Air Fryer Chicken Fried Steak
Crispy air fryer chicken fried steak with rich pepper cream gravy! All the comfort food goodness without the oil mess. Golden, crunchy coating and tender steak in minutes, plus the most incredible creamy gravy. Perfect weeknight comfort food!
Servings: 4
Calories: 694kcal
Ingredients
For the Steak:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup half-and-half or milk
- 4 cube steaks about 4–5 ounces each
- Olive oil spray or avocado oil spray
For the Cream Gravy:
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups half-and-half
- 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper adjust to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon salt adjust to taste
- Milk as needed
Instructions
To make the chicken fried steak:
- Set up a breading station with 2 shallow bowls. In the first bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, paprika, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper. In the second, beat the egg and half-and-half until it is nicely combined and smooth.
- Dip each steak in the flour mixture, tapping off an extra flour. Immediately dip the steak into the egg mixture, coating both sides generously. Move back to the flour mixture and coat one more time, gently packing in the flour so that it sticks. Make sure each steak is evenly coated.
- Preheat the air fryer to 400°F for about 5 minutes. Spray a light layer of cooking spray on the bottom of the basket. Add the steaks in an even layer leaving room for air to flow between them. Cook in batches, if needed.
- Generously spray the tops of each steak until every part of the flour has been coated with spray. Cook for 10-12 minutes. Flip half way and spray the bottom side the same way you did the top side.
To make the gravy:
- While the steaks are cooking, make the gravy. In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the butter. Add the flour and whisk continuously for about 1 minute until a roux is created. Slowly drizzle the half-and-half into the roux, whisking the whole time. Add the salt and pepper. The gravy will begin to thicken after about 3-4 minutes. Add more salt and pepper to taste.
- If the gravy is thicker than you’d like, whisk in a bit of milk to thin it out how you’d like it.
- Serve the steaks hot with the gravy over the top.
Notes
If you want extra tender steaks, you can soak them in buttermilk for 30 minutes right before breading.
Make sure not to overcook the steaks. They are cooking at a higher temperature, so they won’t need a lot of time. Making sure your breading is sprayed well will ensure the crust will get nice and golden. If there are any dry spots after spraying, they will stay dry after cooking and you'll have a floury breading.
If you need to cook in batches, I recommend having an oven warmer on, so the steaks that have just cooked stay crispy and hot. Alternately, pop the first batch back in the air fryer for a minute or two to warm them up before serving.
Don’t skip the double breading. This is what gives it the nice “chicken-fried” texture. Feel free to add more or less spices to the flour mixture.
Nutrition
Serving: 1steak | Calories: 694kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 44g | Fat: 41g | Saturated Fat: 20g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 14g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 226mg | Sodium: 1113mg | Potassium: 783mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 972IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 206mg | Iron: 5mg