These Instant Pot Baby Back Pork Ribs are fall off the bone tender and only take 25 minutes to cook!
Instant Pot Baby Back Pork Ribs are rubbed down with seasonings then cooked to perfection and finished off under the broiler for the perfect texture.
You guys, I’m not even kidding when I say that these ribs are a game changer. A few years ago my husband bought a smoker so we could make some epic smoked meats, and it was my favorite way to enjoy ribs. Until now.
I still love my husband’s ribs, but they would take HOURS in the smoker. I would have to wait ALL DAY to get a taste of that tender rib meat. That’s all changed with these Instant Pot Baby Back Pork Ribs. Now I can have that tender, fall-off-the-bone goodness in just 25 minutes! Trust me, it’s true!
How To Make Instant Pot Ribs:
The first thing you’ll want to do is remove the skin from bottom side of a rack of ribs. To do this, simply run a butter knife under the skin to loosen.
Grab a paper towel (so you can have a better grip) and pull that layer all the way off. It looks like it would be difficult, but trust me, it comes right off!
What Spices To Use for a Dry Rub Rib Recipe?
The next thing to do is just rub down the rack of ribs with my husband’s signature spice rub. It’s a mixture of sweet and spicy with a few other spices that will really make the flavor on these ribs pop!
- Brown Sugar
- Chili Powder
- Dried Parsley
- Salt
- Pepper
- Garlic Powder
- Onion Powder
- Cayenne Pepper
After you’ve rubbed both sides of the rack down, simply throw the whole rack into the pressure cooker.
Tips and Tricks for Instant Pot Ribs:
Use your rack to keep the pork out of the liquid on the bottom. If you don’t have a rack, ball up some aluminum foil and try to make a rack of some sort to elevate the pork.
My next big tip to making these Instant Pot Baby Back Pork Ribs – THE LIQUID!
- Use one cup of water
- 1/2 cup of apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 tsp liquid smoke
The liquid smoke is optional, but highly recommended. Remember how I said I loved my husband’s smoked ribs? Adding that tiny bit of liquid smoke gets that flavor in the ribs without pulling out the smoker or grill!
Once the ribs are done, you’ll let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes, then finish with a quick release. Carefully remove the ribs (you’ll want to try and grab the rack with some tongs going perpendicular to the bones) and set it on a foil-lined baking sheet.
Brush the rack down with some BBQ sauce and pop it under the broiler for just 5 minutes to get nice and bubbly.
How To Double Instant Pot Ribs Recipe:
This recipe is for about a 3 1/2 pound rack of pork ribs and easily fits into a 6 or 8 quart instant pot. If you’re looking to double the recipe, make sure both racks of ribs can fit into your pressure cooker. Double the spice ingredients, but you do not need to double the liquid. The time will only increase by about 10 minutes.
The meat is so tender that the bones will just slip right out when gently pulled.
I’m not kidding, these are the best ribs EVER!!
I made these the other day for Memorial Day weekend (with my Mexican Grilled Corn) as a test, and they came out so good that before the week was over, I was making them again!
Just think, you can have super tender baby back ribs ready to eat in less than 45 minutes from start to finish!
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Instant Pot Baby Back Pork Ribs
Ingredients
- 3 lb baby back pork ribs
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 tbsp chili powder
- 2 tsp dried parsley
- 1 tsp salt, pepper, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 tsp liquid smoke, optional
- 1/2 cup bbq sauce
Instructions
- Remove the lining from the bottom side of the ribs by running a butter knife under the skin and then using a paper towel to grip and remove completely.
- Combine the brown sugar, chili powder, parsley, salt, pepper, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder and cayenne pepper in a small dish and rub all over the ribs.
- Place the rack in your pressure cooker and place the ribs inside the pot, standing on their side, wrapping around the inside of the pot. Pour in the water, apple cider and liquid smoke (if using), being careful to not wash off any of the seasonings.
- Secure the lid, making sure the vent is closed. Press the Meat button and set to 25 minutes. Let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes, then quick release the rest of the way.
- Carefully remove the ribs from the pressure cooker and set on a foil lined baking sheet. Brush down with your favorite BBQ sauce, and pop under the broiler for 5 minutes, but keep an eye on it so it doesn't burn (some ovens are more hot than others). Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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For this step, “Let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes, then quick release the rest of the way.” is that at the beginning when some of the steam is releasing or at the end? Sorry new to the instant pot thing.
