Juicy Baked Turkey Burgers {Oven or Air Fryer}
Learn how to make the best turkey burgers in the oven all year long! These light and healthy ground turkey burgers make an easy weeknight dinner the whole family will love and cook in just minutes.
If you are trying to reduce how much red meat your family eats, ground turkey is an excellent alternative to ground beef for homemade burgers.
If you're not careful, turkey burgers can be very dry but my recipe guarantees a juicy burger you'll want over a beef burger any time!
We start with flavorful, fresh ingredients that help boost the moisture of the turkey burger.
By broiling them in the oven, they get a quick flash of heat that it isn't quite as intense as an outdoor grill. You'll quickly find that baked turkey burgers in the oven hold together better and retain their juicy texture much more easily.
My kids absolutely devoured them. Our only regret was that I didn't double the recipe so we could have leftovers the next day!
Why This is the Best Recipe
There are dozens and dozens of options for turkey burger recipes out there but this is the best one because:
- Easy to Prep: Just because they're filled with flavor doesn't mean they need to be tricky to prepare. This recipe comes together quickly and easily for a busy night.
- Easy to Cook: No need to preheat the grill! Bake the turkey burgers in the oven in just minutes.
- Light and Healthy: Ground turkey is so much healthier for your family and can often be purchased more affordably than ground beef.
- Great Texture: Ground turkey makes a burger patty that has a similar texture to beef. Ground chicken tends to be a little mushier.
- Easy to Tweak: I love the fresh ingredients for this recipe but don't miss the easy flavor variations listed below!
Ingredients
This Italian turkey burger recipe has a few main elements:
- The Juicy Turkey Burger Patty: The burger itself has sundried tomatoes, fresh chopped shallot, fresh chives, crushed red pepper flakes, and ground turkey.
- Burger Toppings: Besides the bun, you just need sliced mozzarella or provolone cheese, fresh tomato slices, and fresh arugula. I also recommend either my red pickled onion or these easy caramelized onions if you want to make them extra special.
Prep the Burger Patties
First, place the turkey meat into a large mixing bowl.
Finely chop the shallot and sundried tomatoes and add them to the bowl.
Add the fresh chives and red pepper flakes. When I made this recipe for the photos, I was out of fresh chives so I substituted a dried herb blend that has a lot of chives in it. It's ok to get creative with your burger recipe.
Use a fork to gently combine the turkey meat with the seasonings until well mixed. Try not to over work the meat.
Finally, divide the burger mix into four equal portions and gently pat them out into patty shape.
You can store them on a clean plate covered in plastic wrap in the fridge until you're ready to cook them. This is a great prep-ahead step for a fast dinner later in the day.
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How to Make Turkey Burgers in the Oven
I LOVE our broiler pan for baking turkey burgers because it lets me mimic grilled food right in my oven.
It is a two-piece pan with a flat grated top that rests over the deeper dish below like this one here.
I line the bottom with aluminum foil for easy clean-up since the fat tends to cook off and drip down into the bottom collection pan.
This makes our burgers crispy on the outside because of the airflow and juicy on the inside because they don't have to cook too long to cook all the way through.
Preheat the Broiler
For most ovens, this is a heating element inside the top of the oven. It works a little like a toaster but hotter like a grill. Our broiler operates at 550°F.
Place one of the oven racks 8 inches away from the broiler.
Prepare the Broiler Pan
Line the inside of the bottom part of the broiler pan with aluminum foil for easy clean up.
Spray the top of the grill pan part of the broiler pan with cooking spray.
Place the turkey burgers on the greased pan with 2 - 3 inches between each patty for air flow.
Bake the Turkey Burgers
Cook the turkey burgers under the broiler for 5 minutes.
Carefully flip them over with a spatula and place them back under the broiler for another 4 minutes or until the burgers register 180°F with a thermometer.
Broiler Tricks
Not all broilers cook perfectly evenly. I've had 4 different ovens since living in our house and each broiler has had a different personality.
The good news is, you'll know where the food is cooking because it will begin to brown faster than spots where the broiler isn't as hot.
You may need to adjust the position of the broiler pan to ensure that all the burgers brown evenly.
Just keep an eye on them as they cook and rotate the pan every minute or so as needed.
TOP TIP: Broiled food can burn in a blink of an eye. Keep a close watch on anything you place under the broiler so you can quickly pull it out before it burns.
FAQ
When you broil food in an oven, you are using the blazing hot heating element to toast your food. You can keep the oven door ajar so you can keep an eye on the dish so your food doesn't burn. If you shut the door, the food will cook even faster because the heat of the oven will rise quickly.
