No need to fire up the grill to make a delicious steak. Our Air fryer ribeye steaks are perfect for when you want a quick dinner with minimal fuss. We’ll use a unique, simple seasoning blend to give the steaks a little extra flavor that you’ll absolutely love.
We’ll use just a few pantry-friendly ingredients to bring out all the flavor while our air fryer does its job to make us a delicious dinner with ease. You’re gonna love this one!
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You most certainly can! The air fryer isn’t just about making things like chicken nuggets and fish sticks. Rather, it works similar to a small convection oven by rapidly moving superheated air around the food, helping create crisping on the outside.
For a recipe such as steak, we’d normally want a sear to come from a grill or flattop. While we won’t have the smoke and char of the grill, we’ll still get a steak that’s beautiful on the outside and cooked to juicy, tender perfection on the inside.
We’ll want to start with a couple of thicker ribeye steaks. I find that steaks of about 1 ¼″ thickness are perfect. Thicker steaks are ideal for air frying because they allow more time for the outside to get color and crispness without overcooking the inside. Select ribeye steaks with good marbling, too, for ideal juiciness.
Our steaks will get a simple seasoning of pantry-friendly ingredients. Salt and pepper are almost necessities for all steaks. Stick with a coarse salt such as kosher salt. For the pepper, use a coarse grind for that too. Other ingredients include onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, oregano and a little brown sugar. Wait… brown sugar? Yep! No worries, you won’t be making a candied steak. Rather, the brown sugar in this small amount helps the other flavors pop more while providing extra color and caramelization on the outside of the steak.
You’ve probably heard this before, but take the steaks out of the fridge and let them sit on the kitchen counter for about a half hour before cooking. This way, we’re not putting an ice-cold steak right on the heat. Steaks don’t like that. You’ll get much better results if your steaks have had some time out of the fridge first.
Unwrap the steaks and pat dry with a paper towel. Then give them a quick brushing on each side with some extra virgin olive oil. You don’t need a lot – about 1 tsp per steak will do. Mix all your seasonings together and liberally apply to both sides of the steaks. You should have just enough to be able to coat both steaks. Get some seasonings on the sides too.
That’s it! Your preparation is done. Now it’s time to get them into the air fryer.
Start by preheating the air fryer at 400°(F) for about 5 minutes. This is important. We want those steaks to sizzle as soon as they hit the tray or basket.
Now, your steaks will need about 8-16 minutes in the air fryer. But here’s the important thing… we really need to target the internal temperature of the steak more than anything else!
Rare: 125°
Cool to warm red center, soft and tender texture. Remove at 120°(F)
Medium Rare (ideal): 135°
Warm center, about 75% red. Perfect steak texture. Remove at 130°(F)
Medium: 145°
Hot, pink center with a firmer texture. Remove at 140°(F)
Medium Well: 155°
Hot center, just a little pink, tougher texture. Remove at 150°(F)
Well Done: 160°+
Hot center, no pink, much tougher and dry. Remove at 155°(F)
The time to completion will all depend on the thickness of your steaks, but you’ll find 8-16 minutes for most steaks, thin to thick. An instant-read food thermometer is your best friend here. You can find inexpensive ones at most big box stores, supermarkets, or online.
I find that the “average” steak at most supermarkets seems to be about ¾″ thick. This would be on the thinner side and will reach medium-rare in about 8+ minutes. Most steaks labeled as “thick” are usually about 1 ¼″ thick and will be closer to 12+ minutes for medium rare.
Remember, there can be variations between different air fryers. Some run hotter than others, and some larger ones have more cooking space inside, which can mean longer cooking times.
When our steaks are done, carefully remove from air fryer and let them rest for about 5 minutes. This allows all the internal muscle fibers to relax and for the juices to redistribute throughout the meat. The internal temperature will also continue to rise a few degrees. That’s why we pull the steaks at about 5°(F) before the desired doneness.
To let the steaks rest, simple place them on a large plate or cutting board and loosely cover with a piece of foil.
Your steaks are now ready to serve and there’s really no right or wrong way to serve them. I mean, they’re steaks, dig in and enjoy!
As for pairing your steak with other foods, I’m a big fan of a green vegetables and potatoes. This covers all the categories for me. Oh, and I love a good buttered roll too.
