Instant Pot Country Style Ribs are tender and so flavorful! They’re coated in a dry rub and smothered in BBQ sauce to make them finger licking. The Instant Pot makes boneless pork ribs so quick and easy to cook – perfect for the days you’re craving BBQ but don’t have tons of time.
Instant Pot Country Style Ribs (Instant Pot Boneless Pork Ribs)
These Instant Pot Country Style Ribs are incredible! They’re so juicy, tender, and full of flavor.
I coated them in my favorite homemade rub for ribs – the flavors from the chili, cumin, brown sugar, and just a little bit of crushed red pepper flakes are so delicious.
Then it’s all coated in a BBQ sauce. The ribs are brushed with half of the sauce and caramelized under the broiler, before coating the ribs in the rest of the sauce. The combination of flavors really makes the famous sticky finger rib experience!
Ingredients
Country Style Ribs: I like to use boneless country style ribs for this recipe. The trick is to make sure you’re using ones that are cut small enough. That helps them become tender in a short amount of time in the pressure cooker. The ones I used were 1 1/4 – 1 1/2 inches thick.
Spices and Herbs: A combination of brown sugar, chili powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, cumin, garlic powder, fine sea salt, crushed red pepper flakes, and ground black pepper makes the best homemade dry rub to season pork loin shoulder ribs.
Feel free to add a little more or less of each ingredient based off of your taste preferences.
Broth: You need to have some liquid in the bottom of the Instant Pot to cook meat. I like using beef broth because it infuses the boneless pork ribs with additional flavor.
You could swap this with chicken broth if that’s what you have on hand (you could even use water if you’re really in a pinch).
Worcestershire Sauce: Worcestershire sauce adds an umami flavor that really elevates these ribs. I love the addition of it and would definitely recommend using it if you have some!
If you don’t have Worcestershire sauce, I’d recommend substituting it with soy sauce and a bit of apple cider vinegar (the combination of the two will add some of the umami, savory, and tangy flavors that Worcestershire sauce is known for).
BBQ Sauce: I recommend using your favorite BBQ sauce for this recipe. I like using a smoky BBQ sauce. I like that it’s not too sweet and it adds a smoky flavor without having to use liquid smoke. If you tend to like sweeter BBQ sauces though, feel free to use that instead.
If you don’t have any BBQ sauce on hand, try using teriyaki sauce. The flavor will be different, but still so delicious!
How To Make Country Style Ribs In The Instant Pot
Start by mixing together the dry rub ingredients in a small bowl. (See the recipe card below for the full written instructions.)
Coat the ribs on both sides with the dry rub. Be sure to press the rub into the meat so that it will stick while the meat cooks.
Place the trivet in the bottom of your Instant Pot stainless steel inner pot. Add the beef broth, then add the seasoned boneless pork ribs on top. Do your best to space them as evenly you can across the bottom so that they cook evenly (don’t stack them in a tall mound in the middle).
Close the lid, and set the pressure release valve to the “seal” position. Cook the ribs, then allow the pressure to naturally release from the pressure cooker before carefully moving the pressure release valve to the “vent” position. Once the pressure has fully released, carefully remove the lid.
Spread the cooked ribs out on a baking sheet, and use a basting brush to coat the ribs with half of the BBQ sauce. Broil the ribs until the sauce is caramelized.
After broiling the ribs, carefully remove them from the oven and brush them with the remaining BBQ sauce. Serve and enjoy! See the recipe card below for the full printable instructions, including ingredient amounts, cooking times, and helpful tips, etc.
How Long To Cook Country Style Ribs In Instant Pot
It takes 22 minutes to cook 2 pounds of country style ribs in an Instant Pot (plus the time it takes to come to pressure, natural release, and quick release).
Why Are My Ribs Tough In The Instant Pot?
If your country style ribs are tough after cooking them in the Instant Pot, that means that they weren’t cooked long enough. This is most likely to happen if you use cuts of meat that are larger than the ones shown in the pictures above. I recommend using cuts that aren’t overly large. The ones I used were 1 1/4 – 1 1/2 inches thick.
What’s The Difference Between Country Style Ribs And Regular Ribs?
Country-style ribs aren’t actually ribs! This cut of pork actually comes from the pork shoulder area of the pig. It’s a muscular part at the end of the loin that is fatty.
They got their name because the flavor and consistency of this cut of meat is similar to baby back ribs or spare ribs once they’re finished cooking. Depending on where you are, they can also be called Western ribs.
