Juicy Air Fryer Turkey Burgers

These Air Fryer Turkey Burgers are juicy, delicious, and full of amazing flavor. I use my healthy secret ingredient to keep these turkey burgers nice and juicy with no added oil or butter.

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I’ve used ground turkey to replace ground beef in a ton of recipes for as long as I can remember. Not because I think it’s better for you, but because I like diversity in my food.

But turkey burgers usually get a bad rap for being dry and nasty. That’s generally because turkey has to be cooked to a temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit so you can’t get away with undercooking it a bit like you can with other meats. But I figured out the secret ingredient to keep those turkey burgers nice and juicy…unsweetened apple sauce. 

Unsweetened apple sauce adds moisture into your burgers and keeps the meat nice and juicy without adding any additional oil to the meat. I also add a little bit of grated fresh onion to the meat mixture to add moisture and flavor. It works every time and results in perfectly cooked juicy turkey burgers. And because I love my Air Fryer, that’s exactly what I use to cook them. 

How to make Air Fryer Turkey Burgers

First, grate your onion on the side of a large box grater or use a small food processor to get half of an onion finely grated. I do this because minced onion adds juiciness and flavor to your burger and it does not leave huge chunks of onion in your burger. 

Then combine your onion, ground turkey, unsweetened apple sauce, ranch seasoning, Worchestire sauce, minced garlic, breadcrumbs, and salt and pepper. Mix with your hands until combined.

Form into 4 hamburger patties. I use my burger press to ensure that my burgers are equally sized and perfectly formed.

Then place your burgers in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to have them firm up a bit. This step will help your patties stay together when your air frying. 

Preheat your Air Fryer to 360 degrees Fahrenheit by running your Air fryer on 360 degrees for about 3 minutes. Place your burgers in your Air Fryer basket, making sure they don’t overlap or touch. Cook on 360 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes, flipping halfway through. Your burgers are finished when they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit on a quick read thermometer.

Serve them however you like. I generally top them with lettuce, tomato, and a slice of red onion. I also top them with a little cranberry sauce if I’m feeling fancy. 

How to make burgers from frozen in the Air Fryer

These turkey burgers freeze beautifully and can go straight from the freezer to Air Fryer. For frozen burgers, cook on 360 degrees Fahrenheit for 18 minutes, flipping halfway over. Use a quick read thermometer to ensure your turkey burger has reached 165 degrees Fahrenheit. 

How to add cheese to these burgers

Whenever we get the craving for a little melted cheese, I add them after I cooked the burger in the air fryer and then close the basket for a few minutes without running the air fryer. The cheese will melt on your burger while it sits in the warm air fryer.

Subbing Ground Beef

If you would rather make beef burgers, I recommend using ground chuck for your burgers (80/20 fat content) as it has so much flavor. I don’t add any additional ingredients to my beef patties except salt and pepper. I just form and shape ground beef into a patty and coat with salt and pepper. I got that tip from Bobby Flay and it’s one I absolutely agree with. 

I generally cook ground beef burgers in the Air Fryer on 360 degrees Fahrenheit for 13-15 minutes or whenever my quick read thermometer reaches 165 degrees.  

I hope you enjoy these turkey burgers as much as we do. If you’re looking for sides to go with these burgers, try these out:

• Air Fryer Potato Wedges
• Air Fryer French Fries
• Easy Air Fryer Baked Potato 
• Air Fryer Sweet Potatoes with Hot Honey Butter
• Air Fryer Sweet and Spicy Brussels Sprouts
• Kale and Broccoli Salad with Sweet and Sour Dressing
• Roasted Cauliflower and Sweet Potato

Looking for other recipes with ground turkey? Try these out:

• Ground Turkey Tacos
• Pressure Cooker Turkey Chili
  

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5 from 7 votes

Juicy Air Fryer Turkey Burgers

These Air Fryer Turkey Burgers are juicy and full of tons of flavor. They can be cooked from fresh or frozen in the Air Fryer and are perfect for when you need a good burger. You’ll never want to make your burgers any other way once you Air Fry them.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword air fryer burgers, air fryer turkey burgers

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Refrigerate Time 30 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Servings 4 people

Calories 179kcal

Author Tanya

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground turkey 85/15
• ¼ cup unsweetened apple sauce
• ½ onion grated
• 1 Tbsp ranch seasoning
• 2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• ¼ cup plain breadcrumbs
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

• Combine your onion, ground turkey, unsweetened apple sauce, ranch seasoning, Worchestire sauce, minced garlic, breadcrumbs, and salt and pepper. Mix with your hands until combined. Form into 4 equally sized hamburger patties.
• Then place your burgers in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to have them firm up a bit.
• Preheat your Air Fryer to 360 degrees Fahrenheit by running your Air fryer on 360 degrees for about 3 minutes. Place your burgers on your Air fryer, making sure they don’t overlap or touch. Cook on 360 degrees for 15 minutes, flipping halfway through. Your burgers are finished when they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit on a quick read thermometer.

Suggested Tools

Air Fryer

Burger Press

Quick Read Thermometer

Video

Notes

*For frozen burgers, place burger straight into preheated air fryer basket and cook on 360 degrees for 18 minutes, flipping halfway through.

*A little bit of oil on the air fryer basket can help prevent sticking.

*For beef burgers, cook ground beef burgers in the Air Fryer on 360 degrees for 13-15 minutes or whenever my meat thermometer reaches 165 degrees. Ground beef should be cooked to 165 degrees.  

Nutrition

Calories: 179kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 62mg | Sodium: 419mg | Potassium: 403mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 28IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 22mg | Iron: 1mg

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