless breast will take the most time.
A half breast will feed 2-4 people while a full breast will feed 6-8 people.
Use a digital meat thermometer with all poultry and make sure that it reaches an internal temperature of 165°F in the thickest part.
What to Serve with Air Fried Turkey Breast
Mushroom Wine Gravy - is a savory gravy with a flavorful, earthy punch that's delicious on anything it tops.
Mashed Potatoes - what's better with turkey and gravy than creamy, butter-rich mashed potatoes?
Roasted Brussels Sprouts - is a delicious side with just about any meal. The sprouts are roasted until crunchy and flavored with maple syrup, bacon, and pecans. They pair perfectly with the flavors of turkey and Thanksgiving.
Air Fryer Stuffing Balls - an easy dressing side made with Stove Top Stuffing and cooked quickly to a crunchy finish in the air fryer.
What to Do with Leftover Turkey Breast
Turkey Pot Pie - Leftover turkey never tasted so good! Chopped turkey, frozen vegetables, and crescent rolls make a healthier pot pie in under an hour.
Turkey Tetrazzini - is my favorite dish to make after Thanksgiving. Pasta is tossed with turkey, bacon and mushrooms and nestled in a rich cream sauce for the perfect comfort food.
Turkey Pasta Skillet with Cranberry is a delicious one-skillet dinner made with leftover turkey, pasta, vegetables, and bacon stirred into a light cranberry cream sauce. All on the table in 40 minutes.
More Air Fryer Recipes
Pork Tenderloin in the Air Fryer
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Air Fryer Turkey Breast with Herb Butter
Ingredients
- 3-4 lb turkey breast
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
- 4 ½ Tablespoons fresh poultry herbs chopped or 1 ½ Tablespoons poultry seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 350 degrees for 4-5 minutes.
Herb Butter
- Mix softened butter with chopped herbs, salt, and pepper.
Prepare Turkey Breast
- Pat the turkey breast dry with paper towels.
- Separate the skin on the top of the breast gently from the flesh. Push under the skin then slather rest over turkey breast.
- Gently take ½ of the herb butter and push it under the skin. Cover as much of the turkey under the skin as you can.
- Use the remainder of the butter to slather over the outside of the turkey.
Air Fry the Turkey Breast
- Spray the basket of the preheated air fryer with nonstick spray. Lay the turkey breast skin side down and cook for 20 minutes.
- Carefully turn the turkey breast over, baste with juices from the bottom of the air fryer with a turkey baster, then cook for another 20-25 minutes or until it reaches the required 165 degrees. *See cook times in recipe notes for your particular type of turkey breast
- Check the temperature with a digital thermometer in the thickest part of the breast to make sure the turkey is completely cooked through.
- Let it rest 10-15 minutes before carving
Notes
Nutrition
This post has been updated. It was first published on November 14, 2021.
Chenée says
I love that you can make a juicy turkey breast right in the air fryer! I will definitely be using this recipe this year for Thanksgiving!
Jessica says
This turned out perfect for me - so moist and flavorful! I love the fresh herbs.
Silvia says
What a simple but delicious recipe. Easy to prepare and bake and even easier to eat 😋 Perfect for the holidays.
Linda Warren says
So true! It's easy and perfect for just my husband and me. With plenty leftover for yummy leftovers. 🙂
Farrukh Aziz says
Love this turkey recipe, great way to use my air-fryer! Definitely worth the effort!
Linda Warren says
Aren't air fryers great! I love being able to cook just about anything in mine. So quick and easy.
Amy Liu Dong says
This is such a perfect dish to prepare for my birthday. It's delicious and easy.
Linda Warren says
Absolutely! Happy Birthday!
Sharon says
I had no idea you could make a whole turkey breast right in the air fryer. It comes out so juicy and tender too.
Linda Warren says
It's great isn't it?! And it leaves the oven free for all the other goodies.
Heather says
what a perfect option for when you don't want to cook an entire turkey!! i definitely like the garlic and sage options!
Linda Warren says
I've tried it many different ways and they're all good. Hope you get a chance to try it.
Amy Nash says
I love how simple this was! We are traveling for Thanksgiving so we had a small, early feast for just us at home and this was perfect! Tender, moist, and delicious!
Allyssa says
Thank you so much for sharing this amazing turkey breast with herb butter recipe! Will surely have this again! It's really easy to make and it tasted so delicious! Highly recommended!
Linda Warren says
So glad you enjoyed it! And the nice thing is, it's so easy you can make it any time.
Tristin says
I absolutely loved making my turkey breast in the air fryer, it cooked so much quicker than in the oven! And the herb butter added soooo much flavor!