Cody Casey
If you're looking for a quick, easy, and delicious meal, look no further than air fryer hamburger sliders. Perfect for a family dinner, appetizer, or party snack, these mini burgers can be whipped up in a batch and cooked in under 10 minutes. The air fryer's hot circulating air cooks the patties to perfection, and you can even cook multiple patties at once if you have a large enough air fryer. With a variety of cheeses, sauces, and toppings to choose from, you can make these sliders your own and enjoy a juicy and flavorful burger experience.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Time | Under 10 minutes |
| Temperature | 350-380°F |
| Cooking Time | 5-10 minutes |
| Cheese | Cheddar, American, or other |
| Sauce | Mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, vinegar, garlic salt, and chili powder |
| Meat | Lean ground beef |
| Meat Preparation | Bring to room temperature, form into 2-ounce balls, then flatten into patties |
| Meat Seasoning | Salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke, seasoned salt, garlic powder |
| Bun | Slider rolls or buns, sweet Hawaiian rolls, potato slider rolls |
| Bun Preparation | Buttered and toasted |
| Toppings | Lettuce, tomato, red onion, barbecue sauce, pickles |
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What You'll Learn
Preparing the ingredients
Meat and Seasoning
Start by bringing the meat to room temperature. Remove the raw beef patties from the fridge about an hour before cooking. This step is important as it helps the meat cook evenly in the air fryer. For juicy burgers, use ground beef with a higher fat content, such as 80/20 ground chuck. Alternatively, you can use leaner beef, but keep in mind that it will cook faster and shrink more during cooking.
Forming the Patties
Divide the ground beef into equal portions. A pound of ground beef should be divided into eight portions to make sliders. Roll each portion into a loose ball, then press them flat into patties. Make the patties slightly larger than your slider buns to account for shrinkage during cooking. A useful tip is to make a small indentation in the centre of each patty to prevent them from puffing up during cooking.
Seasoning the Meat
Generously season the patties with salt and pepper, or your preferred seasonings. You can also add other seasonings like garlic powder, onion powder, or Worcestershire sauce to enhance the flavour. If you want to get creative, try using liquid smoke, seasoned salt, or garlic powder.
Buns and Toppings
Choose your favourite slider buns. Soft Hawaiian rolls are a popular choice, but you can use any type of bun you prefer. You can butter the buns and toast them on a pan on the stove, or warm and toast them in the air fryer while the patties are resting. For toppings, you can keep it classic with lettuce, tomato, and red onion, or get creative with sauces like gochujang, BBQ sauce, or aioli. You can also add cheese, bacon, pickles, or caramelized onions for extra flavour.
Special Sauce
If you want to take your sliders to the next level, make a special sauce by combining mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, vinegar, garlic salt, and chilli powder. You can adjust the proportions to suit your taste preferences and make it as tangy as you like.
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Shaping the patties
When you're ready to shape your patties, divide your ground beef into equal portions. For sliders, you'll want to make them around 2 ounces each. Roll each portion into a loose ball, then press them flat. It's important that you make the patties wider than your slider buns—they should be about 1/2 inch thick. This is because the meat will shrink as it cooks, so you want to make sure that the final patty size matches your bun. If you're using lean ground beef, the patties will shrink less, so keep that in mind when shaping.
Once you've shaped your patties, make a small indentation in the centre of each one. This will help them cook evenly. Then, season the patties generously with salt and pepper, or the seasonings of your choice.
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Cooking the burgers
Next, season the patties. You can use salt and pepper, or get creative with seasonings like garlic powder, onion powder, or seasoned salt. You can also add an indentation in the centre of each patty to help them cook evenly.
Now you're ready to cook the patties. Place them in a single layer in your air fryer basket, making sure they don't overlap. Spray the basket with cooking spray or oil, and cook at 350-380°F for 5-7 minutes. Flip the patties halfway through. For cheeseburger sliders, add a slice of cheese on top of each patty and cook for another minute or so until the cheese is melted.
Use a meat thermometer to check that your burgers are cooked to your preferred level of doneness. The USDA recommends an internal temperature of 160°F for ground beef, but you may prefer it more or less cooked than this.
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Melting the cheese
To melt the cheese for your hamburger sliders, first, cut a slice of cheese in half and fold it over the patty. You can use any type of cheese you like, such as American, cheddar, or blue cheese. If you're making cheeseburgers, you can add a slice of cheese on top of each patty and then cook for another minute to melt the cheese. For a cheeseburger, you can also add a slice of cheese and a slice of bacon on top of each patty and cook for about a minute until the cheese is melted.
If you're using an air fryer, place the cheese-topped patties back into the air fryer and cook for an additional 30 seconds to 1 minute at 380°F/193°C. You can also turn off the air fryer and let the patties sit in the residual heat for about a minute to melt the cheese.
If you're making French onion cheeseburger sliders, place the cheese slices on top of the patties after flipping them and cooking for about 4-5 minutes. Then, cook for an additional 1-2 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 160°F/71°C.
If you're making multiple batches, you may need to reduce the cooking time by a few minutes for the later batches as the air fryer will already be hot.
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Assembling the sliders
Now that you have cooked your patties to perfection, it's time to assemble your sliders. Place the cooked patty on the bottom bun, and if you're making a cheeseburger slider, add a square of cheese on top of the patty. You can pop the slider back into the air fryer for a minute to melt the cheese. If you're feeling adventurous, you can add a slice of bacon on top of the cheese as well.
Next, it's time to add your toppings. You can keep it classic with lettuce, tomato, and red onion, or get creative with fried onions, arugula, or pickles. It's up to you! You can also add your sauce of choice. A simple combination of mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, vinegar, garlic salt, and chili powder can take your slider to the next level. If you're feeling extra indulgent, you can spread some sauce on the top bun as well.
Finally, place the top bun on your slider, and you're done! You can serve these sliders as a fun appetizer or a delicious family dinner. Enjoy your juicy, flavorful air-fried sliders!
If you're making a large batch, you can wrap the assembled sliders in foil to keep them warm until you're ready to serve.
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Frequently asked questions
Hamburger sliders can be cooked in an air fryer in under 10 minutes.
The air fryer should be set to between 350-380˚ F.
Divide the ground beef into 8 equal portions and roll each into a loose ball. Flatten the balls until they are about 1/2 inch thick and wider than the slider buns.
Place the cooked patty on the bottom bun, add toppings and sauce, then place the top bun.
You can use any type of cheese or toppings you like. Try lettuce, tomato, red onion, barbecue sauce, ketchup, mayonnaise, mustard, or pickles.
