Air fryer chicken fried steak fingers recipe is comfort food thatโs like our Air fryer cube steak but breaded for dinner or an appetizer. Crunchy finger food thatโs tender inside with a gravy dip, just like Cracker Barrel but homemade in a Cosori or Ninja Foodi.
Who doesnโt love this southern fried food??!! Well if youโre looking for the same great taste with a fraction of the fat intake, try our air fryer chicken fried steak recipe! Itโs one of our favorite air fryer recipes here on The Typical Mom. (affiliate links present)
Air Fryer Chicken Fried Steak Fingers Recipe
You can make these into bigger pieces or in fingers like we did. If youโre Southern this is probably a regular meal in your home. If youโre not I am sure you love it too. We made these into strips because theyโre easier to eat. THIS my friends is how to cook chicken in an air fryer to perfection. ๐
Just like deep fried to a golden brown but NO need to submerge these babies in oil at all, theyโre a healthier version of your favorite comfort food.
in Ninja Foodi
Of course you could leave the cubed steak whole as a Ninja Foodi recipe but it would just take longer to cook. I personally think smaller bites turn out better to get the inside nice and tender while keeping a crunchy texture on the outside. In a Foodi you will use the lid that is attached.
Ingredients
- Cubed steak cut into strips
- Salt and pepper are basics
- garlic and onion powder are good add ins too
- use seasonings you love
- Seasoned flour to create a crispy coating
- Panko breadcrumbs will make them crunchier
- Egg whisked in a bowl to get coating to stick
- Milk or dairy free alternative works
Equipment Used
Youโll need 3 bowls or plates with tall lips on the sides too with your machine. If you can lay it all out on the counter itโs easier to make sure each piece is completely coated, dipped, coated again and laid in your basket quickly.
The seasonings for the breadcrumbs are totally up to you. Of course we share what we used down below so feel free to use those suggestions. This is kindaโ the assembly line that is handy to have in order to bread and cook every piece.
Whenever I come up with an idea, I refer to my air fryer cooking times chart linked at the top of this post to determine how long it will take to cook. Of course you may need to adjust it slightly, but it is a great reference to start with. Just like my meatballs in an air fryer it eliminated the guess work once I got to that step and they were done perfectly.
How to Make Air Fryer Chicken Fried Steak with Flour
- Spray air fryer basket with non stick spray
- Preheat for 5 minutes so it is the same heat throughout the cooking time
- Slice into strips with an electric tenderizer to pound the meat out
- Season each piece with salt and pepper or those of your choice
- Mix together flour and seasonings to coat the outside.
- Whisk together milk and egg.
- Spread out Panko bread crumbs.
- Use a fork and press into flour mixture, shaking off excess. Then dip into egg mixture allowing the excess to drip off.
- Press into Panko breadcrumbs on both sides.
- Spray with olive oil and air fry
- Flip your pieces over after 7 minutes.
- Continue to cook if you want them to crisp up more.
If so add a few more minutes until theyโre done to your liking. NO need for paper towels to absorb the grease on these as there isnโt any!
Cooking Tips
You want to make sure to give them space inside the air fryer basket. Hot air is what will cook them and create a crispy outer layer you want. If you crowd the strips the chicken fried steak strips wonโt get as crispy as youโd like.
How long do you cook frozen chicken fried steak in the air fryer?
Well, this recipe is for homemade but if you want to make them out of the freezer just set to 400 degrees F for 11 minutes. Flip them halfway thru and leave in basket for 2 minutes when time it up. Just cooking naked cube steak without breading is a bit quicker if you want to try that too.
Hereโs a peek at them once theyโre done. Kindaโ like air fryer frozen chicken tenders, but with beef instead.
Serve with
Traditionally youโd serve this or our air fryer fried chicken thighs with air fryer mashed potato balls if itโs served as a dinner. These are cut as a finger food appetizer though so you can serve them with a bowl of gravy to dip them into. Another option is vegetables! Air fryer cauliflower is a great side dish.
Air Fryer Chicken Fried Steak Recipe
Equipment
- 1 air fryer
- 3 shallow bowls
Ingredients
- 3 lbs cubed steak
- 2 c Panko bread crumbs
- 1 tsp dry mustard
- 2/3 c flour
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1.5 tsp salt
- 1 tsp paprika, smoked is best
- 1 c milk
- 1 egg
- olive oil spray
Instructions
- Spray air fryer basket with non stick spray and preheat to 360 degrees.
- Slice cubed steak into strips and season each piece with salt and pepper
- In a bowl or plate mix together your flour, dry mustard, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, and smoked paprika.
- In a different bowl whisk together your milk and egg. On a third plate spread our your Panko bread crumbs.
- Use a fork and press into flour mixture, shaking off excess. Then dip into egg mixture and finally press into breadcrumbs on both sides. Shake off a bit of excess and put into air fryer basket.
- Do this with enough pieces to fill basket without overlapping and leaving a bit of space in between them so they crisp up properly. Spray with olive oil spray lightly.
- Close and cook at 360 degrees for 11 minutes total. Open and flip pieces after 7 minutes. Continue cooking for 4 minutes and then check to see if you want them to crisp up more. If so add a few more minutes until they're done to your liking.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Frequently Asked Questions
It is prepared in the same manner as traditional fried chicken, but itโs made out of steak. Makes sense I guess right??!! Some people would call this country fried steak. Whatโs the difference? Not much. One flour dusted and the other uses bread crumbs. Since we used both I just called it this. ๐
Cube steak is the name of a cut of beef. Itโs usually top round or top sirloin thatโs been tenderized and flattened by pounding with a meat tenderizer. Reason this is done is to make it easier to chew.
Use a meat mallet that is either metal or wooden. Cover your steak in a plastic bag or plastic wrap, and pound it thoroughly until the entire steak is covered with marks from the mallet.
Most definitely! We have made these, air fryer steak, and our favorite is probably this air fryer steak bites recipe with an incredible dry rub.
Set to 350 degrees F for 4 minutes. Flip halfway thru the cook time and check to see if theyโre warm enough to serve.
Looks great. Two questionsโฆ.
How do you make white gravy with no drippings since youโre not cooking in a skillet?
How do you keep your first batch of steak fingers hot while youโre cooking your second and third batches?
Thatโs the downfall of air fryers. Sure they cook fast but youโre not saving any time having to cook several small batches.
Thanks!
@Ken T,
For the gravy, just make it w/o the drippings โ melt butter, mix in flour, add milk & seasoning, stir often until thickened.
To keep batches warm, put them in the oven at 170 (or the lowest temp your oven goes to). The subsequent batches cook quickly enough that whatโs in the oven doesnโt dry out.
Any ideas on how to collect drippings for gravy?
If there are any drippings they would be underneath your air fryer basket. Lift out basket and drain drippings below into a saucepan and thicken.
This is a great recipe! My family loves this as a weeknight dinner.
Oh yay!
Yum! Chicken fried steak is one of my favorites, but I rarely make because of the mess and extra calories of frying. I was excited to try this and I am so glad I did, it was fabulous! Easy and super tasty!
WHat happens if we donโt cut it into strips? Have you tried a flour or a GF flour mixture?
It would take longer to cook, no I havenโt
Turned out great! I think next time I will just use flower and no bread crumbs so they are less crunchy. The time was a little long, with about 4 minutes left meat was at 160-170. I adjusted the time and they came out right at 140. yum. Thanks for the recipe.