Here’s some recipes that also go well with our air fryer steak…
Instant Pot Parmesan Ranch Potatoes
Cheesy, ranch flavored red potatoes, cooked to perfection in your Instant Pot pressure cooker. The ideal side-dish that everyone will love.
Air Fryer Roasted Lemon Pepper Broccoli
Air fryer broccoli is seasoned with lemon pepper and roasted to perfection in about 10 minutes. With bright, vibrant flavors, it’s the best way to enjoy fresh broccoli.
Oven Roasted Asparagus
This oven roasted asparagus uses garlic and parmesan cheese to add additional layers of awesomeness. Ready in only 10 minutes.
Steak is always best enjoyed when it’s made, but you can certainly save some for later too.
Store leftover steak on an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. If you have the juices from the steak still on the plate, save that with the steak too! It can be important for the reheating process.
Moisten the steak with any leftover steak juices and place in a dish that can be covered with plastic wrap. If you don’t have an leftover steak juices, use some steak sauce. Basically we want to do everything possible to prevent the steak from drying out. Reheat in 30 second intervals until steak is heated through, usually 1-2 minutes. For best results, bring steak to room temperature first.
Reheating steak in the oven is popular because it can produce good results. Unfortunately it can also take the longest. Set the oven to 250°(F) and place the steak on a wire rack that’s on a baking sheet. Check the steak regularly for doneness. You’ll want to shoot for an internal temperature of 110°(F). Again, for best results, bring steak to room temperature first.
So how about our air fryer to reheat steak? You bet you can! In fact, this is my favorite way. For the very best results, bring your leftover steak to room temperature first. Preheat your air fryer at 350°(F). Place the steak into the hot air fryer, use the air fry setting, and set for 2 minutes. Check for doneness. If not heated through, continue to heat in 1 minute increments.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Ribeye steaks are seasoned and air fried to juicy, tender, succulent perfection. Excellent for a quick steak dinner with ease.
2 ribeye steaks, 12-16oz each (about 1.25″ thick is ideal)
2 tsp olive oil
1 tbs brown sugar
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp oregano, dried
½ tsp onion powder
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp paprika
½ tsp black pepper, coarse ground
Take steaks out of refrigerator for about 30 minutes prior to cooking.
Pat steaks dry with a paper towel and lightly coat both sides with olive oil.
Mix all dry seasoning ingredients together and apply to both sides of the steaks.
Preheat air fryer at 400°(F) for at least 5 minutes.
Place steaks into hot air fryer (basket or tray, depending on style of air fryer), and use air fry setting at 400°(F) for 12-14 minutes for medium rare (for thick steak of approx. 1.25″ thickness). Flip steaks after 6 minutes. Remove steaks when internal temperature reaches 130°(F). See recipe notes for more cooking times, temps and doneness. Steak cooking time will depend on thickness of steak and desired doneness. An instant read thermometer is essential for accuracy.
When steak is done, remove to a plate and lightly cover with foil for 5-10 minutes before serving.
The following times are approximate! Times can vary depending on air fryer model. The KEY is to keep an eye on the internal temperature with an instant read food thermometer to get the perfect steak.
Rare: 125°
Cool to warm red center, soft and tender texture. Remove at 120°(F)
Approximate cooking times:
Thickness of ¾″: ~8 min
Thickness of 1″: ~9 min
Thickness of 1 ¼″: ~10 min
Medium Rare (ideal): 135°
Warm center, about 75% red. Perfect steak texture. Remove at 130°(F)
Approximate cooking times:
Thickness of ¾″: ~9 min
Thickness of 1″: ~10 min
Thickness of 1 ¼″: ~12 min
Medium: 145°
Hot, pink center with a firmer texture. Remove at 140°(F)
Approximate cooking times:
Thickness of ¾″: ~10 min
Thickness of 1″: ~12 min
Thickness of 1 ¼″: ~13 min
Medium Well: 155°
Hot center, just a little pink, tougher texture. Remove at 150°(F)
Approximate cooking times:
Thickness of ¾″: ~11 min
Thickness of 1″: ~13 min
Thickness of 1 ¼″: ~14 min
Well Done: 160°+
Hot center, no pink, much tougher and dry. Remove at 155°(F)
Approximate cooking times:
Thickness of ¾″: ~12 min
Thickness of 1″: ~14 min
Thickness of 1 ¼″: ~16 min