Basically the timer will go off and you’ll let the counter on the Instant Pot go for another 10 minutes (do not turn off the Instant Pot, do not open the valve, just let it sit there for another 10 minutes). Once 10 minutes is up, then you will open the pressure release valve and release the remaining pressure.
Can you cook these in the oven? I don’t have a pressure cooker.
Thank you for sharing! My family loved the ribs!
HI, Shawn, Where can I find that rack with handles that you have in your instant pot?
Came with the IP….
How long does it take to come to pressure? Not sure I have enough time tonight.
You should allow for at least 10 minutes, but mine usually comes to pressure a little quicker than that. Total time with coming to pressure, cooking and natural release, plus broiling should be no more than 45 minutes!
I am cooking these right now and mine took 35 min to come to pressure! It seems like my pot takes too long. The valve is in the right spot and the seal is good. Not sure why it takes so long. I’m new to IP but every recipe I’ve tried takes no less than 15 min to pressurize.
35 minutes is a LONG time for this recipe to come to pressure. I would double check that your seal is locked and ring is fitting snug. If your IP is constantly taking that long to come to pressure it might be an issue with the pot’s heating element.
Oh my! These ribs turned out awesome…but I stepped it up just a tad…finishing off 1 rack of ribs off in the smoker for 1 hr at 120 degrees. Added a nice smokey flavor on top of the juicy meat.
I just purchased an 8 quart instant pot which says to use at least 3 cups of liquid in order to build enough pressure to begin the cooking process. Did you cook these in a 6 or 8 quart IP? If 8, did it reach pressure even though there’s only about 1.5 cups of liquid?
I can’t find liquid smoke in my area
Any substitute suggestions?
should be able to find at any market, even walmart has it!
Jan you can buy the smoked paprika and it would give that smokey flavor…….Blessings, CindyN.
You can buy smoked paprika at the grocery store in the spice aisle.
I was actually looking for comments wondering if anyone had tried smoked paprika! Did you try it?
I followed your recipe to a “T” but when I pressed the meat button and set the time for 25min, it never transitioned over to the countdown. After almost 10min, the IP beeped and said “burn.” What the!? So I hit cancel and did the QR to find out what went wrong. Once I was able to, I opened the lid to find nothing wrong with the meat. So I closed it up again and reset it all. It finally set right and began counting down. Any ideas?
How spicy are these ribs?
My kids don’t like a lot of spice, so I left the cayenne out. They were still delicious! I may try 1 rack with and 1 without next time to see if there is a huge difference.
Could you use spare ribs instead of baby back ribs?
I am wondering the same thing. I plan on trying.
I have an electric pressure cooker but it’s not an instant pot. I assume it would still be 25 minutes with 10 minute natural release?
These were great!! Impressed my BIL who is a griller; couldn’t believe how tender!! Thanks!
If I want to cook two racks at the same time do I increase cooking time ?
I would increase it by just 5 to 10 minutes!
I just made this recipe and it turned out fabulous! I doubled but did not increase the time. They were perfect!
I did two racks tonight and 25 minutes was fine.
Could you use frozen ribs. And how would you adjust cooking time & recipe?
You could, but they’d need to thaw a little so you could bend them. Also, the rub may not stick very well.
I am new to this. I have a 6 quart IP. Will this work in a 6 quart?
I made them yesterday in my 6 quart IP and they turned out perfectly.
These were the best ribs ever! The IP never ceases to amaze me. Thanks for sharing this amazing recipe which we enjoyed while watching the Eagles win!!
So glad you enjoyed them!
Made this recipe tonight for my family, and it was Awesome! Meat was falling off the bone! Thanks for sharing!
Nice!
Question. Recipe said “make sure the vent is sealed” so turn to “venting” or “sealing” ?
Sealing.
This is awesome. Love the recipe and the taste (Y)
So glad you enjoyed it John!
Cooked 1-1/2 racks tonight for 25 minutes. Came out great, but the flavor didn’t compare to a smoker. I prefer just rub, no sauce. The condensation from the pressure cooking washed most of the rub off the meat. Had to use sauce in order to add some flavor to the meat. Using the IP for ribs is good for the winter, but when it’s warm, I’ll be using my smoker. Thanks.
New to the Instant Pot. Can’t wait to try these!
