This Instant Pot Turkey Breast is hands down the easiest way to get perfectly tender and juicy turkey every single time! Cooking a whole turkey breast in the Instant Pot isn’t just quick and simple—it’s also packed with flavor. You'll never want to cook it any other way!
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Why This Recipe Works
You’ll find that the days are long gone spending hours cooking turkey breast. Now that we have this easy recipe for cooking turkey, you can believe that we’re eating delicious turkey in our house much more often!
- It’s the easiest way to cook a turkey breast. Seriously – you can’t beat it!
- There will be leftovers! Having leftover turkey means that you don’t have to cook the next day – that’s a win!
- All you need are simple seasonings and pantry staples. That’s it! Easy peasy.
📋 Ingredients
Once you realize that the Instant Pot will have you covered in terms of cooking the boneless turkey breast perfectly, you’re going to be meal planning more and more and adding this as the star of the show. Here are the ingredients needed to make this juicy turkey breast recipe.
- Olive Oil: Helps to sear the turkey breast, locking in juices and enhancing flavor.
- Skin-On Turkey Breast: The main ingredient, it offers lean, protein-rich meat. The skin becomes deliciously crispy when cooked.
- Butter: Adds a rich, creamy taste to the turkey, helps in browning the skin, and keeps the meat moist and flavorful.
- Salt and Pepper: Essential seasonings that enhance the natural flavors of the turkey.
- Poultry Seasoning: Adds depth and warmth to the turkey, complementing its natural flavor.
- Chili Powder (Optional): If used, it can add a hint of heat and smoky flavor to the dish, providing an interesting twist.
- Chicken Broth or Water: Provides necessary liquid for pressure cooking and infuses the turkey with additional savory flavor.
For the complete list of ingredients with measurements and instructions, please see the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
🔀 Substitutions & Variations
- Herb & Seasoning Twists: Swap traditional poultry seasoning with a mix of rosemary, thyme, and smoked paprika for a deeper, more aromatic flavor.
- Broth & Liquid Options: Instead of chicken broth, use apple cider, white wine, or a mix of broth and citrus juice (like orange or lemon) to enhance moisture and taste.
- Butter & Fat Alternatives: Replace butter with olive oil or ghee for a slightly different richness, or use a garlic herb compound butter for extra flavor.
- Serving Variations: Slice and serve traditionally with gravy, shred for turkey sandwiches, or chop into bite-sized pieces for salads and wraps.
🔪How To Cook Instant Pot Turkey Breast
Get your Instant Pot ready because it’s time to make this delicious Instant pot turkey recipe. You’ll be eating in no time at all – you just need to add in a few side dishes!
- Place oil in your Instant Pot and set to saute mode.
- Rub the turkey breast all over with butter and then season to personal preference with salt, pepper, poultry seasoning, and chili powder.
- Once the oil is hot, place the turkey breast skin side-down into the hot oil and brown completely for about 3-4 minutes.
- Flip and brown your turkey breast on the underside for 2 minutes before removing the Instant Pot turkey breast to a clean plate.
- Turn the saute setting off, deglaze the pot and add the chicken broth or water to the Instant Pot.
- Place the Instant Pot Trivet in the inner pot and then set the turkey breast on top of the trivet.
- Secure the Instant Pot lid and set the manual button to pressure cook for 6-7 minutes per pound. So 14 minutes for a 2lb turkey breast, 21 minutes for a 3lb turkey breast and 28 minutes for a 4lb turkey breast and 36 minutes for a 5 lb turkey breast.
- Once your juicy turkey breast has cooked, pressure release naturally for 10 minutes. A natural pressure release will give the meat time to rest without running the risk of overcooking it.
- If you have an Instant Pot Air Fryer lid or are using the Instant Pot Duo Crisp, air fry the turkey breast for 3 minutes to crisp up the skin a little.
- You can also place cooked turkey breast under the broiler for 2 minutes to crisp up the skin a bit more. This is of course an optional extra but we love crispy skin on our turkey!
- Pat your turkey breast dry and place garnish with fresh herbs and perhaps some cranberry sauce.
- Let your thanksgiving turkey rest on a cutting board before slicing the turkey breast.
Serve your sliced turkey breast on a serving platter alongside side dishes such as Mashed Potatoes, Roasted Vegetables, Stuffing and delicious turkey gravy.
