These Instant Pot BBQ Ribs are the perfect recipe to make to break in your Instant Pot! They are so easy to make and taste like they've been slow-roasting for hours. Tender, fall-off-the-bone perfection! 
Tender, smoked BBQ ribs that have been bathed in smoke for hours are pretty magical. Heck, I believe most all slow-smoked meats should have their place in heaven! But unless you own a BBQ restaurant, are independently wealthy, don't have children, or have a blessed BBQ pitmaster as a neighbor that will share with you, ain't nobody got time for smoking your own bbq ribs!
Am I right?
The beauty of Instant Pot Ribs
This is where the Instant Pot comes in. If you’re not familiar, an Instant Pot is an electric pressure cooker that doubles as a slow cooker, rice and yogurt maker, and more. There’s so much you can do with it! There are lots of brands out there that make similar electric pressure cookers, but the Instant Pot is what I have and love with a big capital "L."
Pressure cookers work by cooking food under intense pressure, so they cook incredibly fast and do a great job of breaking down the collagen and connective tissue in meats that typically take hours to break down.
But with the pressure cooker, making tender, fall-off-the-bone Instant Pot Ribs takes about one hour start to finish. Take a look!
Cooking tips for these Instant Pot BBQ Ribs
- Make sure to remove the membrane or silver skin on the back of the baby back or spare ribs before cooking. During cooking, this membrane forms a thick, leathery skin that is less than desirable and prevents the flavors from penetrating into the meat fully.
- Root beer or Beer? Your choice! Both obviously yield different flavors, but are equally delicious!
- My recipe below includes a super simple spice rub for the bbq ribs that is phenomenal but feel free to use your favorite homemade or store-bought dry rub. The process of cooking is the same no matter what seasoning you choose to use.
These Instant Pot Ribs are so tender and cooking them in either beer, or root beer gives them just a little extra punch of flavor.
Once the ribs come out of the Instant Pot, I like to put them on a cookie sheet, brush my favorite BBQ sauce on them, and put them under the broiler for a few minutes. Doing this gives the sauce a chance to stick to the ribs and caramelize a bit, just like they were finished off on the grill!
Want more easy BBQ recipes?
Tools Used in making Instant Pot BBQ Ribs
- The Instant Pot! : This is the model that I have and LOVE. It’s been with me for over a year, and I’ve definitely put it through the ringer, but still works like new! It’s changed the dinnertime routine at our house and helps me make meals in under an hour that used to take HOURS!
- OXO Stainless Steel Tongs: These tongs take a beating in my kitchen. They go from the grill for flipping meats to the salad bowl for tossing with very little complaint. They are built like a tank and have silicone grips that make them super easy to use, even with my very small hands.
Instant Pot BBQ Ribs
Ingredients
- 1 rack pork baby back ribs
- ¼ cup smoked paprika
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon garlic salt
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 11 ounces beer or root beer *See Notes*
- 1 cup BBQ Sauce
Instructions
- Remove ribs from packaging and dry well with paper towels. Cut into sections of 3 ribs and set aside.
- In a small bowl whisk together smoked paprika, sugar, garlic salt, and onion powder. Sprinkle all of the seasoning over the ribs and rub in with fingertips.
- Place ribs into your Instant Pot and pour entire bottle of beer or root beer over the ribs. Close lid and set the pot to cook for 25 minutes at high pressure.
- Preheat oven to Broil on high
- When cooking time is up, allow pot to naturally release pressure most of the way (about 10 minutes) and then quick-release the rest.
- Remove ribs from pot and place on a baking sheet. Brush each piece with your favorite BBQ Sauce and place under the broiler until sauce is bubbly and starting to brown and caramelize-- about 5 minutes. Just watch them closely as things go fast under the broiler!
- Remove from oven and serve.
Video
Chef's Notes:
- Baby Back, St. Louis Style, and Pork Spare ribs will all work for this recipe. I used Baby Back for the video and pictures.
- Both Beer and Root Beer lend great flavor to the finished ribs-- so use what you have/want to! The end flavor will obviously be different but both are phenomenal.
Nutrition Facts
Mohit says
My Instant Pot got delivered a couple of days ago and this is the first thing I tried making in it. A great Share!
eatfrysmith says
Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe, I have all the ingredients and now I will start to cook right away
Judith Fertig says
Thanks for sharing this great recipe! I going to try it by this weekend.
Sherry L says
First time user of an Instapot and dove in and made these ribs tonight in it, OMG, I hate ribs as a normal, but in like 30 mins (including the broiling for 5 mins in the oven) they were fall off the bones delish.
Very very happy so far
? Definitely a keeper
Wendy says
This was my first recipe using my new instant pot. I followed it exactly and they turned out amazing! My family LOVED these ribs. Thank you!!! I will be saving this one for sure!!!
Magge says
Has anyone used diet root beer and sugar free barbecue sauce??
Barbara says
I made these ribs as directed and they came out just as described in the recipe! I am new to Instant Pot, so this was the second dish I made! They really were "fall off the bone" tender and flavorful. I used root beer. The only recommendation I would have is for those that like a little heat with their ribs to add a little black pepper or cayenne pepper to the spice mix. Another spice to add some additional flavor is ground mustard. I think any cola would also work well in this recipe.
Marcy says
Can you make these by just using barbecue sauce in the instapot
Cody says
I've done ribs in the instapot alone before, and I felt that they were a bit too tender. The taste was great, but the meat was a bit too soft for my taste. I think most recipes call for some oven time for a reason...
Heather Cheney says
No, BBQ sauce doesn't have the water content to bring the Instant Pot up to pressure.
Angie says
Just tried these and they came out great!! I did use brown sugar instead of white sugar, and I used Dr Pepper instead of root beer – because that’s what I had my house LOL and everything came out great. They’re so tender, and so good. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe!
Dee says
What do I do with all that wonderful leftover juice from the beer?
Heather Cheney says
You could definitely make a homemade bbq sauce with it!
Leah says
Just made these for my husband for Father’s Day. I was nervous because I’ve never made ribs AND I’m new to using the Instant Pot. We ALL loved them, including my 13 year old daughter! Thanks for sharing!
Jeanne says
First time making ribs of any kind-turned out awesome!!!!!!