Okay, so, I wanted to try something new in the kitchen, and I had this pound of ground beef sitting in the fridge. Usually, I’d just throw it in a pan, but today, I thought, “Why not the air fryer?” Yeah, I’d heard you could do it, but I was always a bit skeptical. I mean, ground beef in an air fryer? Sounds weird, right?
First, I took the ground beef out of the fridge and let it sit for a bit. You know, to get it closer to room temperature. While that was happening, I prepped the air fryer. Just made sure the basket was clean and all that.
Then, I crumbled the beef into the air fryer basket. I tried to break it up pretty good, so it would cook evenly. I’d seen some folks season it beforehand, but I decided to keep it simple this time – just wanted to see how it would turn out on its own.
- Crumble the beef into the basket.
- Make sure the pieces aren’t too big.
- Spread them out for even cooking.
I set the air fryer to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. I didn’t really know how long to cook it for, so I figured I’d start with 5 minutes and check on it. After 5 minutes, I opened it up and gave the beef a good stir with a spatula, breaking up any big chunks.
It was starting to brown, but it definitely needed more time. I popped it back in for another 5 minutes. Checked it again, and it was looking good – nice and brown, no pink. But here’s a little tip: I used a meat thermometer to make sure it was cooked through. You want it to be at least 160 degrees Fahrenheit to be safe.
Drain that grease!
Now, the next part is important. I took the basket out and carefully drained all that excess grease. There was a surprising amount! I just tilted the basket over a bowl and let it drain out. You don’t want all that grease in your meal, trust me.
And that’s pretty much it! I tossed the cooked beef with some taco seasoning for a quick weeknight dinner, but you could use it for anything – spaghetti sauce, chili, whatever you like. Honestly, it turned out way better than I expected. It was quick, easy, and the beef was cooked perfectly. I’m definitely going to be doing this again. Next time, I think I’ll try adding some onions and peppers to the basket. Maybe some garlic, too. The possibilities are endless!
So, if you’ve got an air fryer and some ground beef, give it a try. You might be surprised at how good it turns out.
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