Beef, in general, is a meat protein that is so versatile and can be prepared and eaten in various ways, and ground beef is one of the most innovative versions of that.
These ground beef air fryer recipes for filling comfort food at home will help you not only save time but to make great tasting food quickly for the family.
My kids could eat ground beef for every meal but that could get boring fast, and if this sounds like you then we have just the thing, a great collection of ground beef recipes for you to try for the family and the ones that the kids love be sure to move to the top of the list in the dinner rotation menu.
#1. Healthy ground beef air fryer meatballs
Meatballs are those Holy Grail foods that seem to please everyone. They are so quick to make, they taste amazing with both a sweet and savory dipping sauce, and the kids can get involved in the ball rolling process as well which is great for a bonding moment.
The secret to these ground beef air fryer recipes is the seasoning, if you have that well mixed in your dish cannot fail, which is why this meatball dish is such a winner.
Naturally, you can toss them in a hot skillet, after air frying, with some ready pasta and marinara sauce, you could pile them high in a bowl with a few toothpicks and some BBQ sauce for the kids to dip in as they please, or skewer them with a square of onion and green pepper for a great appetizer platter.
I particularly love this dish because it has little to no grease that we often find when frying meatballs in a pan on the stovetop, and then you have a horrible mess to clean up as well with the oil splatters everywhere. This is a fuss-free, excellent-tasting dish the kids will rave about.
My kids like to call these oversized patties, and I can see why, but these Salisbury steaks have that little bit of something extra. Mustard. Ha. It may not be the normal go-to flavor ingredient you reach for, but it adds a nice tang to the mixture and soaks beautifully into the ground meat.
Along with the other spices and ingredients you end up with a juicy patty ready to serve on top of creamy mashed potato or stuffed into a fresh brioche bun with caramelized onion, there are so many good choices.
When you place the ready mixed balls in the fryer be sure to place them in a single layer so they get an even cooking heat, then flip them halfway through the cooking process to brown them and baste with BBQ sauce along the way so they absorb all those yummy flavors.
You could serve them on a big platter as a pre-dinner snack to curb those hunger pains and to stop the kids from grabbing a bag of crisps to fill the gap that will last all of 2 minutes, this way they have a proper bite to eat packed with meaty goodness.
Serve it with creamy mash, over rice with a thick gravy, or as is with some dipping sauce. It’s a winner whichever way you choose to look at it.
There is nothing tastier than a thick, slice of ground beef that has been beautifully cooked to perfection, smothered in a rich, sweet, and tangy sauce, and served piping hot.
If that sounds like something you wouldn’t mind sinking your teeth into, then these easy air fryer ground beef recipes are just the solution you have been searching for. Meatloaf sounds so plain and simple, and in many ways it is, but once you try this version the crisp edges and moist meat inside will change your perspective on it forever.
My husband loves meatloaf because it always works, for dinners, for lunch boxes, even squashed onto a roll (I was shocked when I saw it), and it tastes just as great the next day too. And if you manage to make a few batches you can easily freeze them down for later in the month and they reheat in the fryer just as well.
Mold the seasoned meat into a loaf shape, use a bread baking tin lined with parchment paper if you have it, and place it into the air fryer to cook. Once it’s done you can brush, baste, or smother (what we do in our house) with the sauce and enjoy.
It goes great with filling starches during the winter or even a big green salad in the summer for a bite that is lighter and not so overbearing.
If you have been on the hunt for healthy convection oven ground beef recipes that taste even better than they look then these gorgeous pockets of meaty goodness will blow your mind.
You brown the meat in the skillet with some olive oil and garlic butter (I like a combination of the two for added richness and flavor) and once browned you add in the rest of the ingredients to sauté but not wither away, you still want them to have a bit of a crunch.
For flavor variations, you can add in a spoon of marinara sauce, hot sauce for a bit of heat but preferably when serving to adults, or a newfound favorite we enjoy as a family is a butter curry sauce with an Indian influence. Just delicious.
Then lay out your dough discs, place the filling in the middle and fold over in half and pinch the edges with a fork, the kids love doing this so get them involved if you can, and finish off with an egg wash.
Fry for about 8 minutes, keeping an eye on them till they are golden brown, and flip if need be. Perfect for any time of the day, they fit brilliantly into lunch boxes and are tasty even cold the next day. This is something to be enjoyed by the whole family.
I love these peppers and could eat them every day of the week if I wouldn’t get a look from the family, but once in a while seems to be working so I make the most of it (I make extras so I can take them to work with me for a few days, amazing).
Ground beef cooked till brown with all the flavorful ingredients like cheese, Bolognese sauce, garlic (of course, I love garlic), and peppers, and all left to simmer in a skillet so the flavors can melt together and each adding something to the next. Then once the meat is cooked, leave it to sit on the side while you prepare the peppers to be stuffed.
You can cut them in half lengthways or just the tops off (this is more mixture and I usually add cauliflower rice to the beef to bulk it up) and scoop out the seeds and fill with the mix, layering them in the air fryer in a single layer.
Sprinkle with cheese and leave to fry till the cheese is melted and has a slightly tinged char to it to take out and enjoy. We like to eat it with plain Greek yogurt which has a great balance in both texture and taste and allows the peppers with beef to be the star of the show.
The name alone made me want to try this recipe, it sounds so fun. But most of all, the customizability of the dish allowed us to make something that the whole family would enjoy because if you have kids in the house you will know how fussy they can be.
