Air Fryer Recipes
Air Fryer Steak Bites
This is the BEST medium rare air fryer steak bites with dry rub recipe made in 5 minutes! Made with
- Serves 4
- Prep 10 minutes
- Cook 5 minutes
air fryerdry rubninja foodisteak
Jump to the recipe
We made bites of steak with a few T bones we had in the fridge and they came out amazing!! SO we thought we’d share our recipe and a video of how to make it with y’all. Find this and more easy air fryer recipes we make weekly here.
I am telling you, these bite size bites of heaven over rice or beside some veggies are the best. Rarely do I ever even grill them whole anymore. Even when it’s summertime I’d rather cube and remove the bones and fat and air fry steak this way. Easier to eat and each bite has so much flavor.
We’ve used this same dry rub on our filet mignon and it’s always a hit, no matter what it’s on. T-bone, New York strip or even cubing a roast will work to make this one.

Ingredient Notes
You want to start with one or a few Steaks cut into bite size pieces. I like to trim most of the fat off first, remove the bone if any and cut into small bite size pieces. They should all be the same size to cook at an even rate. Thinner cuts like air fryer cube steak will take less time, check the steak every 2 minutes near the end to check.
Olive oil goes on first so your seasonings will stick nicely. You could use avocado oil instead. Both have great health benefits and enhance the overall flavor of each piece.
Dry Rub
To make this I use a bowl to combine; Brown sugar for sweetness, Paprika for a pop of wow, Chili powder provides some heat, use less or more, Garlic powder we like too for a deeper flavor but use your favorite blend or just salt and pepper.
How Long to Cook Steak Bites in Air Fryer
In this case 5 minutes is all, you want them to stay pink and tender, medium rare, on the inside. You don’t want to overcook these, longer doesn’t mean more tender, rather it will do the opposite and make them tough.
How Long to Cook Steak Bites with Potatoes
If you wanted to add potatoes you would need to start those first as they need a lot longer than 5 minutes, then add the meat on top during the last bit so everything is done together. I would wait until your Air Fryer Red Potatoes are fork tender and then add your diced beef right on the top until medium rare.
Ninja Foodi Steak Bites
For a Ninja Foodi recipe you will use the lid that is attached for this recipe. That is the only difference since there are two. The button reads air crisp on the front but the rest of the directions are the same.

I have done this a few different ways and I really think that tossing the meat into your steak dry rub and just letting it sit for 30 minutes while your air fryer basket preheats is just fine. By all means if you wanted it on there longer it wouldn’t hurt anything though the sugar will kinda’ “melt off” with the moisture on the raw meat.
Ok so you could really use any type of beef you had in the fridge for this. I like t bones or flank steak or beef tips would work. Whatever on hand is what is used. Since you’re trimming the fat and cubing it up into bite size pieces, it really doesn’t matter what you use.
Can you add vegetables?
You could EASILY add air fryer mushrooms to the basket as well. They both cook at the same temperature and timing so use this recipe. Add half of your meat + half the shrooms in your bowls. Then cook second half for best results and serve.

Variations
You could marinate this first if you wanted to with bottled teriyaki sauce for about 30 minutes but the rub here already gives it a real pack of flavor. So that is up to you. I have used other meats for instance made with Venison Cube Steak gives it a whole new flavor we love.
If you wanted teriyaki steak bites, you could use the sauce from our air fryer roast recipe. Instead, I opted to use our dry rub. IT IS INCREDIBLE!! You could use the latter if you preferred though, you’d just want to add a bit of olive oil before cooking.

Can you cook frozen steak bites in air fryer?
I wouldn’t. For steak bites this really wouldn’t work because you need it cubed too. I would defrost and cook the way directed below. If you don’t have time to do that we have directions for how to cook whole air fryer frozen steak to tender this way. You could sprinkle the same seasonings on halfway thru so they stick.
I recommend removing the bone (if there is one), trimming off the fat and then cutting into 1×1″ pieces. The biggest thing to remember is to make them all the same size so they all cook evenly. If you have smaller kids you can make the pieces smaller but the cook time would need to be decreased.

FAQ
Absolutely. You can use any type of steak with these directions to be perfectly cooked + our dry rub in a preheated air fryer in just 7 minutes cook time. Keep an eye on them as you want them to stay tender and moist without drying out. Air fryer venison bites are delicious with mushrooms or alone with a bit of crisp.
What to serve with
We like throwing these on a plate with some air fryer vegetables. You could opt for pressure cooker quinoa on the bottom instead for lower carbs too though. Or just have some air fryer corn with it. That is a quick idea.
With these or our Steak Tips in the Oven I would say our go to is to use small flour tortillas and make some tacos. You can then throw in some sliced avocado, cheese, sour cream, lettuce and OH WOW are they great.
How to reheat leftovers
Spread steak bites and mushrooms out on a baking sheet. Preheat your oven to 250 degrees F and check after about 10 minutes. Check every 5 minutes until they’re as warm as you want.


Recipe card
Air Fryer Steak Bites Recipe
BEST air fryer steak bites with dry rub that's salty and sweet with a bit of a kick! High protein dinner idea inside tacos or over rice.
- Serves 4
- Prep 10 minutes
- Cook 5 minutes
- Course Entree, Main Course
- Cuisine American
Ingredients
- 4 large steaks (t bones were used, trimmed and cubed)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Dry Rub
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tbsp chili powder
- 1/2 tbsp paprika
Method
- 1
Trim steaks, remove bones, and cube into 1" pieces.
- 2
Preheat air fryer to 400 degrees F for 5 minutes.
- 3
Mix together dry rub ingredients in a bowl. Pour olive oil over meat in a bowl and toss to coat.
- 4
Pour dry rub over meat, toss to coat.
- 5
Pour meat into air fryer basket, spread out so pieces are overlapping the least amount possible.
- 6
Set to 400 degrees F for 5 minutes, toss after 3 minutes.
- 7
Test and see if you want them browner/more cooked (larger pieces will take longer, the more you cook them the less tender they will become).
- 8
Serve alone, served with vegetables, inside tortillas for tacos, or over rice.
Equipment
- 1 air fryer
- 1 Bowl
Nutrition
- Serving3 oz
- Calories619 kcal
- Carbohydrates30 g
- Protein46 g
- Fat36 g
- Saturated Fat15 g
- Cholesterol138 mg
- Sodium1888 mg
- Potassium710 mg
- Fiber1 g
- Sugar27 g
- Vitamin A749 IU
- Calcium42 mg
- Iron5 mg
Questions
Can you make steak bites with venison?
Absolutely. You can use any type of steak with these directions to be perfectly cooked + our dry rub in a preheated air fryer in just 7 minutes cook time. Keep an eye on them as you want them to stay tender and moist without drying out. Air fryer venison bites are delicious with mushrooms or alone with a bit of crisp.






