These Air Fryer Ground Beef Sliders are made with lean ground beef, cheddar cheese, Hawaiian sweet rolls and a quick burger sauce, all topped with a buttery dijon mixture and sesame seeds. The sliders are ready in 25 minutes from start to finish. That’s because the beef is quickly browned on the stove top, and once assembled, the sliders take just 8 minutes in the air fryer. These sliders are perfect for game day, parties or any time you’re craving a cheeseburger!
I love using my air fryer to prepare appetizers and party food since it frees up valuable oven space. After I shared the recipe for these easy air fryer ham and Swiss cheese sliders last year, I knew I wanted to make and share a cheeseburger version.
Table of contents
Why are we using the stovetop for this recipe?
I started out wanting to make this entire recipe in the air fryer. This meant also cooking the ground beef in the air fryer. As it’s a little challenging to cook crumbled ground beef in the air fryer basket, I decided to make 12 small patties for the sliders.
While they turned out great, the process was time consuming. I had to mix and shape the patties, air fry them for 10-12 minutes and then clean out the greasy air fryer before assembling and air frying the sliders. The whole process was over 40 minutes.
I wanted these sliders to come together a little quicker and require less clean up. So, I decided to brown the ground beef on the stove top, which only takes about 6 minutes and saves a lot of time compared to shaping and air frying patties. And, I didn’t need to clean out the air fryer basket, so the process ended up being about 25 minutes.
As a bonus, using loose ground beef instead of patties, results in the melty cheese and sauce seeping through the entire slider. It might be messy but it’s incredibly tasty!
Ingredient notes and substitutions
Below is a quick breakdown of the key ingredients and my suggestions for substitutions. For the full list of ingredients, scroll to the recipe card at the end.
- Rolls: I used a 12-pack of Hawaiian sweet rolls but you can use other types of mini rolls like slider rolls or dinner rolls.
- Ground beef: I normally use lean ground beef (85/15) or extra lean (90/10).
- Cheddar cheese: You’ll want to use real cheddar cheese slices as opposed to the softer processed cheese slices. Also, for better melting, make sure you use full fat cheese. While we prefer cheddar, you can also use Swiss, gouda or havarti. Just make sure it’s thin slices so it melts fast.
- Burger sauce: The quick burger sauce is made with a simple mix of mayo, ketchup, sweet green relish and dijon mustard (you can also substitute yellow mustard). If you’re in a rush, feel free to use store-bought burger sauce.
- Sesame seeds: It’s a classic topping for cheeseburger buns, but you can leave them out if you wish.
How to make ground beef sliders in the air fryer
I love how quickly these sliders come together! Below is a brief overview of the steps along with photos.
Leanne’s tips for recipe success
- Size of air fryer. The sliders fit perfectly in a 5.8 quart air fryer. If your air fryer is smaller, you will need to air fry the sliders in two batches or half the recipe.
- No need to cover with foil. In order to cook these sliders quickly, you want the hot air to easily flow around them.
- Serving. I will admit that it’s hard to remove the sliders from the air fryer without some ground beef falling out. Before removing, I like to cut the slab of sliders in half and use a spatula to lift each half out of the air fryer onto a cutting surface.
- Two layers of cheese. You’ll want to sandwich the ground beef between layers of cheese. The melted cheese on both sides with help the ground beef stay in the slider.
- Warm ground beef. You’ll want the ground beef to be warm when it’s added to the sliders. This helps the cheese melt faster. If you cook the ground beef ahead of time, just reheat it before assembling the sliders.
Recipe FAQs
Absolutely! Ground turkey or chicken (or even ground pork) will work well as substitutes. Just note that ground turkey and chicken are much leaner, so you might want to add a little oil when cooking them on the stovetop.
I don’t recommend assembling the sliders ahead of time as you want the ground beef warm when you assemble them. You can cook the ground beef and make the burger sauce in advance. Then, when ready to assemble, just reheat the ground beef first.
Avoid reheating them in the microwave as the rolls just end up soggy. For best results, wrap the sliders in foil and air fry at 400F for about 8 minutes. Wrapping them in foil will help prevent them from drying out and burning on top. You can also reheat them wrapped in foil in the oven.
More air fryer recipes for your game day menu
- Homemade Air Fryer Tortilla Chips (pairs perfectly with your favorite dips!)
- Air Fryer Crispy Garlic Parmesan Boneless Chicken Wings
- Air Fryer Nachos (loaded with veggies and cheese)
If you make this recipe, I’d love to hear what you think in the comments below!
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Description
These Air Fryer Ground Beef Sliders are made with lean ground beef, cheddar cheese, Hawaiian sweet rolls and a quick burger sauce. From start to finish, they take just 25 minutes!
Ingredients
For the sliders:
- 1 pound (454g) lean ground beef
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup (65g) mayo
- 1 1/2 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 tablespoon sweet green relish
- 1/2 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 package (12 count) Hawaiian sweet dinner rolls
- 8 slices (160g) cheddar cheese
For the topping:
- 1/4 cup (57g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 tablespoon sesame seeds
Instructions
- Heat a skillet over medium heat and add the ground beef, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Brown the beef until no pink remains, breaking it apart into smaller pieces as it cooks.
- In a small bowl, mix together the mayo, ketchup, relish and mustard.
- Cut the slab of Hawaiian rolls in half horizontally.
- Spread the mayo mixture evenly over the top and bottom halves of the rolls.
- Place the bottom layer of the rolls in the air fryer basket.
- Arrange 4 slices of cheese on top, then add the ground beef layer and then the remaining 4 slices of cheese. Press down on the toppings to pack them together.
- Place the top of the rolls on top of the cheese layer.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the melted butter, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder and onion powder. Brush over the top of the rolls and sprinkle on the sesame seeds.
- Air fry at 300F for 8-10 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown and the cheese has melted. Serve immediately.
Notes
- You’ll want to sandwich the ground beef between layers of cheese. The melted cheese on both sides with help the ground beef stay in the slider.
- The ground beef should be warm when it’s added to the sliders. This helps the cheese melt and the sliders to air fry quicker. If you cook it ahead of time, just reheat it before assembling the sliders.
- The sliders fit perfectly in a 5.8 quart air fryer. If you have a smaller capacity air fryer, you will need to air fry the sliders in two batches or half the recipe.
- You don’t need to cover them with foil or line the basket with parchment paper. In order to cook these sliders quickly, you want the hot air to easily flow around them.
- It’s hard to remove the sliders from the air fryer basket without some ground beef falling out. Before removing them, I like to cut the slab of sliders in half and use a spatula to lift each half out of the air fryer onto a cutting surface.
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