One of the kids likes beans while the other won’t eat them just because, my hubby likes a bit of chili and a bite to his food which I managed to convince him to get from the hot sauce on the side or drizzled over his meat parcels, so we managed a compromise.
Everyone could agree to the basic filling which is packed with amazing ingredients that combine seamlessly together and then personalize with their favorite sauces and dips. It worked for everyone.
These took a little effort to get together but the taste was worth every bit of energy and has been a firm favorite with the family and a frequent visitor on the dinner or snack rotation menu.
Brushing with the butter while in the air fryer gives the added crisp which is a perfect complement to the meaty filling.
I could eat one hundred of these as a main meal, they are divine. An effortless meal that I enjoyed making (the repetition was quite soothing and easy to do while watching your favorite series), and I always make a triple or quadruple batch and freeze them down to grab when I want a feel-good snack.
The mix is simple, the cooked ground beef combined with other ingredients, placed in the middle of the egg wrapper, and closed in a spring roll form sealed with egg wash. Fry them for about 5-6 minutes, checking that all the sides are brown, turn over if white on one side, and place on a paper towel when you take them out to soak up any grease if any.
A handful of these in the kid’s lunch boxes went down a treat, the hubby complained there weren’t enough because one of his colleagues got hold of them they wouldn’t stop (I take this as a huge compliment), but all in all a huge success and a recipe that will be in your collection for years once you try them.
Add some dried chili flakes to the mix or sliced and chopped jalapenos for a bit of heat, but label the container or bag you put them in so the kids don’t get a surprise. Perfect for the adults with some cold beers for a summer evening snack and conversation.
When I first read the recipe card and instructions for this I immediately thought of a modern-day sausage roll, and in essence, they are quite similar.
These take only 10-15 minutes to cook depending on the strength of your fryer and the thickness of the mince, but a thermometer check will help to see the internal temperature and tell you when the mince is cooked through.
Mexican cuisine is one of the most flavorful cuisines you will experience, from mild to hot, to the steam coming from your ears spicy, there is something for everyone to try and enjoy.
Be sure to secure the wraps with a toothpick so they don’t unravel during the cooking process and leave a slight space between each so they cook on all sides. Take the taquitos out of the fryer and once on the plate, top with more cheese if you like, guacamole and salsa, and a fresh squeeze of lime and you have yourself a beautiful meal that is prepared and cooked in 30 minutes.
So when you come home later than usual from the office you can still enjoy something tasty without serving dinner at 10 pm.
In my many years of culinary experience and working in every station of hotels and restaurants it is safe to say I have seen and made more than my fair share of beef wellington, but never like this.
Firstly, certainly never with ground beef which I thought was a groundbreaking genius, and secondly, never in the air fryer. But here it is and it is gorgeous and is ready in no time at all compared to the oven-cooked version.
They looked every inch of perfection and I would never have thought that air fryer ground beef recipes would look so elegant and magazine-worthy, but they did. Delicate pastry parcels with a golden hue, plated with a fresh summer salad make it light enough to eat in the warmer months, but filling enough to not be left wanting more.
And this is easily customizable so you could leave the mushrooms out if the kids don’t like it, or swap out the regular cheese for blue cheese or gorgonzola, there are endless options and you can tailor each parcel to the person eating it.
This recipe is a game-changer and by far one of the easiest ground beef air fryer recipes I have ever made if I do say so myself.
You have saucy, meaty mince, cheese, and onion, all wrapped in the world’s greatest ingredient, bacon. When you serve this with creamy mashed potato you have a dinner dish that will have clean plates and full tummies at the end, and a definite thumbs up.
My husband raved about it to his mates and now whenever there is a game day and the lads are around ours, you can be sure I have been triple preparing these bad boys for all to enjoy and get stuffed.
I make the spicy tomato salsa, they get to eat these while still shouting at the TV and standing while doing so, and they go down a treat. There is nothing got fault about this recipe and if you are looking for a go-to winner that is fail-proof, this is the one to impress with.
The burger is the classic dish that will essentially stand the test of time, and for good reason too, it is flop-proof and pleases everyone. You could substitute toppings for others to customize them, omit bread roll buns for lettuce cups for a carb-free version, or even pile it high and wide with delicious melted cheese and onions.
A perfect dish to serve when you are stuck for ideas, and these convection oven ground beef recipes will not disappoint.
If you want a speedy way to mix in the spices and ingredients with the ground beef then pop everything into the blender and blitz till smooth, this way each bite you take will have that tasty flavor profile we know and love in burger patties.
Mold into the shape and place in the air fryer, cook and flip halfway through, and you’ll start to see it browning and slightly crisping on the edges, this way you know it is ready. Serve as you like, or eat plain with a salad. A humble dish that tastes amazing.
Ground beef air fryer recipes for filling comfort food at home are now easier, and most importantly, healthier than what we are used to, but taking care of ourselves and the way we eat is essential for fulfilling lives.
Healthy food can taste great, and you can find even more top recipes on our blog so be sure to have a look, at meals for all ages and celebrations, there is something for you to try.
Born and raised in South Africa and being immersed in the rich culture, Candace soon found a passion for all things food related. Exploring and experiencing new flavors and taste profiles she pursued her career as a qualified chef in silver service specialized in fine dining.