What Is A Good Side Dish With Country Style Ribs?
I love serving country style ribs with mac and cheese (try our popular BEST Kraft mac and cheese recipe) or cornbread (like this 5 star Jiffy cornbread with creamed corn).
Some other popular side dishes to serve with ribs are potato salad, pasta salad, rice, gravy, sauerkraut, potatoes, cabbage, collard greens, cheese grits, coleslaw, and roasted vegetables.
Keep In Touch
I’d love to hear what you thought of this recipe in the comments or on Instagram! @KeyToMyLime #KeyToMyLime
Rib Recipes:
If you like this recipe, be sure to check out all of our pork recipes and Instant Pot recipes! Some reader favorites are:
- Crockpot Country Style Ribs
- Oven Baked Boneless Pork Ribs
- Air Fryer Country Style Ribs
- Slow Cooker Carnitas
BEST Instant Pot Country Style Ribs Recipe
Instant Pot Country Style Ribs are tender and so flavorful! Delicious boneless pork ribs are coated in a dry rub and smothered in BBQ sauce.
Ingredients
Dry Rub:
- 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder*
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Country Style Ribs:
- 2 pounds Country Style Ribs*
- 3/4 cup beef broth
- 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 cup BBQ sauce (divided, I used a smoky BBQ sauce)
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix the dry rub ingredients together.
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and set it to the side.
- Sprinkle the dry rub over both sides of the ribs, pressing the rub into the meat so that it sticks to the meat while it cooks.
- Pour the beef broth and Worcestershire sauce into the stainless steel inner pot of the Instant Pot. Place the trivet in the bottom of the pot.
- Place the seasoned ribs onto the trivet. Make sure to leave a little bit of space between each rib so that they’re not overlapping (if they touch a bit, that's OK).
- Close the lid and set the pressure release valve to the “seal” position. Set the Instant Pot to the “Manual” high pressure cook code (it might be called the “Pressure Cook” mode depending on the model you’re using), and set the timer for 22 minutes.
- Once the timer goes off, let the Instant Pot release naturally for 10 minutes. When the Instant Pot is almost finished with the natural pressure release, preheat the oven on the broil setting.
- After the 10 minutes of natural release, do a quick release by carefully switching the pressure release valve from “seal” to “vent” to let out the remaining pressure (be careful - the steam that comes out is hot). Once the pressure has fully released, carefully remove the lid and transfer the ribs to the baking sheet.
- Use a basting brush to coat the ribs with half of the BBQ sauce. Broil for 4 minutes to caramelize the sauce (keep an eye on the ribs while you’re broiling them to make sure they don’t burn). Remove the ribs from the oven, brush the remaining BBQ sauce onto them, and serve!
Notes
*This chili powder is a spice blend that’s sold in the US and Canada, it’s much more mild than the pure chili powder sold in the UK and other parts of the world.
Nutrition Information:
Serving Size:
1/4Amount Per Serving: Calories: 488Total Fat: 13.7gCarbohydrates: 39.5gFiber: 1.7gSugar: 31gProtein: 49g
Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.
Try the best Instant Pot country style ribs coated in a homemade dry rub and your favorite BBQ sauce!
5 thoughts on “Instant Pot Country Style Ribs Recipe”
If I double the recipe, how long does it take to cook?
Hi Cindy, I haven’t tested doubling this recipe, so I’m not sure exactly how it would turn out. In general, you don’t need to double the time on Instant Pot recipes when you double the food – it will just take longer to come to pressure, but the actual pressure cook time remains the same. I would definitely double check the internal temperature with an instant read meat thermometer though (since layering the meat to fit more may change things a bit). Make sure that the doubled ingredients don’t go past the “Max” line, and do your best to spread the ribs out (rather than piling them too high in the center) to make sure they cook evenly. Hope that helps! -Alexa
I used this recipe for 7 lbs of boneless pork ribs for Christmas dinner last night. My parents RAVED about them. I added minced vidalia onions to the BBQ sauce glaze prior to the broiling and it was heavenly.
Excellent recipe, easy to follow, fantastic results. Thank you for putting this recipe out there!
I found the spice mix to be plentiful for double the ribs. I even added some to roast my vegetables and it was delicious. This was a very flavorful recipe.
I was so happy with the result of I had2 lbs. of large ribs so I cut them in half, so tasty. Thank you.