Air Fryer Steak Bites are the easiest weeknight dinner. Make juicy steak bites in the air fryer with a simple spicy sauce.
Quick
Air fryer fast
You’ll Learn: The method for cooking steak without drying it out
Worth It: Big flavor on a budget with everyday ingredients
Bonus: Air fryer option for faster cook time
Why you’ll Love this Recipe
- Quick and easy dinner – If you want dinner ready quickly, you gotta use the air fryer. These air fryer steak bites are ready in less than 15 minutes.
- Fool proof steak – By making this steak in the air fryer, you talk a lot of guess work out of the equation! Toss the steak bites in a spice blend, cook, and toss in the sauce for a perfect steak every time.
- Versatile recipe – These steak bites are great alongside some veggies and rice, in a stir fry, in a sandwich, on a wrap, on a salad, or anything you would like.
How to keep the steak from drying out
The great thing about an air fryer is that it can cook steak really quickly while keeping it tender.
When cooking steak in the air fryer, keep in mind that it can quickly become overcooked. For this recipe it helps to cut the steak into uniformly sized 1-inch cubes so that everything cooks evenly.
It is also important to place the steak bites in the air fryer tray in a single layer. If you have a very small air fryer you might want to cook the bites in batches.
Serving Suggestions
There are so many ways to serve this air fryer steak bites recipe. My favorite way to enjoy it is with some rice and a green vegetable like sautéed garlic spinach. If you want to make everything in the air fryer, you could do a side dish like brussels sprouts or asparagus. Additionally, you could make some quick potatoes for a side.
You can also serve them as an appetizer. Toss the steak bites in the sauce and then poke toothpicks into each bite. Serve on a decorative platter or plate.
Ingredients
- Sirloin steak – sirloin is my go to for this recipe. It’s an affordable, delicious cut of beef
- Salt – I recommend kosher salt for your steak bites. If you are using table salt, cut down on the amount
- Brown sugar – the sugar helps create a delicious crust on your steak that make it so tasty
- Garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper – this simple spice combination is my favorite for steak bites. You could also add a bit of paprika
- Soy sauce – soy sauce is the base of the sauce for the bites
- Rice wine vinegar – the vinegar adds acidity and bite to your sauce
- Sriracha – the sriracha creates a small kick, but also adds a great depth of garlicky flavor
- Cornstarch – cornstarch thickens up your sauce for the perfect consistency
Ingredient substitutions
I like to use a sirloin or chuck steak for this recipe because it is a great way to make an affordable steak taste delicious, but you can use a different cut of steak. These bites would be delicious made with a New York strip steak or a ribeye steak.
Instead of the seasoning blend listed above, you can save time by using a premade steak seasoning like a Montreal steak seasoning or a cajun seasoning. I don’t find the steak bites need any oil, but if you would like, you can add a touch of olive oil.
Also, instead of the spicy sauce I have listed here, you can use many other sauces to drizzle over the cooked meat. You can use worcestershire sauce, or melt butter for a garlic butter sauce or even an herbed garlic butter sauce with a little bit of parsley.
How to make
Step 1: cube steak and prepare rub
To begin, trim excess fat from the sirloin steak and cut into bite size cubes. Cubes should be about 1” on each side.
Then, combine salt, brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder and black pepper in a small bowl. In a large bowl, toss the steak in the seasoning mixture until all cubes are evenly coated (Image 1).
Spray air fryer baskets with cooking spray. Place steak cubes in the air fryer basket (Image 2).
Step 2: Air fry steak bites and prepare sauce
Then, air fry at 350F for 4-5 minutes for steak that is cooked to medium-rare doneness. For medium steak, cook 5-6 minutes (Image 4). For well done bites, cook for 8 minutes at 350F. If you are unsure, check that the outside of the steak is browned, and use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature.
While the steak cooks, prepare the simple sauce. Whisk together the water, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sriracha and corn starch (Image 3).
Heat in a sauce pan over medium heat, whisking constantly until the sauce thickens.
Step 3: toss steak bites in sauce and enjoy!
Remove the sauce pan from heat (Image 5) and pour over cooked steak bites (Image 6). You can also serve the sauce on the side of the steak bites as a dipping sauce.
Storage and reheating
These steak bites are best enjoyed immediately. If you are planning to save them, allow them to cool completely and then transfer to an airtight container. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.
I like to eat leftovers cold to ensure that I do not overcook the steak. If you want to reheat them, I recommend reheating in the air fryer at 300F until just warmed through – about 5 minutes. You can also heat it on the stove top on high heat very briefly.
Check out these other air fryer recipes
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
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Recipe
Air Fryer Steak Bites
Ingredients
Steak Ingredients:
- 1.5 lb sirloin steak
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
Sauce Ingredients:
- 1 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- ½ tsp sriracha
- ½ tsp cornstarch
Instructions
- Trim excess fat from the sirloin steak and cut into bite size cubes – about 1” on each side. Combine salt, brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder and black pepper in a small bowl.
- Toss the steak in the seasoning mixture until all cubes are evenly coated. Spray air fryer baskets with cooking spray. Place steak cubes in the air fryer basket.
- Air fry at 350F for 5-6 minutes for steak that is cooked to medium doneness.
- While the steak cooks, prepare the simple sauce by whisking together the water, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sriracha and corn starch. Heat in a sauce pan over medium heat, whisking constantly until the sauce thickens. Remove from heat and pour over cooked steak bites.
Recipe Notes
- For well done steak bites, cook at 350F for 8 minutes
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
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