Air fryer burgers

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Whether you’ve got friends visiting, and don’t want to fire up your BBQ, or you just fancy making a takeaway style dinner at home I’ve got you covered with this air fryer burgers recipe.

I’ve got tips for making burgers (hamburgers) and cheeseburgers, serving suggestions, seasoning ideas and much more.

Whether you want to use shop bought burgers, or make your own, I’ve got you covered with my super simple recipe that takes just minutes to prepare and will cook in next to no time.

Using my air fryer is such a simple way to cook my family tasty meals and I love how these air fryer burgers taste. They aren’t swimming in oil, particularly if you’ve got a rack in your air fryer.

Burgers are a real family favourite, but are not something I make too frequently these days. We love having a BBQ, but also some nights I just want to make something tasty with minimal effort and without having to get the gas bottle connected.

Ingredients for air fryer burgers:

Makes 4

500g lean beef mince (ground beef)

Salt and pepper to taste

Optional – 1 egg (beaten)

Burger buns – I love these

Burger toppings – see below for suggestions

Method for making hamburgers or cheeseburgers in the air fryer:

Mix together the beef mince and salt and pepper. You can add a beaten egg but I never do, and this still works very well!

Divide into four equal sized portions.

Roll into a ball.

Press down in the middle and push around the edges to shape into burger patties.

Place the burgers into the air fryer basket in a single layer.

Air fry at 200C (395F) for 6-7 minutes.

Flip over and air fry at 200C (395F) for a further 6-7 minutes.

As soon as cooked add a slice of cheese to each burger and it’ll begin to melt beautifully from the residual heat.

The cooking time WILL depend on the thickness of your burger, so if you’re using burgers thinner than 1/4lb, or even thicker ones, then you will need to adjust your cooking time accordingly.

Delicious burger toppings:

• Lettuce
• Tomatoes
• Sliced red or white onion
• Pickles
• Onion rings
• Cheese slices or grated cheese
• Smoked bacon
• Ketchup
• Mustard
• Mayonnaise – roasted garlic is one of my favourites
• BBQ sauce

What to serve with air fryer burgers:

I have an absolute ton of amazing recipes that would go great with these air fryer burgers. Air fryer chips are a classic of course, and I love to use my air fryer bread roll recipe to put these burgers in when I’ve got a little bit time on my hands.

When we fancy something different I love to make air fryer loaded fries or air fryer cheese fries. Air fryer chicken nachos works great if you’re looking to feed a hungry crowd and want to have lots of lovely options to offer.

If you want to serve up some air fryer potato recipes, but want to make something a little more impressive than chips, then look at air fryer hasselback potatoes, air fryer diced potatoes, air fryer potato skins or air fryer potato wedges.

When I’m feeding a crowd I love to make some tasty air fryer desserts such as air fryer frozen churros, air fryer dessert pizzas, air fryer pizookies or air fryer cookies.

Sides wise, if you want to save some time and effort, I love to cook frozen foods in the air fryer as they go super crispy. Air fryer frozen french fries, air fryer frozen onion rings, air fryer frozen sweet potato fries and air fryer frozen halloumi fries all work great with hamburgers or cheeseburgers.

Do you need to flip burgers in the air fryer?

I do, as I find it helps them to cook super even. Also, sometimes they get stuck in the racks of the air fryer basket a little if it has grooves in. Flipping, at least once, helps to make sure that this doesn’t happen and the burgers are easy to remove when it is time to serve them up.

Can you cook frozen burgers in the air fryer?

Yes, just add a few more minutes onto your cooking time. Personally I tend to find 1/3 more cooking time is required for frozen food.

I use a *meat thermometer when I am checking frozen meat that I cook in the air fryer. I love knowing that the meat has reached a safe internal temperature before I serve it up.

Best seasonings for burgers:

I love to keep it simple with the meat doing most of the talking, and a little salt and pepper. However, I also love to mix it up by adding a pat of garlic butter to the burgers for the final minute of the cooking time.

I’ve got a range of fantastic seasonings and herb mixes here if you’re looking for something a little special. Fajita seasoning, peri peri seasoning, cajun seasoning and Mexican blend are my faves.

What is the best cheese to use for burgers?

I’m mostly a cheddar person, and I find that works very well in the air fryer. Some other great cheese ideas for burgers are brie, yarlsberg, red Leicester, Marmite cheddar, pepper jack, provolone, burger cheese (plastic cheese as we call it!) or even nacho cheese sauce.

What are the nicest buns for hamburgers?

I love to use brioche buns, as I find they work well but soft white rolls works great too. Brioche buns have lots of flavour to them and I love to toast them off in the air fryer for 1-2 minutes when serving my burgers.

If you’re not wanting to use burger buns then why not try a lettuce wrap or tortilla wrap.

Can I put tin foil in the air fryer?

Some foil can be used in the air fryer, however you’ll need to check that it is safe for use during higher heats and avoid it going near the air fryer element.

Personally I love to use just soak my air fryer basket right after using it and then I use a Scrub Daddy to avoid scratching the basket.

How to air fry a burger medium well or well done?

My recipe here is based on serving a burger well done, as I don’t like mine to have any pinkness inside.

If you want to serve it medium, or any other way, be sure to check out this guide on internal temperature for burgers.

How to air fry burgers in the Ninja Foodi:

I used a Ninja Foodi OL750UK for this recipe, using the air fryer setting.

Why not try out some of my favourite air fryer accessories and cookbooks while here?

Something to note about air fryer recipes is that all air fryers have different sizes, depths and as such the cooking times can vary. All air fryer recipes on this website are intended as a guide, and not a guarantee that the timings will be perfect. Enjoy!

How to air fry a hamburger:

The calories in this recipe include the bun.

Note: All calorie information is for demonstration purposes only and is based on the specific uncooked ingredients that I used when creating the recipe.

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