👩🍳 Expert Tips
- To Make Turkey Skin Brown: Put the boneless turkey breast into the broiler at the end. It crisps up the top of the turkey perfectly to get it that lovely golden-brown crisp skin look.
- How To Know Turkey Is Cooked: The best way to check the doneness of turkey is to use a digital meat thermometer. For a turkey to be considered cooked and safe to eat, you’re needing to have an internal reading temperature of at least 165 degrees. Make sure that you’re using the thermometer in the thickest part of the turkey breast when you’re trying to get an accurate reading.
💭 FAQs
The Instant Pot turkey breast cooking time depends on the size of the Turkey. A 3 lb Turkey breast takes around 7 minutes to pressure cook on high pressure. Add an extra 7 minutes for every lb of Turkey. Whether it’s a large turkey breast or a small bone in turkey breast, stick to the same cooking time for every pound of weight.
So how much Instant Pot turkey breast do you need to serve per person? A general guideline is about 1 lb of bone-in turkey breast per person. So plan accordingly for your next holiday dinner!
With your Instant Pot, you can cook frozen turkey breast. Just be sure that you check the internal temperature once it’s done cooking so that you can make sure that it’s cooked all the way. Add an extra 10 minutes of cooking time if you’re using frozen turkey breast.
Absolutely! Once the turkey has finished cooking in your Instant Pot, you can use some of the leftover broth, and cooking liquid (turkey drippings) to make a delicious, rich turkey gravy. Simply whisk together about ¼ cup of flour with 1-2 tablespoons of cold water until smooth. Slowly add this mixture to your remaining broth as it cooks, whisking constantly.
You can also add a small amount of butter for extra flavor. When the gravy has reached your desired thickness, season with salt and pepper to taste.
Yes, you can! To cook a turkey breast using the Instant Pot slow cooker setting, simply follow these simple steps: Place your turkey breast in the Instant Pot and cover it with water or broth. Close the lid of the Instant Pot and turn on the slow cooker setting for 4-6 hours, depending on the size of your turkey breast.
Let the leftovers from this Instant Pot turkey breast recipe cool and then store them in an airtight container in the fridge. Store in fridge for 2-3 days. If you want to freeze cooked turkey breast, add the leftovers to a freezer-safe bag and store them in the freezer. Frozen turkey breast should keep for 3-4 months.
Serving Suggestions
There are many delicious side dishes that you can serve alongside your Thanksgiving turkey breast. Some of our favourites include mashed potatoes, roasted vegetables, stuffing, cranberry sauce, and gravy.
- Instant Pot Corn On The Cob: Quickly cooked corn on the cob with the Instant Pot, perfect alongside green beans.
- Instant Pot Cauliflower Mash: Creamy and velvety cauliflower mash, will go great with turkey breast
- Instant Pot Asparagus: Fresh asparagus is a great side for this turkey meal.
- Instant Pot Carrots: Carrots cooked with a sweet honey glaze will pair nicely with your roast turkey.
- Instant Pot Broccoli: Serve turkey with tender broccoli.
- Instant Pot Acorn Squash: Acorn squash glazed with balsamic goodness, is a great option for this meal.
🍜 Related Recipes
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Instant Pot Turkey Breast
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons Oil
- 3 lb Turkey Breast Skin-On Turkey Breast
- 2-3 Tablespoons Butter softened
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 2 teaspoons Poultry Seasoning
- ½ teaspoon Chili Powder optional
- 1 cup Chicken Broth or Water
Instructions
- Place oil in your instant pot and set to saute.
- Rub the turkey breast all over with butter and then season to personal preference with salt, pepper, poultry seasoning and chili powder.
- Once the oil is hot, place the turkey breast skin side-down into the hot oil and brown completely, about 3-4 minutes.
- Flip and brown on the underside for 2 minutes before removing the turkey breast to a clean plate.
- Turn the saute setting off and add the chicken broth or water to the instant pot.
- Place the IP Trivet in the instant pot and then set the turkey breast overtop.
- Secure the IP lid and set to poultry to cook for 6-7 minutes per pound, so 14 minutes for a 2lb turkey breast, 21 minutes for a 3lb turkey breast, etc.
- Allow IP to natural release for 10 minutes.
- If desired, place the turkey breast under the broiler for 2 minutes to crisp up the skin a bit more.
Notes
Nutrition
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