Beef

What it does in fast-moving hot air

A steak in an air fryer is a compromise: moving hot air browns a surface well but not as fast or as hard as a pan, so the centre gains temperature during the time the crust takes to form. Thickness therefore decides whether air frying is the right tool at all — thick cuts do well, thin ones overcook before they colour.

Why the cut matters

Beef is the exception that makes the safety model worth having. A whole steak may be served rare because its interior was never contaminated; the same beef minced into a burger may not, because mincing moves the surface into the middle.

Cooking pages

• Steak — Air frying is a compromise for steak, and it is worth knowing which way the compromise runs.
• Beef burger — Minced, so it must be cooked through — and the published times range from seven to eighteen minutes across five manufacturers.
• Meatballs — Seven minutes at 190°C for inch balls — fast, and minced, so cooked through.
• Roast beef joint — A 1.8kg joint at 190°C for forty-five to fifty-five minutes, in a 9-litre machine.
• Thick-cut steak — A 3cm steak, which is where this appliance stops being a compromise.
• Flank or bavette steak — Seven to eight minutes for a large 2cm piece, and how you slice it matters as much.
• Beef jerky strips — Five to seven hours at 70°C for 6mm strips marinated overnight.
• Meat loaf — Fifty minutes at 150°C — the lowest, longest published figure in the catalogue, and it needs a tin.