These air fryer steak bites are a fast and simple weeknight dinner idea or an easy appetizer for your next party. Our steak bites are gluten free and dairy free, and can be served with so many things: rice, flatbread, salad, in tacos, and more.
I recently just got another air fryer to make weeknight cooking easier and I’m in love with it so far for adding more options for easy dinners!
Several months ago, I purchased an air fryer that I ended up having to return because it made my food taste like plastic even after multiple uses (!!), but I decided to go with a different brand this time, and it’s working great so far.
I’m way behind the air fryer trend (I’m always behind trends), but I love how fast and easy it is to make food with this machine, like these steak bites that go with just about any side dish you can think of for simple and fast meals.
Why we love this recipe
This recipe comes together very quickly and is a great meal option for busy weeknights, plus it’s naturally allergy friendly (no dairy, gluten, nuts, etc.).
And these steak bites are so versatile: you can serve them with pasta, rice, french fries, salad, on flat bread, or you can make some homemade tacos with the steak as well. These would also make a great hot appetizer!
How to make easy air fryer steak bites
Here are the steps to make our smokey air fryer steak bites. This is just an overview, the full recipe card is at the end of the post.
- Trim your steak of very large pieces of fat and cut the steak into cubes about 1 inch in size.
- Preheat your air fryer for a few minutes while you’re prepping the steak. You can run it for about 5 minutes at 350 to preheat it (this is optional but recommended).
- Add the steak cubes to a bowl and toss with the olive oil, the pressed garlic, and the seasonings, and mix everything so the steak is coated in the oil and spices. I used a strong olive oil, but you can use melted dairy free butter for a buttery taste.
- Add the steak cubes to the air fryer basket, leaving space between pieces so they can get crispy edges. If you have a smaller air fryer, you may need to divide the steak into 2 cooking batches.
- Cook the steak bites in the air fryer at 390° F for 8 minutes, shaking the air fryer basket halfway through cooking (at 4 minutes) for even cooking. This time and temperature keep the steak moist but browned outside with crispy edges. Some of the steak bites might be a tiny bit pink inside, which we like. But you can cook these for 10 minutes (shaking at 5 minutes) if you prefer a more well-done steak bite.
The sauce for our steak bites is super easy: just mix together 1/4 cup mayo (we use soy free and egg free mayo) and 1/4 cup of your favorite barbecue sauce. For the sauce we made in the photos, we used a hot pepper bacon wing sauce mixed with the mayo. It is incredible!!
I decided to use smoked salt and smoked paprika in this recipe to add a layer of smokey flavor to these steak bites (which I definitely recommend), but if you don’t have access to those, you can use regular salt and regular paprika.
What kind of steak can I use in this recipe?
I used ribeye steaks for this recipe since it’s one of our favorite cuts and it’s tender, but you can use other cuts of steak for this recipe depending on your budget.
We tested this recipe with ribeye, New York strip, and top sirloin. We preferred this with the ribeye first, then the NY strip steak, and lastly the sirloin since it wasn’t as tender. But they all still tasted great, just with varying degrees of tenderness once they were cooked.
If you are on a budget, you can opt for a lower-priced steak like top sirloin and just set aside some time to tenderize it with a marinade or meat tenderizer before cooking.
⭐️ If you make our dairy-free banana pudding recipe, please leave a star rating and comment below letting us know what you think! ⭐️
Easy Air Fryer Steak Bites (Gluten Free & Dairy Free)
Ingredients
Air fryer steak bites
- 1 ¼ to 1 ½ pounds ribeye steak
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (OR melted dairy free butter)
- 1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ¾ teaspoon smoked salt
- ¾ teaspoon all purpose cajun seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Easy dipping sauce
- ¼ cup soy free and egg free mayo
- ¼ cup barbecue sauce
Equipment
Instructions
Steak bites
- Trim your steak of very large pieces of fat and cut the steak into cubes about 1 inch in size.
- Preheat your air fryer for a few minutes while you’re prepping the steak. You can run it for about 5 minutes at 350 to preheat it (this is optional but recommended).
- Add the steak cubes to a bowl and toss with the olive oil, the pressed garlic, and the seasonings, and mix everything so the steak is coated in the oil and spices. I used a strong olive oil, but you can use melted dairy free butter for a buttery taste.
- Add the steak cubes to the air fryer basket, leaving space between pieces so they can get crispy edges. If you have a smaller air fryer, you may need to divide the steak into 2 cooking batches.
- Cook the steak bites in the air fryer at 390° F for 8 minutes, shaking the air fryer basket halfway through cooking (at 4 minutes) for even cooking. This time and temp keeps the steak moist but browned outside with crispy edges. Some of the steak bites might be a tiny bit pink inside, which we like. But you can cook these for 10 minutes (shaking at 5 minutes) if you prefer a more well-done steak bite.
- Serve immediately with your favorite sites and the BBQ dipping sauce. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Sauce
- Mix the mayo and the BBQ sauce together. Adjust by adding more BBQ sauce if you want.
Nutrition
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Sarah Jane Parker is the founder, recipe creator, and photographer behind The Fit Cookie which she founded in 2011. Sarah is based in Wyoming and has been managing food allergies for herself and her 2 children for over 20 years. Sarah was also a certified personal trainer for 12 years, as well as a group fitness instructor, health coach, running coach, and fitness nutrition specialist.