Air Fryer Steak Tips

Oh, man. These air fryer steak tips are exactly the recipe you never knew you needed! We are cooking up so super flavorful steak tips using just a few kitchen staples and your air fryer. This recipe is super simple, takes less than 30-minutes, and is definitely a WHOLE LOTTA YUM!

Jump to:

• What are Steak Tips?
• Steak Tips in Air Fryer
• Ingredient Notes
• Variations
• Step by Step Instructions
• Recipe Tips
• More Air Fryer Recipes

 

What are Steak Tips?

Steak tips are a New England thing which we can't buy here but came in my Butcher Box meat delivery box.

If you aren't familiar with steak tips and are wondering if tri-tip steak or cubes of steak are the same thing, this section is for you!

Steak tips are a type of beef cut found in New England that isn't typically sold in grocery stores in other parts of the U.S. They are small cuts of meat that come from a sirloin steak or beef tenderloin.

If you can't get packages of pre-cut sirloin steak tips in your part of the U.S., you can substitute a higher-quality cut of steak, such as Ribeye, New York steak, or sirloin steak, and cut it into 1" cubes at home.

Do not substitute a lower quality of meat cut that's tough and requires a slow cooking time like stew meat, for this recipe you need a higher-quality cut of meat that tastes tender, flavorful, and juicy with just a short air fry cooking time.

Steak Tips in Air Fryer

Like we said, we can't get steak tips here in the PNW, but they do come in our Butcher Box and when they do they go quickly! Not only does our air fried steak tips recipe take just 10 minutes from start to finish, the whole family finishes them off in record time too.

And because we are cooking up our steak tips in an air fryer using just basic kitchen staples, these tips work for every major dietary restriction out there. Whether you are gluten-free, low-carb or keto, following Whole30 or paleo lifestyles, or simply looking for dairy-free options, these air fryer beef tips are just the thing!

So whether you are looking to top a salad with some protein, serve your tips on a sub roll, or simply keeping things simple with a roasted vegetable side, air fried steak tips are the ultimate in quick-cook dinner without sacrificing flavor or quality.

Why You'll Love This Recipe

• No marinating means you can take the recipe from the fridge to the table in under 20-minutes.
• Using quality steak, such as tri-tips, ribeye, or sirloin, means you don't need to think ahead or marinate before starting dinner.
• With a cook time of just 5 minutes, your air fryer steak tips are ready faster than you can order take out!
• The whole recipe needs just 4 ingredients!

Serve the steak tips air fryer recipe with roasted Italian vegetables or butternut air fryer squash, alongside baked cauliflower mac and cheese for a complete meal that is quick, simple, healthy, and pleasing to everyone at your dinner table.

Ingredient Notes

If you can't get sirloin steak tips locally and are curious about them, you can find them at Butcher Box, which is a meat subscription delivery service of high-quality grass-fed meats.

• Steak Tips - or high-quality beef cut into 1" cubes
• Garlic Salt - or your favorite steak seasoning
• Black Pepper
• Olive Oil

Equipment

An Air Fryer- We have an Omni Plus oven style air fryer and a small 3.2L Farberware basket style air fryer. 

Variations

Make air fryer lobster tail and steak tips since they have the same cooking time and temp.

Step by Step Instructions

In less than the time it takes to preheat your air fryer, you will have your steak tips air fryer recipe prepped and ready to go. From there, we give the tips a few minutes in the fryer before digging in!

Air Fryer Temperature

Preheat to 400F. If your air fryer doesn't automatically do this for you just manually turn your model on for 3-5 minutes before cooking.

While we do cook a lot of foods at lower temps, for air fryer steak tips the higher temperature is needed to ensure a quick cook.

It's ok to add oil or cooking spray if you have an aluminum air fryer basket, but if it's non-stick do NOT use cooking spray. Cooking sprays ruin the finish and will make the food in the non-stick basket STICK.

Prep Ingredients

If you have purchased steak tips, the only prepwork you have is to place your tips in a medium-sized bowl along with the garlic salt, pepper, and oil. Give it all a quick stir to combine evenly.

However, if you have purchased a whole steak, you will need to cut that down to 1" cubes. The easiest way to do this is to freeze your steak for 30-minutes then cut.

Once your steak is cut, combine with the garlic salt, pepper, and oil.

Air fryer beef tips cook time

Spread your seasoned steak tips in an even layer in your basket. Cook the steak tips in the air fryer for 4-6 minutes until cooked through to your steak preference, shaking the basket after 3 minutes.

Air fryer models can differ in cooking time, so yours could even take up to 7 minutes to cook. A longer cook-time may also be needed if you prefer your air fryer steak tips to be well done.

Recipe Tips

• Be sure to preheat your air fryer to ensure the steak tips start cooking as soon as you place them in your fryer.
• For even cooking, leave some space around your tips. If you are cooking a lot of tips at one time cook in batches.
• If you can't find steak tips you can cut a high-quality steak like sirloin, ribeye, or a New York steak into 1" cubes. Trader Joes recently started selling sirloin steak tips if you have one near you.
• Marinating isn't necessary with sirloin steak as it's naturally tender and full of flavor. However, if your preference is to marinate your meat and add extra flavor we recommend this one.
• Sirloin steak tips are delicious as-is or topped with melted butter, steak sauce, or Worcestershire sauce.

More Air Fryer Recipes

Looking for more air fryer dinner recipes?

• Air Fryer Frozen Chicken Breast
• JUICY Air Fryer Pork Chops Recipe with Rub
• Air Fryer Chicken Drumsticks
• Air Fryer Kielbasa (Polish Sausage)