Quick and Easy Air Fryer Hamburgers (Tender and Juicy)

Homemade hamburgers are the best burgers. But when it came to cooking them whatever method I used produced lots of mess and smoke. Air-frying the burgers changed everything.

In my opinion, using an air fryer is the best way to cook homemade hamburgers.  Air frying cooks the burgers perfectly and without the smoke and mess. The best bit is it’s quicker and easier to cook burgers in the air fryer. The burgers themselves are easy to make and are served tender and juicy making them a family favorite.

Why is cooking hamburgers in an air fryer quick and easy?

Easy to make and cook

Making your own patties is an easy recipe with very few simple ingredients. Fresh ground/minced beef, salt, ground black pepper, and grated onion. You can add additional herbs and spices if you want to experiment and create your perfect burger.

You also don’t need much equipment, a grater, a large bowl, and an air fryer.

Air frying hamburgers is an easy way to cook them and requires minimal effort. You place the hamburgers (store-bought or homemade) in your air fryer’s basket and let the hot air do the work. Air fry for between 10 to 16 mins at 360 degrees f (180c), turning them over halfway through.

Total cooking time will vary depending on the air fryer model, the thickness of your burgers, if you want them medium or rare, and if they are frozen or fresh hamburgers.

If you want more information on how to cook frozen burgers. I have written an article that talks you through how to air-fry frozen burgers.

Fewer bad smells

When cooking burgers using other popular methods like a grill or frying, the excess oil sometimes burns off creating smoke and stinking your kitchen out. When using an air fryer excess fat drips from the hamburgers into the bottom of your air fryer basket as they cook. As this is further away from the heating element there is less chance of it burning off. If your air fryer still smokes add two tablespoons of water to the bottom of the basket, this will aid in cleaning and reduce the chance of excess fat burning.

Less mess

Due to the natural fat content of ground beef, it is less likely to stick to the air fryer basket. This means it will be an easy clean-up compared to cleaning the grill or frying pan. All you will need to do is wipe the basket around with some hot soapy water with a non-abrasive cloth or sponge. The rest of the equipment can either be put in the dishwasher or washed in the same hot soapy water before the air fryer basket.

To reduce cleaning time even more, you could put parchment paper or aluminum foil in the bottom of the basket. This can be removed and disposed of once the basket has cooled.

By air frying, there will also be no messy rack or fatty splatter marks on your countertop or hob to clean up as there would be if you fried or grilled the hamburgers.

Can I cook homemade hamburgers in an air fryer?

Yes, you can cook homemade hamburgers in an air fryer.

These could be made fresh and cooked there and then, or taken from the freezer and reheated. There is no need to defrost them, simply place them in the air fryer basket and cook them.

If you want to air fry uncooked frozen homemade burgers this article goes into more detail.

How long should I cook my homemade burgers?

The length of time you cook your burgers depends on the thickness of your burger and how well done you want them. Using a pre-heated air fryer at 360 F (180 c), the suggested timings are…

Rare burger – 10 minutes

Medium rare – 14 minutes

Well done – 16 minutes

The above times are for a 0.5 inch (1.2cm) thick homemade burger. The thinner the burger the less time it will need.

As different air fryers will produce different results it is best to check your burgers regularly and adjust the times accordingly.

Use a digital meat thermometer to check the internal temperature, this will make sure your burgers are safe to eat.

Your target safe temperature for a…

• Well done burger is 160 -165 F (71c)
• Medium to well-done burger it’s 150-155 F (65c)
• Medium burger it’s 140-145 F (60c)
• Medium rare burger it’s 130 – 135 F (54c).
• Rare burger it’s 120 – 125 F (49c)

The United States Department of Agriculture recommends a temperature of 160 F (71c).

How do I make homemade hamburgers and cook them in an air fryer?

This is a quick and easy air fryer hamburger recipe for you to follow and serve up tender and juicy hamburgers every time. There is a downloadable recipe card at the bottom of this article.

To make your juicy air fryer burgers follow these simple steps…

Step 1 – Add to your large bowl fresh ground beef, grated onion (or onion powder), salt, ground black pepper and garlic powder.

Step 2 – With clean hands gently mix all the ingredients together.

Do not handle the mixture too much as this will make the hamburgers less tender.

Step 3 – Pre-heat your air fryer to 360 F (180 C)

Step 4 – Use your hands to make four patties that are about the same size.

Make them around a half inch (1.2 cm) thick.

Put a small indentation in the middle to help the hamburgers cook evenly.

Step 5 – Take out your air fryer basket and put the patties in on the bottom.

The number of patties you can cook at any one time will depend on the size of your air fryer.

Step 6 – Put your air fryer basket back into the now pre-heated air fryer.

Cook for 14 minutes (medium)

Step 7 – At the halfway point (7 minutes) pull out the air fryer basket and turn over the hamburgers to ensure it evenly cooks.

Step 8 – After a further 7 minutes of cooking, check that your hamburgers have browned and cooked to your satisfaction.

Use a digital meat thermometer to check the center of the hamburgers to make sure they are done as you like them. Medium hamburgers will have an internal temperature of 140 – 145 F (60 C). A well-done hamburger will have an internal temperature of 160 F (71 c) and will require around 16 minutes to cook.

Step 9 – If the hamburgers are not cooked to your preference or you like your hamburgers darker in color or crispier, return for a couple of minutes.

If you want to melt some cheese slices on top, add a slice of cheese on top of each of the hamburgers and air fry for an additional minute.

Step 10 – Serve in brioche buns or lettuce wraps for a low carbohydrate option

I used my Tower air fryer to cook the above.

Common questions

Is oil needed and what oil should I use?

You may be in the habit of putting oil on the bottom of the air fryer basket to stop the food from sticking. Due to the fat content of ground beef, this shouldn’t be necessary with this recipe. If you did want to put some oil in the basket there are so many different oils you could use. That is why I wrote an article comparing them all. If you want to know which oils are best for air frying, you can read that article here.

Should I use parchment or foil?

Yes, you can. You should not need to use parchment paper or foil to stop the hamburgers from sticking to the basket this is due to the fat content of ground beef. But you could put parchment paper or aluminum foil in the bottom of the basket to reduce your cleaning time. The parchment paper or foil can be removed and disposed of once the basket has cooled.

How do I store my homemade hamburgers?

If you have leftovers or you have been prepping for the week ahead, you can store your either cooked or uncooked hamburgers in either the fridge or the freezer.

Firstly, let the cooked hamburgers cool. Then either individually wrap the cooked or uncooked hamburgers in foil or plastic wrap. Or place squares of parchment paper between them, then place them in an airtight container or sealable food bag, to keep them all together.

If storing in the fridge eat within 3 days. If in the freezer they are best eaten within 3-4 months.

Can I cook frozen burgers in an air fryer?

Yes, this is by far the easiest and quickest way to put uncooked frozen hamburgers in a bun and on your plate. Air-frying frozen burgers will have a total cook time of around 12 to 18 minutes at 360 F (180 c).

There is no need to defrost the patties, simply place them in the air fryer basket and cook them.

The total cook time will vary depending on the thickness of the burger and how well done you like your burgers. If you want more information on how to cook frozen burgers. I have written an article that talks you through how to air-fry frozen burgers.

How do I reheat my cooked homemade hamburgers?

I unsurprisingly use my air fryer to reheat my homemade hamburgers. Simply air fry for 4 minutes at 360F (180c) turn and then cook for a further 4 minutes.

Recipe card