Yes, you CAN make perfect, tender ribs right in your Instant Pot! Made with a homemade dry rub and then cooked to tender perfection, Instant Pot Ribs are one of the easiest, tastiest ways to enjoy ribs ever!
While it may seem impossible, with a few “secret” ingredients, you can make delicious BBQ ribs that are more tender and just as delicious as smoked ribs–in UNDER an hour in the Instant Pot. Just like Instant Pot Pulled Pork and Instant Pot Carnitas, the instant pot works it’s magic to deliver, tender, juicy, FLAVORFUL pork.
Why Instant Pot Ribs are the BEST
While we loved smoked or barbecued ribs, I have to say that the Instant Pot makes the MOST tender ribs ever.
These ribs are incredible! Fall off the bone tender meat, seasoned with a slightly sweet dry rub and finished in the broiler with barbecue sauce for a crispy, caramelized exterior–these ribs are delicious!
My secrets for the best ribs without a smoker is two things.
- The Instant Pot
- The Cooking Liquid
The Instant Pot tenderizes these meats to PERFECTION in record time. I was skeptical at first myself, but the instant pot truly does create the most tender ribs. And by using apple juice and liquid smoke as the cooking liquid, these ribs are infused with flavor much like you would get when smoked with applewood.
These ribs rival those that are smoked all day long–without the effort required to watch a smoker or expense of having a smoker.
Key Ingredients
- Ribs: Use baby back or spare pork ribs for this recipe. Just be sure to remove the white membrane from the ribs, as this helps the ribs to get tender.
- Seasoning Rub: The spice rub is made up of brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika. It is smokey, sweet, and savory all at once.
- Apple Juice: As mentioned above, apple juice helps to flavor the meat as it cooks.
- Liquid Smoke: While optional, the liquid smoke will add the hint of smokiness to your ribs, replicating the effect of smoking on a smoker or grilling.
How To Make Instant Pot Ribs
- Mix together the brown sugar with the spices.
- Remove the membrane from the ribs. At one end of the rack, slide a dinner knife under the membrane and over a bone then lift until the membrane loosens. Grab the edge of the membrane and pull it off–it may come off in several pieces.
- Generously rub the spice blend over the entire surface of the ribs.
- Place trivet in the pressure cooker.
- Pour in apple juice into bottom of inner pot. Add in liquid smoke if using.
- Roll ribs in a circle and place on a trivet in a pressure cooker.
- Place lid on pressure cooker and be sure vent knob is sealed.
- Cook ribs on High Pressure. For Baby Back Ribs the cook time is 25 minutes. For Spare Ribs the cook time is 35 minutes
- Once cook time has elapsed, allow pressure to release naturally for at least 15 minutes. This is SO IMPORTANT to help keep the meat tender.
- Place cooked ribs on a sheet pan.
- Brush with your favorite barbecue sauce.
- Broil under high heat for 3-4 minutes.
- Flip, brush with more BBQ sauce and broil for 3-4 minutes on other side.
Spare Ribs versus Baby Back Ribs
Spare ribs are bigger, meatier and a little tougher cut of meat and are taken from the bottom of the ribs. Baby back ribs are smaller, more tender and are taken from the top of the rib cage.
Both spare ribs and baby back ribs can be prepared using this method in the Instant Pot. They just need different cook times.
- Baby Back Ribs: 25 minutes on High Pressure
- Spare Ribs: 35 minutes on High Pressure
Recipe Tips & FAQs
- Store leftover ribs in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat under the broiler for the best results.
- Do you have to use liquid smoke? No! Skip it if you don’t have it but I like the additional flavor it imparts to the meat.
- No Apple Juice? Use water or beer or stock.
- Do you have to broil the ribs? Nope. I like the broiled crispy texture broiling provides, but it is not necessary.
- Feel free to make 2 racks of ribs. Simply place both racks of ribs on the trivet and cook as directed (cook time does not change).
- It is not necessary to add barbecue sauce to the ribs but does add another layer of flavor to these instant pot ribs.
