These juicy air fryer turkey meatballs are a family favorite, healthy, quick and easy, and super versatile. Made with lean ground turkey and a touch of parmesan and fresh herbs, they’re packed with flavor yet simple to prepare, making them perfect for busy weeknights or easy meal prep.
If you’re a fan of this recipe, you’ll love my Instant Pot Spicy BBQ Turkey Meatballs or The BEST chicken meatballs in a creamy roasted red pepper feta sauce – both bring a unique spin to the beloved meatball.
Once in awhile I stumble upon a new recipe that quickly becomes a family staple – enter Air Fryer Turkey Meatballs. I currently have a fresh batch in the air fryer, an entire batch frozen, and I'm considering also making a batch for my Mom tomorrow. They are that good.
There’s something about a classic comfort food that just hits the spot. These turkey meatballs bring a new level of ease and versatility to the table. Lighter than the traditional beef version but still packed with flavor, they’re ideal for pasta dishes, grain bowls, or even a pita sandwich. Once you try them, these meatballs are bound to become a go-to in your kitchen lineup!
These Air Fry Turkey Meatballs are Total Keepers
(because they really meat all your meal prep needs 😉)
- Easy Ingredients – Just a few simple items, no fancy shopping list required!
- Endlessly Versatile – Perfect with pasta, stuffed in a pita, or as a snack on their own.
- Ready in a Snap – Quick to cook, so you can enjoy sooner!
- Perfect for Meal Prep – Make a big batch and freeze for quick meals anytime.
Let's Get Cooking!
Ingredients and Helpful Substitution Tips
Truly simple ingredients here friends – Detailed measurements and ingredients can be found within the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Ground Turkey – go for organic, ground turkey (or the best quality you can find at your local market) I typically use 85-93% lean, I find the 97-99% lean results in a dry meatball
- Egg – The egg helps to bind all of the ingredients together. If you are egg sensitive you can easily use a flax or chia egg substitute.
- Gluten Free Breadcrumbs: I have made this recipe gluten free dozens of times and standard gluten free breadcrumbs work wonderful, you can easily use your favorite breadcrumb or almond flour will also work for a paleo version.
- Flavor Enhancers: tomato paste, garlic, parsley and parmesan cheese
- From the Pantry: black pepper and sea salt
Subs + Additions
- Subs: You could substitute ground beef or chicken if you’re not ready for turkey today.
Tools
- Air fryer or conventional oven
- Baking sheet/Sheet pan
- A large bowl
👩🍳 SERVING SUGGESTIONS:
These tender, air fryer turkey meatballs are versatile enough to shine as a main dish, simmered in marinara (as shown) with a side of veggies, or as a crowd-pleasing party appetizer. Here are a few favorite ways to serve them:
- Simmer in marinara sauce and serve with crusty bread and a big salad
- Pita Pocket Sandwiches – Stuff whole-grain pita pockets with air fryer turkey meatballs, some marinara sauce and parmesan cheese.
- Meatball Quinoa or Rice Bowl – Create a Mediterranean-inspired quinoa or rice bowl by placing the air fryer turkey meatballs on a bed of cooked quinoa or rice. Add chopped cucumber, red onion, Kalamata olives, and drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice.
- Meatballs and veggies – simply pair them with a side of your favorite veggies or try this Mediterranean Green Bean Salad.
- Spaghetti with Garlic and Meatballs — a classic with a grown-up twist! Toss your air fryer turkey meatballs into this Spaghetti Aglio e Olio, and you’ve got a comforting dish that feels both timeless and refined.
Tips and Instructions:
Oven Option: Prefer baking? No problem! Go ahead and Preheat your oven to 425°F, and follow steps 1 – 4.
Step 1: In a large bowl: Crack in one egg and add 1 tablespoon of tomato paste. Grab a fork and give it a little whisk to start combining (don’t worry if the tomato paste stays a bit chunky for now—totally fine!).
Step 2: Add the good stuff: Toss in the ground turkey, bread crumbs, parsley, grated garlic, parmesan, and a pinch of salt and pepper.
Step 3: Mix it up: Using your hands, mix everything together gently. The key here is not to overdo it—just until everything looks well blended.
Step 4: Shape the meatballs: Roll into 1 1/2-inch balls; you should get about 15 meatballs out of this mix.
Oven option: Arrange the meatballs in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake at 425°F for 12–14 minutes, or until they’re fully cooked.
Step 5: Preheat your air fryer: Set it to 425°F. (If you’ve got a convection oven air fryer, you can likely fit all 15 meatballs in one go. Using a basket air fryer? You’ll need to cook in batches.)
Step 6: Get the fryer ready: Spray the bottom of the air fryer basket with a little avocado oil. Arrange the meatballs in a single layer, then give the tops a light spritz of avocado oil.
Step 7: Air-fry magic: Cook for 14 minutes, flipping the meatballs halfway through for that golden finish.
Make Ahead – Storage – Reheating – Freezing
- MEAL PREP – These meatballs score 10/10 for meal prep ease
- STORAGE -Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days
- REHEATING – Reheat in an oven at 300° for 10 minutes. May also be microwaved, or pop back in the air fryer to heat through.
- FREEZING – Freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
🤓 Abra's Nutrition Tips!
Choosing organic ground turkey can be a great little upgrade! Organic means no antibiotics or added hormones, and fewer pesticides, so you’re getting cleaner, lean protein in every bite. A simple swap that makes these meatballs just a bit more wholesome!
Dietary Modifications
- Gluten-Free – naturally gluten free
- Low Fodmap- eliminate the garlic
- Whole 30 and Paleo- remove the cheese and use almond flour in place of breadcrumbs
- Keto – replace the breadcrumbs with almond flour
If you’ve tried this recipe, don’t forget to rate and comment!
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Best Ever Air Fryer Turkey Meatballs
Equipment
- Air Fryer or you can use a conventional oven
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup gluten-free breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 clove garlic grated
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine 1 egg and 1 tbsp of tomato paste, use a fork to whisk the egg and begin to combine the tomato paste (it will not fully breakdown yet, that is ok!) Add ground turkey, bread crumbs, parsley, grated garlic, parmesan, salt and pepper.1 lb ground turkey, 1 large egg, 1/4 cup gluten-free breadcrumbs, 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, 1 tbsp tomato paste, 1 clove garlic, 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, 1 tsp black pepper, 1/4 tsp sea salt
- Using your hands, mix ingredients well, but do not over mix. Shape mixture into 1 1/2 inch balls – you should have about 15 meatballs.
- Preheat air-fryer to 425° – I use a convection oven air fryer and am able to fit all meatballs at once, if you use a basket air fryer you will need to cook in batches!
- Spray the bottom of the air fryer basket with avocado oil and arrange the meatballs in a single layer on the tray. Add a small spritz of avocado oil on top of meatballs.
- Air-fry for 14 minutes, flipping half-way through cook time.
Notes
Nutrition
FAQ
If for some reason your meatball mixture is too wet add a bit more breadcrumb.
You can always substitute regular breadcrumbs or Panko breadcrumbs, but if you need to stay gluten-free, you can use almond flour instead.
You can easily make these in a conventional oven, too! Check out the “oven option” in the steps to guide you.
Carole Laverne Gatling says
Hi Abra,
Gonna make these tomorrow!!
Abra Pappa, MS, CNS, LDN says
Oh yay! Hi Carole, you are going to love them. Report back and let me know 🙂