Boneless Air Fryer Turkey Breast

3 Lb. Boneless Turkey Breast in Air Fryer

You’ve probably made Air Fryer Turkey Legs before, but wait it gets better! If it is the holidays you might want a larger piece, but not the whole bird. You can totally use your countertop appliance and not even turn on your oven for this main dish.

I recently made Instant Pot turkey tenderloin, and it was delicious and so easy. Now it was time to make it in our Ninja Foodi and Cosori too. It was so good we decided to share it with all of you. 😉

Ninja Foodi Air Fryer Turkey Breast

Making Air Fryer turkey breast is going to save you oven space, and you don’t have to worry about bones like my whole pressure cooker turkey recipe. Yes you can make both in the foodi using different lids but we are air crisping with the one that is attached this time.

If you love turkey breast, you will be happy to know the flavors in this are lovely any time of year. It really comes down to the ingredients that are rubbed all over the outside. Of course you can just opt for a ready made sauce but trust me, you’ll want to give this creation a whirl.

How Long to Cook Air Fryer Boneless Turkey Breast

About 50 minutes for 3 pounds is about right. You can in fact do this with a bone-in piece as well, the timing will just be a bit different possibly. Without one the heat can get to the middle a bit easier which is nice. Low and slow is best to ensure the internal temperature gets to 165 F but still crispy on the outside.

How to Cook Costco Turkey Breast in Air Fryer

You can find this type of raw boneless breast at this popular big box store during the holiday seasons. Occasionally you may find one other times of the year but typically at Thanksgiving and Christmas. All brands cook at the same rate, the only difference is bone-in vs. without it.

I used a boneless skinless turkey breast. It comes wrapped in a netting, which I removed. You can leave the net in place while cooking it, but you will need to add around 10-15 minutes to the cooking time.  If you take the net off as I did, be super gentle with it because the point of the net is to hold the meat together. 

You can buy bone-in turkey breast or turkey crown at your local butcher or supermarket as well. Bone-in turkey does take about an hour to cook, so it just depends on your preference. 

Can you cook a frozen boneless turkey breast in Ninja Foodi?

I have not done it in a hot air machine yet but have cooked Instant Pot frozen turkey breast under high pressure before and it worked really well. With that method you are steaming it so it won’t dry out as it would air fried. I would recommend using a pressure cooker if it is right out of the freezer instead.

Here are a few questions you might have before you get started. If you have others let me know below and I will try to answer them.

Do I have to marinade turkey breast?

No, it’s not required, but I will tell you that if you rub it on all sides of the turkey it really locks in that flavor and gives you the ultimate results. If you want to skip it, you can make this turkey dry rub, or use ingredients in the recipe below.

Rub them all over the turkey breast. You may need to double the spices to ensure the entire turkey breast gets covered with the rub.  Take a look at these quick step by step instructions to get you started. You can also conveniently print off the recipe card at the bottom too.

Of course timing will depend on the size of your piece of meat. You’ll want to try and find one that is close to 4 pounds with a bone, or 3 boneless. That way it will fit inside your air fryer basket well, and remain juicy and tender. This is what you will need to pick up to make this:

Ingredients

1. 3 lb. boneless turkey breast or about 4 pounds bone in size works well
   1. for less meat, try our air fryer turkey wings timing
2. Olive oil spray will ensure a crispy outside layer or crispy skin if it’s not skinless
3. Maple syrup
4. Spicy mustard
5. Cumin
6. Paprika
7. Oregano
8. Salt and pepper can be added too

Marinated Turkey Breast Air Fryer

If you wanted to give this a lot of flavor you can use a brine or favorite marinade instead of seasonings. I would sit in a covered container or freezer bag overnight for the most flavor, or at least a few hours. I promise you’ll get that same deep fried crispiness but without all of the extra calories. Great low carb recipe if you’re looking for that.

Here are quick step by step instructions, there is a printable recipe card below too though.

How to Cook Boneless Turkey Breast in Air Fryer

• Combine all rub ingredients in a bowl and mix well.
• Put turkey breast inside bowl and flip over so meat is coated well. Put into fridge for 30 minutes to 1 hour to marinate.
• Preheat your air fryer to 350 degrees F for 5 minutes.
• Open air fryer basket and spray meat with olive oil cooking spray.
• Place turkey breast inside basket and close. Cook for 25 minutes. Flip over to the other side, spray oil all over the turkey breast, and continue to cook for 25-30 minutes.
  • Cook until middle thickest part registers 165 degrees F using an instant read thermometer.
• Remove and allow to rest for 15 to 20 minutes before slicing to maintain juiciness.

THAT is how to cook a turkey breast so it comes out over the top incredible like you see here. When served you can sprinkle sides with salt and pepper if you want but there should be quite enough flavor as is.

How long should I let my turkey rest?

Did you know that you should do this? Like every time you make any type of sheet pan turkey, or smoked turkey… It is so important or you’ll lose a lot of the juices inside. Yeah, they’ll leak out with every slice, but waiting at least 15 minutes will eliminate this issue.

What do you serve with turkey?

If you always just roast turkey, try something new this year!! You won’t regret it. Well you must have some gravy of course with a side of dinner rolls. For a change the other night I made a batch of air fryer cornbread that was really good too though.

What to do with leftovers

It is really cheap, feeds quite a few people, and if you don’t finish the whole thing you can make a ton of other meals with what’s left. We honestly look forward to the days after so we can make all of these: Check out a few of our favorite ideas for using up leftover turkey recipe here, there are more below too: