I think I may have an actual obsession with making turkey meatballs. See these harissa meatballs and these Thai red curry meatballs for example. And I may be equally obsessed with my air fryer. So I knew that I had to put the two of them together. And this may just be my favourite method for cooking turkey meatballs, especially in the summer when I don’t want to turn my oven on. These air fryer turkey meatballs will be your new weeknight BFF.

air fryer turkey meatballs with couscous on a plate.

The tahini in the meatballs adds a nice depth of flavour and also keeps them moist. I love pairing these air fryer turkey meatballs with Israeli couscous, crunchy and cooling cucumber and of course, more tahini. The fresh herbs add tons of flavour, so don’t skip them. Use whatever you have one hand, think fresh parsley, dill, mint, basil or cilantro. I love using a mix of basil, mint and parsley here.

Ingredients

Here are all the ingredients you’ll need to make these air fryer turkey meatballs with couscous.

egg
ground turkey (dark meat preferred)
garlic cloves
parsley
tahini
red onion
Aleppo pepper
sumac
kosher salt
Israeli couscous (dry)
extra virgin olive oil
cucumber
fresh herbs such as mint, parsley, basil and/or dill

How to Make Air Fryer Turkey Meatballs

Making turkey meatballs in the air fryer is SO easy. Plus they take way less time than the oven, making it great for quick weeknight dinners too.

In a large bowl, whisk the egg. Add the turkey along with all other meatball ingredients and mix to combine. Set aside. Preheat the air fryer to 400ºF.

turkey mixture in bowl with all ingredients.

Using a small cookie scoop form the turkey into small golf-ball sized meatballs and transfer to the air fryer in an even layer. Spray lightly with avocado oil spray.

Bake for eight to ten minutes, shaking halfway through, until cooked through and browned. Work in batches to avoid too much overlap.

Tips

To make perfectly juicy air fryer turkey meatballs, be sure to follow these tips.

Dark meat: ground dark turkey meat is my preference when making meatballs. Dark meat has more flavour and will be juicier than white meat. You can also use a mix of dark and white if you prefer.
Don’t over mix the meatball mixture: mix until everything is just combined to avoid over working the meat, which could make it tougher.
Grate the onion and garlic: Grating the red onion and garlic adds a little more moisture, plus it also melds into the mixture better and there aren’t large chunks in the meatballs.
Squeeze out excess liquid from the onion: you don’t want the mixture too wet, so give it a good squeeze with your hands before adding to the meatball mixture.
Add some breadcrumbs: if you want the texture of the meatballs to be firmer and hold their shape after baking, you can add in a little bit of breadcrumbs (like panko) into the mixture. I personally never do, and I don’t mind that the meatballs will flatten slightly after cooking.

Substitutions

No onion: you can omit the red onion if you don’t want any onion flavour.
Aleppo pepper: feel free to use chili flakes instead. Aleppo pepper is milder and has more flavour. It’s definitely a spice I recommend having on hand, you’ll love it, I just know it.
No turkey: use ground chicken instead (again, opt for dark meat or a mixture of both).

Ingredients & Products I Recommend:

Tahini:

I recommend using a high quality tahini brand that you love the taste of.

Parallel Brothers Tahini is a great choice.
Soom is another brand I absolutely love and highly recommend.

Kosher salt:

I exclusively use Diamond Crystal kosher salt for all of my recipes. I prefer the texture, taste and consistency of this brand and highly recommend it for everyday cooking.

Which Air Fryer Do I Use & Recommend

I’ve tried three different air fryers over the years, and my most recent is also my favourite.

It’s the Wonder Oven from Our Place. I absolutely love it and highly recommend it, for several reasons.

Aesthetically pleasing: as with all Our Place products, the design is unmatched. This means you can leave it out on your countertop and don’t need to hide it away in a cluttered drawer.
Non-toxic: the trays that come with the Wonder Oven are all non-toxic and made from stainless steel and aluminum with a toxin-free nonstick ceramic coating. This is SO hard to find with other types of air fryers and is the main reason I use it so much.
Different cooking modes: this is not just an air fryer, it can air fry, bake, toast, roast, reheat and broil. I also love the steam function for bringing breads back to life.
Compact size: I love how small and mighty it is. It won’t take up much room on your countertops, something that was so important to me living in a condo with limited countertop space.

The only drawbacks I’ve noticed while using this is the timer function. It’s not digital and can be hard to be precise when using it. So I prefer to just use the timer on my oven or microwave when using it to be sure it’s exact. The knob also has to be turned off manually by turning it rather than having an on/off switch.

But honestly, other than those missing features, it’s such a great appliance and I do recommend it.

You can check out Our Place Wonder Oven here!

More Air Fryer Recipes

Looking for more air fryer goodness, check these ones out!

Ready to make this? Let’s get to it!

If you make these air fryer turkey meatballs with tahini please share with me, by tagging me on Instagram or leave a comment and/or review below. I truly love seeing and hearing form you!

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