The oven broiler is the perfect tool for browning or toasting the tops of foods for texture. Casseroles with bread crumb toppings, toasted breads for crostini, or browning baked meats like chicken tenderloins or burgers to give them a grilled appearance and flavor.
Air Fryer Cooking Instructions
Now that we have an air fryer, it is my new favorite way to cook meats outside of the oven.
If you want to make air fryer turkey burgers, I recommend lightly brushing the turkey burger patties with a scant bit of olive oil to help prevent sticking to the air fryer grate.
Preheat the air fryer for 400°F for 3 - 4 minutes.
Place the burger patties in a single layer and cook them for 5 minutes.
Carefully flip the burgers over to brown both sides and cook for an additional 4 - 5 minutes or until they register 180°F with an instant probe thermometer.
Meal Prep Timing
We served our Italian turkey burgers with pickled red onions, fresh tomato, and arugula. My girls requested tater tots as the side dish.
To prepare everything in a timely manner, this was my workflow:
- Prepare the Turkey Burger Patties: Prep all the ingredients and form the patties. Store them on a plate or pan until you are ready to cook them.
- Bake the Tater Tots: If you're baking a side dish, I recommend doing so BEFORE you finish the turkey burgers. The burgers cook so quickly and are best served warm. I simply put an aluminum foil tent over the finished tots while we waited for the burgers.
- Broil the Turkey Burgers in the Oven: It should only take 9 minutes total-- 5 minutes on the first side, 4 on the other side.
- Top the Burgers with the Cheese and Serve: The burgers will be hot enough you can just top with cheese and serve but if your cheese slices are extra thick, you can top the burgers with cheese and place them under the broiler for a few seconds to melt.
Serving Suggestions
My kids LOVED these tender and juicy burgers and agreed it is absolutely a make-again recipe.
In fact, my older daughter prefers turkey burgers over traditional beef burgers!
We like to serve them with simple side dishes like baked frozen tater tots, french fries, or potato wedges.
For a simple dinner, sometimes I'll even just do chips and dip.
Add the fresh tomato and arugula on top of the burger or serve with a simple side salad for more veggies.
More Burger Recipes
Once you know how to bake turkey burgers in the oven, you'll want to tweak this recipe for other fun flavor variations.
You can use ground turkey with lots of hamburger recipes, but one of my favorite easy tweaks includes a candied bacon burger.
Start with my easy whole wheat hamburger buns made from bread machine dough and baked in the oven.
Then top with fresh tomato and basil, a slice of cheddar cheese, and this easy baked peppered bacon or caramelized onions.
📖 Recipe
Baked Turkey Burgers in the Oven
Ingredients
For the Turkey Burgers
- 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil minced
- 1 shallot finely diced
- 1/4 cup fresh chives finely chopped
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
For Serving
- 4 hamburger buns
- 4 slices of mozzarella cheese
- 1 fresh tomato sliced
- 1 bunch of arugula
- Pickled red onions homemade or store bought
Instructions
Prepare the Turkey Burger Patties
- Finely chop the sun-dried tomatoes and add them to a large mixing bowl. Finely chop the shallot and chives and add them to the bowl. Add the red pepper flakes and ground turkey to the bowl. Use a fork to lightly fluff the ground turkey into the ingredients. Keep fluffing and stirring gently till everything is evenly incorporated.
- Gently pat the turkey into a large round disc. Use a large spoon to divide the meat into 4 equal portions. Scoop 1/4 of the meat at a time and form a thin burger patty. The meat will shrink as it cooks, so make the patties 1/2-inch larger than the bun you intend to place them on.
Broil the Turkey Burgers in the Oven
- Place your oven rack near the top of the oven and preheat the broiler. Spray a boiler pan with cooking oil. Place the turkey burger patties on the pan. (For easy clean-up, place aluminum foil underneath the grate plate.)
- Broil the turkey burgers for 5 minutes. Carefully flip them over and broil for an additional 4 minutes or until the patties register 180°F.
Bake the Turkey Burgers in an Air Fryer
- Preheat the air fryer for 400°F for 3 - 4 minutes. While it heats up, brush the burgers with a scant amount of olive oil to help prevent them from sticking to the air fryer basket.
- Place the burger patties in a single layer inside the air fryer and cook them for 5 minutes.
- Carefully flip the burgers over to brown both sides and cook for an additional 4 - 5 minutes or until they register 180°F with an instant probe thermometer.
For Serving
- We place all the toppings buffet-style at the table and let the family top their burgers as they choose. If the kids don’t want the arugula and tomato on top of the burger, it makes an excellent side salad with a pinch of the pickled red onions.
Recipe Notes
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