Instant Pot Ribs
Take the hassle out of ribs by making them in the Instant Pot! Perfectly cooked ribs every single time and smothered in a tangy homemade BBQ sauce.
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 3 lbs ribs spare or on the rack
- 4 Tablespoon dry rub (below) or your favorite dry rub
- ⅔ cup water
- 1 large orange
- 1 Tablespoon liquid smoke
- 1 cup BBQ sauce (below) or your favorite store-bought BBQ sauce
Dry Rub
- 2 Tablespoon brown sugar or coconut sugar (for Paleo)
- 1 Tablespoon paprika
- 2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
Homemade BBQ Sauce
- ½ cup molasses
- ½ cup ketchup
- ½ vadalia onion finely diced
- 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
- ½ Tablespoon hot sauce
- 1 Tablespoon yellow mustard
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
Instructions
- Remove membrane and season ribs liberally with the dry rub on both sides of the rack.
- Place trivet in the instant pot and ribs on top of the trivet in a circular fashion. Add water, liquid smoke, juice from one orange and the leftover orange slices, into the instant pot. Secure lid and set on manual pressure at High for 25 minutes. Allow for natural release for an additional 15 minutes.
- While the ribs are cooking, combine remaining ingredients into a small pot on the stove. Whisk and cook ingredients over medium-low heat for approximately 15 minutes. Flavors will come together, onions will cook through, and the sauce will become thicker. Remove from heat and await ribs.
- Place ribs onto a foil lined baking sheet and coat both sides of ribs with your homemade bbq sauce.
- Broil in the oven on high for 2-3 minutes each side.
Video
Notes
Recipe Tips
- If the back of the ribs has a membrane, do your best to remove that prior to seasoning the ribs. With the bones facing up, slide your finger or a butter knife under the membrane between two rib bones until you can grip the membrane with a paper towel and pull it off.
- Season the ribs with a dry rub. A dry rub is best for these ribs because it will infuse it with a lot of flavor as it cooks and it won't wash away while it steams in the Instant Pot.
- Pressure cook the ribs rolled in a circle. They won't cook evenly if you cut them and stack them.
- You can sauté the onions first in some butter for more depth of flavor.
- Broil the ribs for a few minutes to crisp the top and boost the flavor of the barbecue sauce. Use the middle position in your oven when broiling for the best results.
- This recipe works for one or two sets of ribs without adjusting the sauce quantities. Simply add a second set of ribs coiled in the Instant Pot.
- It's best to use a 6 QT or larger Instant Pot.
How long to cook ribs in the instant pot?
- Baby Back Ribs: 25-30 Minutes
- Spare Ribs: 30-35 Minutes
Can you cook frozen ribs in the Instant Pot?
Yes you can! Simply up the cooking time for the ribs to 32 minutes and follow the rest of the recipe as is.Nutrition
Calories: 886kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 38g | Fat: 65g | Saturated Fat: 29g | Cholesterol: 170mg | Sodium: 1161mg | Potassium: 1089mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 32g | Vitamin A: 852IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 110mg | Iron: 6mg
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