I made these tonight (On a work night!) and they were absolutely delicious!! I was serving 5 so I made two racks of ribs. I doubled the rub recipe and kept everything else the same. I added 4 minutes to the cook time on the meat preset. OMG, this is a keeper! I’ll be making this more often than I probably should. I just got my Instant Pot for Christmas, so have only had it two weeks and it’s my new go to cooking method. Thanks for this delicious, easy recipe!
Do you think the recipe will work from frozen state? To me, that’s the beauty of the IP, not having to “plan ahead & thaw” meat ahead of time.
Looks amazing but you may want to use a different pressure cooker. There are lawsuits pending from people being burned allegedly from failure of the safety mechanisms on their InstaPot.
pressurecookerlawsuit dot org
I used 2 racks of ribs. Followed recipe exactly. Did not increase time and they were perfectly tender. We didn’t care for the rub recipe so next time I’ll use my own. First time we were able to have ribs for dinner on a weeknight! Thanks!
What did you not like about the rub?
Oh my goodness! These ribs are awesome. This was my first “major” IP attempt. Easy to make and hubby approved . Thank you for a tasty and simple recipe.
Can I use regular pork ribs? Can I do two slabs of regular ribs? Will I need to increase the any of the ingredients and liquid? I’m so ready to try this recipe.
Can we use something other than vinegar with the other liquids? Any suggestions? Also, can we use beef ribs instead of pork?
Yes! You can use regular apple juice, chicken broth, beef broth or just more water. It’s up to you!
Thanks for this recipe, it turned out great!
Great! So glad you enjoyed it Debi!
This was my first try with the Instant Pot and the ribs were awesome!
Yay! So glad you liked them!
I appear to be in the minority here, but I found this recipe very disappointing. Boiling ribs in the barbecue world is pretty much considered a no no, as the water leaches out most of the flavor from the meat. I was hoping things would be different in the Insta pot, but no such luck. My ribs did not have nearly the flavor that they do win on the smoker, and I think 25 minutes is a little too long as the meat was really pulling away from the bone and clearly overcooked. So overall, over cooked meat that was lacking in flavor, will not be doing this one again. Sous vide, on the other hand, takes a day to cook, but gives much better results as the ribs are not simmering/steaming in water
Hmm… so the meat was too tender in 25 minutes? Sounds like a good problem to have if you ask me! 😉
would ribs be too tall for the ip mini?
I haven’t used the IP mini yet, so I’m not sure.
We made these tonight and they were fabulous. I used the pressure cooker recipe instead of the meat option since I knew how long to cook them for. It’s only the 2nd thing I’ve cooked in my instant pot and my husband, toddlers and I all loved them! Will definitely make again!
Nice! So glad you enjoyed it Meg!
In case you’re wondering, the Meat setting automatically sets the pressure to High. Using the Pressure setting, you might have to adjust the Pressure setting to High. That’s the only difference; you could use either as long as the Pressure is High. I usually use Pressure, too. 🙂
Can you use the pot in pot for ribs and a vegetable
I think 25 minutes on high pressure would cook any vegetable too long. You might be able to do potatoes though?
I don’t set mine for that long. I do 16 minutes, and put three whole potatoes on a rack in the center of the ribs. Perfect ribs and “baked potatoes”.
I made them for my family tonight. Everyone loved them. I do love ribs in the smoker, but the winter weather doesn’t quite allow for that when your in a deep freeze. These were quick, easy & tasted delicious. Thanks for the recipe.
Awesome! We love smoked ribs too, but man, this recipe is so quick and tastes just as good, it’s hard to wait 8 hours for smoked ribs anymore! haha!
How long would you suggest to cook them if you want them tender but with a little chew – so not quite fall off the bone?
Maybe 20 minutes?
Ribs were not as tender as we would like but we ate them. Not bad, still learning
I’m learning that the amount of time it takes to get the meat to fall off the bone is dependent on the weight of the meat. If your ribs were larger, it would have needed more time.
So you use the meat button not the pressure cook button?? This is only the second thing I’ve cooked in my instant pot. I don’t know how the two settings differ. Thank you. Can’t wait to see how they turn out tonight
Yes, use the meat setting.
Great looking recipe. Looks totally easy. Hope your husband doesn’t mind you sharing his rub recipe. One thing I would recommend- don’t use the liquid smoke. It has ingredients that are potentially carcinogenic.
I’ve never heard that about liquid smoke before! I’ll have to look into it. Thanks for the heads up!