More Instant Pot Favorite Recipes
- Instant Pot Chicken Wings
- Instant Pot Chicken Breasts
- Instant Pot Pot Roast
- Instant Pot Beef Stew
- Instant Pot Mongolian Beef
I hope you give these ribs a try and enjoy the ease of making the ribs in the Instant Pot!
Instant Pot Ribs
Ingredients
- 1 rack ribs spare ribs or baby back ribs
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika or additional paprika
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 cup apple juice
- 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke optional
- 1/2 cup barbecue sauce
Instructions
- Mix together brown sugar, paprika, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, and salt in a small bowl.
- Remove the membrane from the ribs. At one end of the rack, slide a dinner knife under the membrane and over a bone then lift until the membrane loosens. Grab the edge of the membrane and pull it off--it may come off in several pieces.
- Generously rub the spice blend over the entire surface of the ribs.
- Place trivet in the pressure cooker. Pour in apple juice into the bottom of the inner pot. Add liquid smoke. Roll ribs in a circle and place on the trivet in the pressure cooker. Place lid on the pressure cooker and be sure the vent knob is pointed towards sealed.
- Cook ribs on High Pressure. For Baby Back Ribs set cook time to 25 minutes. For Spare Ribs set cook time for 35 minutes. To set cook time, hit manual or pressure cook and use +/- buttons to adjust cook time.
- Once cook time has elapsed, allow pressure to release naturally for at least 15 minutes.
- Optional Step: Place cooked ribs on sheet/broiler pan. Brush with your favorite barbecue sauce. Broil under high heat for 3-4 minutes. Flip, brush with more BBQ sauce and broil for 3-4 minutes on other side.
Equipment Needed
Notes
- Use 1 1/2 cups apple juice for 8-quart pressure cookers.
- The liquid smoke is optional but helps to give these ribs a smoky flavor.
- Water or stock can be used in place of the apple juice, but the apple juice adds an applewood flavor to the ribs.
- Feel free to make 2 racks of ribs. Simply place both racks of ribs on the trivet and cook as directed (cook time does not change).
- It is not necessary to add barbecue sauce to the ribs but does add another layer of flavor to these instant pot ribs.
- See Instant Pot High Altitude Conversion if cooking 2500+ feet above sea level.
Nutrition
This post was originally published in 2018 but was updated in 2020 with a video.
These look amazing! What if my instant pot doesn’t have a trivet?
Hi Kim! You can make a foil rack, by rolling several layers together that will lift the ribs out of the liquid, but I would strongly suggest investing in a rack–they are less than $10.
I haven’t tried yet, but I’m going to this week! What brand of liquid smoke did you use?
I use Colgin Liquid Smoke. Enjoy!
I have some boneless country style pork ribs; do you think this recipe would work with these and how long would I cook them for? Thanks for your great recipes.
Hi Heidi! Yes, this recipe would work for boneless pork ribs. I would still cook for 40 minutes on high pressure, even without the bones. Enjoy!
Do I need to change any of the ingredient amounts if I am cooking 2 racks of ribs in my 6 qt. Instant Pot?
Hi Phyllis, you will just need to increase the dry rub, but the apple juice and cook time will remain the same. Enjoy!
25 Minutes was too long as the meat fell off the bones, so I need to adjust the time but the ribs are amazing
I am so glad you enjoyed the flavor Julie! I wonder if your ribs were less meaty than typical. In the future adjust the time for 20-22 minutes to see if that helps.
Probably some of the best home cooked ribs I’ve ever had, amazing how tender they are with such a short cook time.
Hi Chris! I am so glad you had the same success I find when making these ribs! Thanks for taking the time to leave a review.
Have you ever used the cooking liquid as the base for bbq sauce? I usually put apple cider vinegar and water in the instant pot for the cooking liquid (and also use similar in my bbq sauce). But I’ve never seen anyone recommend using that leftover liquid for bbq sauce. Just curious.
I love making my own BBQ sauce. You certainly could use that liquid. I would saute after the meat cooks with brown sugar or maple syrup, honey, and apple cider vinegar. I would have to experiment to know amounts, but certainly worth a try!