Instant Pot Ribs (Fall-Off-The-Bone!)
One of my favorite meals to make during the fall and winter months is these amazing Instant Pot Ribs. It’s a super easy recipe to make and the ribs are fall-off-the-bone tender and delicious.
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I love making my recipe for BBQ Ribs every single summer because it’s simple, and everyone in my family loves it. All I have to do is bake them in the oven and then caramelize them on the grill for a few minutes.
But once the weather starts to get chilly, I prefer to make them in the Instant Pot. This is not only more convenient but it also saves me a lot of time, while still giving me tender and delicious BBQ ribs.
Ingredients For Making Instant Pot Ribs
Scroll down to the recipe card to see the complete list of ingredients.
- Ribs.
- Baby back ribs. These are my favorite ribs because they are smaller and more tender. I always buy baby back ribs that are labeled as “Extra Meaty.”
- Spare ribs. These are larger and meatier, so you would have to cook them about 10-15 minutes longer.
- Dry rub. Use your favorite BBQ rub. For these ribs, I usually keep it pretty simple and only use brown sugar, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, salt, and pepper.
- Water and apple cider vinegar. These two ingredients will not only add steam inside the pot, but the vinegar will also add a little bit of flavor.
- Liquid smoke. An optional ingredient that will add a smoky flavor to the ribs. I only add it if I’m using regular paprika, and not smoked paprika.
- BBQ sauce. You can use your favorite BBQ sauce. And if you want to make it from scratch, this BBQ Sauce recipe and this Guava BBQ Sauce recipe are fantastic.
How To Make Instant Pot Ribs
Scroll down to the recipe card to see detailed step-by-step instructions.
I know some people may be intimidated by using a pressure cooker for making ribs, but the Instant Pot makes it so easy and safe that you will wonder why you didn’t start making them this way sooner!
- Make the dry rub by mixing the brown sugar, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.
- Pat dry the ribs with a paper towel and remove the membrane on the back. Season both sides of the ribs with the rub.
- Place the steam rack inside the Instant Pot. Add the water, apple cider vinegar, and liquid smoke (if using). Then place the ribs in the pot wrapping them around to form a circle.
- Cook on high pressure, brush them with your favorite BBQ sauce, and broil them for a couple of minutes before serving.
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How To Use An Instant Pot?
An Instant Pot is surprisingly easy to use. It may look intimidating at first, especially if you’re new to pressure cooking, but once you get familiar with it, you’ll see that it’s pretty straightforward. I own an Instant Pot Duo and these are the basic steps you will need to follow to operate it:
- Insert the steam rack in the Instant Pot so the ribs sit above the liquid ingredients we’re adding.
- Add the water, apple cider vinegar, liquid smoke, and ribs, and then place the lid on the Instant Pot so that the arrow (▼) on the lid lines up with the arrow (▲) on the pot. Turn the lid clockwise until it clicks into place.
- Make sure the switch on the lid is set to “Seal” so the pot can build up pressure when turned on. If you own an older version, set the valve on the lid to the “Sealing” position.
- Press the “Pressure Cook” button until it shows that it is set to “High Pressure”.
- If needed, you can press the ➕ button to set the timer to 25 minutes. At this point, the Instant Pot will set itself to ON. **Note: The Instant Pot will build pressure first, and once it has enough pressure inside, it will start counting down the time you set it up to cook.
- Once the timer is up, you will need to release the pressure that was built inside. For this recipe, it needs to be released naturally for 15 minutes, so we will not do anything to the Instant Pot and leave it alone for that amount of time.
- After 15 minutes, move the switch on the lid to “Vent” to release the remainder of the pressure. Once it stops, you can safely open the lid by turning it counterclockwise.
💡 Tips For Success
- Season the ribs well. You can use the dry rub I use in this recipe (highly recommend!) to get the best flavor. But feel free to use your favorite dry rub. You can also tweak this recipe to your liking, like using less brown sugar if you want them less sweet. Adding more spice if you want a little bit of a kick. Or add other dry ingredients like oregano, mustard, cilantro, or parsley.
- Don’t skip adding the smokey ingredients because they add that great flavor BBQ is known for. You can do this by adding either smoked paprika, which works great. Or by adding liquid smoke, which you can find at most grocery stores.
- Broil the ribs! Broiling the ribs will caramelize the sauce giving it a fantastic texture and flavor.
Equipment Needed To Make Instant Pot BBQ Ribs
- Instant Pot Duo 7-in-1 Electric Pressure Cooker – Use any Instant Pot that is 6 quarts or larger.
- Small Glass Bowls – I use similar bowls to mix the dry rub ingredients.
- Large Cutting Board – It makes it so much easier to season the ribs.
- Stainless Steel Kitchen Tongs – These work great when handling the hot ribs.
- Nonstick Baking Sheet – This one is large enough for broiling the ribs.
More Great BBQ Recipes
Instant Pot Ribs
A super easy recipe to make and the ribs are fall-off-the-bone tender and delicious.
Ingredients
- 1 rack baby back ribs or spare ribs (Membranes removed)
- 1 cup (236 ml) water
- ¼ cup (59 ml) apple cider vinegar
- ½ tsp liquid smoke *See notes (Optional)
- ½ cup (118 ml) BBQ sauce (Homemade or store-bought)
Dry Rub
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tsp smoked paprika *See notes
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt (Or to taste)
- ½ tsp black pepper (Or to taste)
Instructions
- Make the dry rub by mixing all the ingredients for the rub in a small bowl.
- Pat dry the ribs with a paper towel and remove the membranes if they still have them. To do this just flip the ribs face down and then slide the tip of a fork or knife to lift up the membrane. Then just pull it off with your hands or with a paper towel.
- Season the ribs well with the dry rub on both sides.
- Place the steam rack inside the Instant Pot. Add the water, apple cider vinegar, and liquid smoke (if using). Then place the ribs in the pot wrapping them around to form a circle.
- Set the lid to close and ensure that the switch is set to "Seal" or the vent is set to the "Sealing" position.
- Press the button “Pressure Cook” and cook on “High Pressure” for 25 minutes.
- Once it’s done, allow the pot to release the pressure naturally for 15 minutes, then move the switch on the lid to “Vent” to release the rest of the pressure.
- Remove the ribs from the Instant Pot, place them on a baking sheet covered with aluminum foil, and brush them with the BBQ sauce.
- Broil the ribs for 2-3 minutes or until the BBQ sauce begins to caramelize. Serve with more sauce if you want.
Notes
- *To add a smoky flavor to the ribs you can either add smoked paprika or liquid smoke. Both are available at most grocery stores.
- If using spare ribs, cook on “High Pressure” for 35 minutes and let the pot release the pressure naturally for 30 minutes or until all the pressure is released completely.
- If using an Instant Pot that is large enough, you can cook 2 racks of baby back ribs and double the ingredients for the dry rub.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
