A quick 5 ingredient marinade and your air fryer are all you need to make the most tender and delicious cube steak. Cooking cube steak in the air fryer is a great way to get dinner on the table in a flash. Serve it with a side of gravy for delicious meal.
Air Fryer Cube Steak Recipe - Minute Steaks
No matter if you call them cube steaks or minutes steaks, I think we can all agree that they can be a little on the tough side, even though they are put through a meat tenderizer before packaging. Let me show you a delicious air fryer cube steak recipe the whole family will love!
I think the best way to cook cube steak is to marinate them in a delicious savory marinade for extra flavor, then cook them in the air fryer. This cube steak in the air fryer would pair perfectly with a peppery white gravy or a delicious compound butter. Or just serve with steak sauce and your favorite side dishes like my Easy Parmesan Green Beans.
Cooking steak in the air fryer is my new favorite way to cook steak. It eliminates a lot of clean up and I can have juicy steak in a matter of minutes. Checkout my recipes for Air Fryer Steak Bites and frozen steak in the air fryer.
Ingredients needed
This section explains how to choose the best ingredients for this air fryer cube steak recipe, what each one does in the recipe, and substitution options. For a printable recipe, see the recipe card below.
4 Cube steaks (minute steaks) - this relatively inexpensive cut of beef is from the top or bottom round, near the rump of the cow. If you love this flavorful cut of beef but can't find cube steaks at your local grocery store, you can tenderize them yourself.
Make your own cube steaks!
Place a 4 ounce piece of rump roast on a cutting board and cover it with plastic wrap. Use a meat mallet to pound the steak until it is about ½ inch thick. For a more tender cube steak, you can use any type of steak you want like top sirloin, but I wouldn't use something like filet mignon since it is so expensive.
The marinade consists of:
¼ Cup balsamic vinegar
¼ Cup Soy sauce or Tamari for gluten free
2 tablespoons avocado oil - you can use olive oil or vegetable oil as well.
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons minced garlic - you can substitute 1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
How to make tender cube steak in the air fryer
This section explains how to make this tender cube steak in the air fryer, step by step. For a full printable recipe, see the recipe card below.
Marinate the minute steaks: In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together the marinade ingredients.
Add the cube steaks to the marinade mixture and coat well. Marinate for 30 minutes or up to 2 hours. I would definitely use the full 2 hours for best results. This is key for the most tender cube steak. For busy weeknights, 30 minutes will work.
Line the air fryer basket or tray with foil, if desired. Pre-heat the air fryer to 400 degrees F for 5 minutes. Place cube steaks in the air fryer in a single layer.
Air fry for 10 minutes, flipping halfway through. The cook time may vary depending on the thickness of your cube steak and the model of your air fryer. These are not something you're going to want to cook rare or medium rare. Just a little pink in the middle is fine.
Serve the cooked cube steaks with keto cauliflower mash for a classic southern dish that is keto friendly.
Pro tip:
- For this thin cut of beef, it's really hard to use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature. I prefer to cook until the meat gets a nice color on the outside.
What kind of air fryer do you need?
This recipe will work with basket style air fryers, as well as countertop oven style air fryers. If you have a basket air fryer smaller than 6 quarts, you may need to cook these in 2 batches.
More air fryer recipes
- Air Fryer Chicken Thighs - a family favorite!
- Air Fryer Naked Chicken Tenders
- Air Fryer Skirt Steak
- Air Fryer Frozen Broccoli
Perfect Air Fryer Cube Steak - So Tender!
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Tip: Hitting your 20–30g protein per meal goal helps you stay full and supports muscle.
Ingredients
- 4 cube steaks (minute steaks)
Marinade:
- ¼ Cup balsamic vinegar
- ¼ Cup Soy sauce or Tamari for gluten free
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together the marinade ingredients.
- Add the cube steaks to the marinade mixture and coat well. Marinate for 30 minutes or up to 2 hours.
- Line the air fryer tray or basket with foil, if desired. Non-stick cooking spray should not be needed because of the oil in the marinade. Pre-heat the air fryer to 400F (200C) for 5 minutes. Place steaks on the tray in a single layer. Air fry for 10 minutes, flipping halfway through. Let the meat rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Notes
- I would definitely use the full 2 hours for best results. This is key for the most tender cube steak. For busy weeknights, 30 minutes will work.
- The cook time may vary depending on the thickness of your cube steak and the model of your air fryer. These are not something you're going to want to cook rare or medium rare. Just a little pink in the middle is fine.
- Storage: Leftover steak can be stored in an airtight container for up to 4 days. I prefer to put my leftovers in my recipe for Leftover Steak Soup, or I pack it with some vegetables for lunches for the week.
Sharon Bell Ingram says
My husband loved the marinade. I don’t have a big air fryer so we had to do more than one cook so the basket wasn’t too full. 400° for 10 minutes was way too hot or too long. Dropped temp to 350° for the 10 minutes was way, but then added 2 more minutes and it was perfect.
Vanessa Burnett says
Can we marinade for over 2 hours? I wanted to put the steak in at lunch and marinade until i get home. Will that work?
Jennifer Banz says
Yes definitely!
Cara says
This marinade is so good I have written it down and will use it forever now. I used low sodium soy and it was fine. Thank you!
Jessica says
This recipe was outstanding! The marinade really made all the difference.