If you are wondering how to make the perfect air fryer steak than look no further. It truly is so easy.
I don’t feel like firing up a steak in a skillet because of the smell. You need to turn on your stove fan because things will get smoky. Plus, everything around the skillet within 2 feet will be covered in a layer of grease splatter. If you were to use the oven, it is hard to get the steak tips browned without overcooking the inside, and the browning is where the flavor is concentrated. Therefore it’s the best solution when you are craving for a steak during the winter and it’s not possible to access a grill when it is -20 below out or in the middle of a snowstorm.
So the benefit of the air fryer is that you get a nice browning on the outside while retaining all the juiciness of your favorite steak on the inside, and no nasty clean-up of your whole kitchen. It’s a hands off dinner. I literally season my steaks, place them in the air fryer, and flip when my halfway timer goes off. There is no need for me to watch it.
Just add some butter or oil, then se whatever spices you usually use on steaks. I only used salt and pepper. Sometimes I add some garlic or Garlic Powder and/or Paprika and/or dried herbs for extra flavour or as a salt substitute. When it comes to flavour, I like it simple. You don’t need exotic ingredients to cook a perfect steak.
Serve it with a mashed or baked potato, a salad, pasta or whatever you want to complete your wonderful steak dinner. This one I made with a delicious air fryer sweet potato fries.
It is perfect for two and within minutes, it’s not for a crowd*.
Ingredients
- 250 g Steak - 1-1.5 in/2.5-3.5 cm thick - Top Sirloin or New York strip or Filet Mignon or ribeye or any other favorite cut
- Salt - to taste
- Black pepper - to taste freshly ground
- 1 tsp Olive oil - optional - or butter
Instructions
- Bring the steak to room temperature** (this helps it cook more evenly as the heat penetrates much easier when the meat is not frozen).
- Preheat your air fryer for 3 minutes or until 400°F (200°C).
- While you’re waiting, make sure to trim any connective tissue or large pieces of fat from the edges of your steak—it should pull off easily, but you can use a sharp knife.
- Season the steak and rub it all over with olive oil. The oil is optional but it helps crust the outside of the meat and adds extra flavour.
- Place the steak inside the air fryer basket, do not overlap the steaks. If cooking in more than two steaks, make sure not to overcrowd the Air Fryer basket. If needed, cook in batches to avoid overcrowding. The first batch will take longer to cook if Air Fryer is not already pre-heated.
- If there is a temperature setting (mine doesn't), set the temperature to 400°F (200°C).
- Cook for 6-18 minutes, flipping halfway through cooking. Cooking time dependent on how thick and cold the steaks are plus how done you prefer your steaks. You can adjust cooking times to your preferred doneness. Use a quick read thermometer to check the internal temperature of the meat. It is the safest way to know that the steak is cooked to your desired doneness ***.
- Remove it from the air fryer, and let it rest for about 5-10 minutes before slicing****.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
| Steak doneness | Internal temperature (subtract 4 F (2 C) from a target temperature to calculate your pull temperature) | Center Colour and touch | Average cooking time in total (flip halfway through) |
| Rare | 120-130 F (50-55 C) | Cool red center (Seared on the outside showing bright red color center. Center is slightly cool, soft to the touch, much like the raw meat) | 6-8 minutes |
| Medium Rare | 130-140 F (55-60 C) | Warm red center (Seared on the outside with the center showing a red color, slightly firmer than rare, firm surface should give a bit toward the middle (it will spring back quickly)) | 10 minutes |
| Medium | 140-150 F (60-65 C) | Warm pink center (Firm to the touch with light pink center) | 12 minutes |
| Medium Well | 150-160 F (65-70 C) | Slightly pink center (a hint of pink in the very middle, very stiff but still have a little squishy in the center) | 14 minutes |
| Well Done | 160-170 F (70-77 C) | No pink, firmer meat (there is not the faintest hint of pink in the middle, it should be browned through, not burnt through and solid to the touch) | 16 minutes |
Don’t ever cook a steak to well done. Unless of course, you like eating dry and tough meat. Any more than medium doneness will come out tough. ****It's always best to rest a steak after cooking for the juices to redistribute into the meat. Place the steak on cutting board and cover with a piece of foil so not too much heat is lost. How long to rest? A good guideline to follow is to rest 5 minutes for every inch of thickness. A thicker steak will need more resting time than a thinner steak. What is an Air Fryer? Air fryer is a compact countertop convection oven that cooks by circulating hot air around food at high speed and evaporate the moisture off the exterior of your food to give it a crispy crunch. Due to the small cooking space, the high heat and a good fan that circulates the heat evenly all around the food, you get crispy outside without overcooking the inside better than any regular convection oven. The Air fryer is like a deep fryer without tons of oil and grease. Is healthy using an air fryer? Yes, it’s healthier that deep frying because you use less oil. An air fryer is an excellent way to reduce a massive amount of fat and calories without sacrificing taste. Since air fryers use air to cook food, it doesn’t require the extra calories that submerging food in oil would add. There is nothing in the Air Fryer except hot air!
Nutrition
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