Spare ribs was the second thing that I learned to make in the Instant Pot.
The first thing that I made was a 4 pound pork shoulder and it was absolutely delicious and I repeated that a few times. I had watched several videos showing people making spare ribs and I finally decided to make them.
Since then I have made them countless times and we (as in my husband and I) are now adjusting the pressure cooker time to get them cooked to the point that they are done and tender but stay on the bone enough to transfer them to the grill without them just falling off the bone.
Just a quick point about adjusting time when using the Instant Pot. I first was adjusting the time in 10 minute or more increments. That does not work very well and I've had a few times where the ribs were not done. Since then our adjustments have been in one to 2 minute increments. We are getting it just about right with 2 racks of ribs. this time can change if you are getting baby back ribs or Louisiana style ribs or just standard trimmed spare ribs. Time will also be different if you are cutting the ribs apart individually or cooking them in slabs.
Louisianna Ribs
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup Beef or chicken broth
- 2 Tablespoons Sage
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Fresh Ground Black Pepper
- 2 cloves Crushed garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon Dry mustard
- 2 Racks Louisianna Style Spare Ribs
Instructions
- Rinse ribs and cut them apart between the rib bones and separate.
- Keep the rack that comes with the unit in the bottom of the pot. Stack the ribs standing on end. Place the larger meatier side of the rib toward the bottom of the pot.
- I filled the pot completely then I add broth, sage, salt, pepper, garlic, cinnamon, dry mustard.I had two racks of ribs and so I really filled up the pot. This is too full so I have to take a few out but I did not get a picture of that. Make sure the food is not higher then the rim of the pot.
- Plug in the unit, place the lid on the unit and rotate the lid to the closed and locked position.
- Then close the steam vent by rotating it clockwise to the pressure lock.
- Press the Meat/Stew button and then adjust the time to 60 minutes for two racks. I suggest 35 minutes if you are cooking 1 rack. (Note: depending on your altitude you may have to adjust the time in the future but start with the above for your first time) Once the time is set if you do not touch the controls for 10 seconds the display will change to "On".
- 7. As the liquid heats and steams the pressure will build up in the pot and eventually the silver plug will engage and plug the pot. This is when the cooking starts and the timer will change from on and begin counting down from your setting.
- Wait for the timer to count down completely and DO NOT ATTEMPT to remove the lid of open the steam vent during the cooking process.
- Once the timer sounds, the internal temperature of the pot will automatically go to low. You can release the steam or you can leave the ribs in the pot and the steam will slowly release as the temperature cools inside the pot. I chose to release the steam by moving the steam vent to the Venting position. If you are a little afraid to do this use a utensil or put on a hot mitt to release the steam vent.
- Once the silver plug drops you can then remove the lid by rotating counter clockwise and then remove the lid from the pot. Take care to not lean over the pot and to keep you hands clear because the food inside is hot and there is still a lot of steam.
- This is what the ribs look like in the pot once they are cooked. They are a little pale and need to have some barbeque sauce brushed on them.
- You can place them on the grill, like I did, or you can place them on a cookie sheet and put them under the broiler in the oven for about 5 minutes. Just long enough to firm up the sauce and get a little carmelizing on them.
