Delicious, saucy, fall-off-the-bone-tender ribs in one hour? If I hadn’t made them myself, I would not have believed it but, YES!
I was not an early adopter of the Instant Pot (I clung stubbornly to my Le Creuset Dutch Oven and slow-cooker), but it has earned a place in my kitchen, especially after tasting these Easy Instant Pot Sticky Ribs. Ribs are the proclaimed favorite food of at least one of my children and they are always a big hit at our house. While I love the slow cooking in general and the slow-smoky flavor of grilled ribs, I don’t always have the time to dedicate to the task, and this is where pressure cooking saves the day! These Sticky Ribs can be on the table in an hour and your family will definitely ask for seconds.
Which type of ribs should I buy?
For this recipe, I used our local favorite, St. Louis Style Ribs, which are meaty pork spare ribs. They are incredibly succulent, which makes them perfect for this recipe. Baby back ribs would be well-suited to this recipe and I’ll be trying them next!
Should I use a dry rub?
It is well worth your time to start your ribs with a dry rub before putting them in your Instant Pot; the seasonings will penetrate into the meat and give the ribs some depth of flavor. If you have 30 minutes to let the rub set it, great. If not, add it before you put the ribs in the Instant Pot for preheating; the rub will still have time to lend a hand. For this round of ribs I used white pepper, ancho chili powder, ginger, garlic salt, black pepper and kosher salt.
Sauce!
When I made these sticky ribs, I wanted to replicate a dish I’d had at a local restaurant recently that sauced their ribs with an Asian style BBQ sauce. The flavor is sweet, smoky, spicy and caramelized, a perfect complement to these meaty ribs. I’ve included the recipe below, but you can use any sauce that you love.
Method: Braise and broil
The pressure cooker will essentially braise the ribs, break down the connective tissue into delicious tenderness, and infuse the meat with moisture and flavor. No chance of tough, dry, ribs. Promise. A quick broil after saucing the ribs will give the crusty, charred texture and flavor you crave for the perfect finishing touch. Let’s get cooking!
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Easy Instant Pot Sticky Ribs
Description
Delicious, saucy, fall-off-the-bone-tender ribs in one hour? If I hadn’t made them myself, I would not have believed it but, YES!
The pressure cooker will essentially braise the ribs, break down the connective tissue into delicious tenderness, and infuse the meat with moisture and flavor. No chance of tough, dry, ribs. Promise. A quick broil after slathering with your favorite sauce will give the ribs a crusty, charred texture and flavor for the perfect finishing touch. Let’s get cooking!
Ingredients
3.5-4 pounds of spare ribs (2 racks)
3 teaspoons kosher salt
½ teaspoon ancho chili pepper
½ teaspoon garlic salt
½ teaspoon ginger
½ teaspoon white pepper
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 cup water for brine
Instructions
1. Mix together the ingredients for the dry rub.
2. Place the ribs meaty-side down on parchment/butcher paper and remove the membrane. The butcher may have done this for you already, but if not, use a knife to loosen the edge of the membrane and then grab the membrane with a paper towel and pull it off. Discard.
3. Season both sides of the ribs with the dry rub.
4. Pour the water into the Instant Pot and place the rack inside.
5. Stand the ribs upright, curled into a circle in the pot.
6. Set Instant Pot to high pressure and cook for 30 minutes.
7. Release the steam valve after 30 minutes and remove the ribs from the pot. If you don’t, the ribs may overcook and fall off the bone in the pot. Ribs will look pale after their braise but we will fix that shortly!
8. Pre-heat broiler to high.
9. Place ribs on a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. Brush both sides of the ribs with your favorite sauce.
10. Place ribs in broiler for 4-6 minutes to allow the sauce to caramelize and brown into a crisp crust. Don’t walk away from the broiler!
11. Remove from the oven, slice into individual ribs and serve. Enjoy!
Notes
For the Asian-style sauce:
¼ cup Mirin
½ cup Tamari (or soy sauce)
4 Tablespoons brown sugar
2 Tablespoons honey
1 Tablespoon rice vinegar
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
2 garlic cloves minced
Instructions for BBQ Sauce
Place all ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil.
Reduce to simmer and allow to simmer/reduce for 25 minutes. Sauce will be runny when warm but thick and sticky like molasses when cool.
