Whole turkey in the air fryer is amazing! Crispy skin, juicy, and so easy to cook. You can even make the gravy in the air fryer from the drippings.

Air Fried Whole Turkey Recipe in Air Fryer

Can you Air Fry Thanksgiving Turkey?

Is it even possible to air fry a whole turkey that’s up to 16 pounds? The answer is absolutely yes! And the turkey cooks juicy and delicious for your next big dinner or Thanksgiving holiday dinner. We tested this method on 14-16 pound turkeys several times and each time came out super juicy and perfect. You need a specific air fryer for this. This large capacity air fryer plugs into an outlet and helps free up your oven during big feasts and dinners.

Air Fried Whole Turkey Recipe

After numerous tests, we’ve perfected this technique for air fried thanksgiving whole turkey, not a turkey breast. This is a recipe for a whole turkey and it’s perfect for your big dinner gatherings.

Air Fried Whole Turkey Recipe in Air Fryer

What is Oil Less Turkey Fryer with Halogen Infrared Convection Cooking?

Big Boss Air Fryer

There’s many types of oil less turkey fryers on the market. The air fryers for cooking this turkey is with a convection technology that uses circulating hot air from a halogen infrared light. This method is like cooking the turkey in a small convection oven. The circulating hot air cooks the turkey evenly, with very little oil, and faster for a crispy skin turkey! These plug-in appliances cooks the turkey without any oil and the results are a juicy and healthy turkey!  It tastes like it was deep fried or oven roasted where the turkey is crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. What an easy way to cook your Thanksgiving turkey! These oil less air fryers are great when you don’t have enough oven space for your turkey. You can cook so many different foods in these large air fryers too.

Video: Easy Air Fryer Turkey with Gravy

Best Air Fryers for Whole Turkey

This style of air fryer is perfect for turkeys. The expansion ring puts its capacity at 18 qts. (large enough for a 16 lb. turkey. Here’s the recipe (with gravy too!) for air frying a turkey in this style air fryer.

For outdoors only. These propane style air fryers cook the best whole turkeys. Here’s the recipe for air frying a turkey in this style air fryer.

How to Air Fry Whole Turkey with Gravy

No one had created this gravy technique yet and we’re the first to share it online!  We created a way to make gravy in the same bowl, you saw it here first! Our photos help you through the process and watch the video. For full recipe details, print out the recipe in the recipe box when you scroll down this write up.

Air Fried Whole Turkey In Oil Less Air Fryer for Thanksgiving step by step

Pros & Cons of Big Boss Air Fryer & Other Brands of Similar Style:

PROS:

  • Energy Efficient and uses less power than traditional full sized oven.
  • Frees up oven space if you need to cook lots of other oven foods or if you don’t have a lot of oven space.
  • Cooks quicker than traditional oven and the skin is super crispy. Our tests on 14 pound fully thawed turkey took about 2.3 hours-3 hours
  • No hassle with almost no oil and the most you would need is a light spray of oil to help crisp the food better. So it’s a healthier way of cooking crispy foods.
  • Easy Clean up. The glass bowl is super easy to clean.
  • You can immediately make the gravy in the same bowl while the turkey rests. No extra pots or pans.
  • Feeds more people.  The large size allows you to cook larger portions of food for more people. It’s great to cook meals for 4 people or more.
  • Two racks for cooking. The big boss and an extra tray which allows you to cook two trays of food at the same time.

CONS:

  • Once assembled, it’s big and bulky. But it does pack into the box easily and the box itself it’s not large for storing away.
  • If you have a small kitchen or little countertop space, it will take up a lot of space. This is great for a whole turkey, but for everyday cooking, we recommend smaller air fryers.
  • The circulating hot air is kinda loud during cooking.
Turkey Thanksgiving on a plate
Air Fried Whole Turkey Recipe in Air Fryer for Thanksgiving | @BestRecipeBox

Air Fryer Whole Turkey with Gravy

Make sure your turkey is fully thawed on the inside. If not, it won’t cook properly. Cooking times will vary depending on size of turkey. Whole, thawed turkey usually cooks at a rate of 15 min./lb. Makes about 4 cups of gravy.
5 from 14 votes

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Ingredients

  • 14 lb. (6.35 kg) raw Whole Turkey
  • 6 Tablespoons (90 g) butter , cut into slices
  • 4 cloves garlic , sliced thin
  • 1 Tablespoon (15 ml) kosher salt , or to taste
  • black pepper , to taste
  • Oil , to coat turkey
  • 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) chicken broth
  • 3/4 cup (95 g) flour (for the gravy)

Instructions 

  • Remove and giblets and neck bones from the turkey cavity (many times the giblet pack will be tucked under the skin by the neck). Pat the turkey dry.
    Turkey on a sheet pan
  • Tuck the butter slices and garlic in-between the skin and the turkey breasts. Oil the turkey and season with salt and pepper.
    Butter tucked under skin of turkey
  • Place the lower rack in the air fryer and spray with oil. Place the turkey breast side down in the air fryer. Pour in 1/2 cup of broth over the turkey. Place the extender ring and lid on the air fryer.
    Turkey in air fryer with expansion ring
  • Air Fry at 350°F/175°C for about 2 1/2 to 3 hours.
    Turkey cooking in air fryer
  • Every 30 minutes, baste with chicken broth (the first 2 bastes will be with the remaining broth. After that, baste from the broth & juices at the bottom of the air fryer).
    Basting turkey with broth
  • After cooking for 2 hours, take off the air fryer lid and extender ring. Lift the turkey out, flip to breast side up, and then place back into the air fryer. Baste the turkey and then place the extender ring and lid back on and continue cooking until the turkey reaches an internal temperature of 165°F at the thickest parts of the thigh, wings and breast, and the juices run clear when you cut between the leg and the thigh (about 30 minutes – 1 hour).
    Turkey cooked
  • Let rest for about 15-20 minutes.
    Turkey resting covered in foil
  • While the turkey rests, make the gravy. Remove the lower rack from the air fryer. Leaving the turkey juices and broth in the air fryer, skim the chunks from the drippings and broth.
    Straining broth
  • Put the flour in a medium bowl. Ladle in about 1 cup of the drippings and broth into the flour and whisk until smooth. Pour the flour mixture into the air fryer with the remaining drippings and broth. Whisk until smooth.
    Flour and broth being added
  • Place the air fryer lid back on and Air Fry at 400°F/205°C for 10 minutes or until thickened, whisking a couple times while cooking.
    Gravy being whisked

Video

YouTube video

Nutrition Information per Serving

Calories: 669kcal, Carbohydrates: 6g, Protein: 91g, Fat: 29g, Saturated Fat: 10g, Cholesterol: 315mg, Sodium: 1206mg, Potassium: 970mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 471IU, Vitamin C: 2mg, Calcium: 65mg, Iron: 5mg

What to Serve with Air Fryer Turkey?

We have so many great side dishes like creamy gravy scalloped potatoes, mushroom scalloped potatoes, sweet potato casserole, Brussels sprouts gratin and more. Check out all our great recipes to serve with your air fried turkey.

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