Air Fryer Roast Beef

This air fryer roast beef is simple to cook, and the result is tender and juicy beef with a beautifully caramelized exterior. This recipe uses rosemary, thyme, salt, and a little olive oil, for perfect classic roast beef.

Why you’ll love this recipe

This recipe takes the traditional roast beef and gives it a flavorful twist using an air fryer. The air fryer locks in the flavors and ensures even cooking, resulting in a perfectly cooked roast beef every time.

Air frying is a quick roasting method, so it’s ready in about half the time it would take in a regular oven. This stops the meat from drying out, and because the meat sits in a basket rather than in a pan of oil, it absorbs less oil but still retains the moisture making it tender and juicy.

This air fryer roast is one of my favorites to serve for a Sunday roast or a holiday dinner, but it is so quick and easy to make you can serve it any night of the week! For some other quick and easy air fryer roast recipes, check out this recipe to roast lamb in an air fryer, or try cooking pork roast in an air fryer (check out the crackling on that!).

Scroll down for the recipe card for this air fryer beef roast recipe, or read on for all the details!

Ingredients

Beef roast (what cut of beef to use)

Because air frying is a quick roasting method, you are going to want to be picky about the cut you get.

Tougher cuts need a long roasting time to get really tender, so when air frying it is best to choose a more tender cut.

The following cuts of beef roast are ideal to use for this recipe:

• Rolled rib roast
• Prime rib roast
• Sirloin roast
• Eye of round roast
• Tri-tip roast

Beef tenderloin is also great to air fry, however the cooking times are much shorter for this cut. For more details, see my recipe: Air fryer beef tenderloin.

Rump roast and chuck roast are generally best suited to slow roasting as they can be tough and need longer cooking times to get really tender. These cuts are also perfect for making slow cooker beef pot roast or Instant Pot chuck roast. Or try making air fryer beef jerky.

Rump and chuck can still be air fried but will need to be sliced very thinly against the grain for best results.

Seasoning

The recipe below calls for rosemary and thyme, but you can go ahead and switch in any other herbs you like (try oregano, sage, parsley).

Fresh or dried herbs will work. If you are using fresh rosemary, pick the leaves off and chop them up quite finely before using.

It is also important to season the beef with salt to bring out the flavor of the meat. I prefer flaked salt or kosher salt. Use approximately half a teaspoon per pound of beef.

Oil

I normally use light olive oil when cooking a roast in the air fryer, but you can use any cooking oil that you would usually use for a roast. Choose one with a high smoke point, like vegetable oil or avocado oil.

Onion (optional)

Another great way to add flavor to this dish is to add an onion to the air fryer basket with the beef. Cut it in half or into quarters.

How to roast beef in an air fryer

Prepare and season beef roast

Pat the beef roast dry with paper towels before seasoning it. To season the roast, mix all the herbs and salt together with the oil on a plate and roll the beef in it. I find this helps to get it evenly covered with the seasoning.

How hot to air fry roast beef?

The aim when roasting meat is to get a tasty crust to develop on the outside while the inside is just cooked through. You could sear the outside of the beef in a skillet prior to air frying, but that adds extra time (and a pan to clean).

Instead, I start the cooking process at a higher temperature in the air fryer, to help the crust start to develop, and then lower the temperature for the beef to cook through.

You will need to preheat the air fryer to 400°F/ 200°C, and then cook for the first 5 minutes at this high temperature. Then lower the temperature to 360°F/ 180°C to finish cooking.

When the beef has finished roasting, you will need to let it rest for at least 10-15 minutes. Just transfer it to a cutting board and cover it loosely with tinfoil. This allows the juices to reabsorb into the meat and keeps it succulent.

When you are ready to carve, make sure you use a very sharp chef’s knife or carving knife and cut thin slices against the grain.

How long to air fry beef roast

The exact cooking times for a roast in the air fryer depend on a few factors, including the exact size and shape of the beef joint you are using, as well as how efficient your air fryer is.

However, my rule of thumb to calculate beef roast air fryer cooking times is: 15 minutes per pound (450g) of beef for rare, then add five minutes for each degree of doneness that you like. Use this as a starting point, and monitor the internal temperature of the beef when it is close to the end of the cooking time until it is cooked to your liking.

How well done?	Rule	Time* (2lb roast)	Internal Temp.
Rare	15 min per lb / 450g	30 mins	125°F/ 52°C
Medium rare	15 min per lb / 450g + 5 min	35 minutes	135°F/ 57°C
Medium	15 min per lb / 450g + 10 min	40 mins	145°F/ 63°C
Medium well-done	15 min per lb / 450g + 15 min	45 mins	150°F/ 66°C
Well done	15 min per lb / 450g + 20 min	50 mins	160°F/ 71°C
*Including 5 minute sear

These cook times are usually exactly right for my Philips Airfryer. If you have another powerful brand of air fryer like the Nuwave or a Ninja Foodi, then expect cook times to be similar.

However, the best way to tell whether your beef roast is cooked is to use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature. For medium-done roast beef, it should be 145°F/ 63°C. Or, for medium-rare roast beef, with a little pink in the center, you are aiming for an internal temperature of about 135°F/ 57°C.

Serving roast beef

I love to serve a classic roast with potatoes, fresh vegetables, and rich brown gravy. Here are some side dishes that go well with this recipe:

• Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes (no-drain recipe)
• Steamed Microwave Carrots
• Microwave Green Beans
• Gravy from stock cubes
• Air fryer roast potatoes
• Air fryer roasted vegetables

Also want to air fry a side dish?

If you also want to cook side dishes in the air fryer, you can pre-cook them for part of the cooking time before the beef, then put them back in the air fryer to finish cooking for 10 minutes while the beef is resting.

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You may also like:

• Air fryer beef tenderloin
• Air fryer steak
• Air fryer roast pork
• Air fryer roast lamb
• Air fryer whole chicken

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