Instant Pot Boneless Pork Ribs (Country Style Shoulder Ribs). Boneless "ribs" from the pressure cooker in a little over an hour. This recipe is so simple it is barely a recipe; it is more of a technique. Sprinkle the boneless ribs (cut from the pork shoulder) with barbecue rub, put them in the Instant Pot with ½ cup of water, and drizzle them with ½ cup of barbecue sauce. Pressure cook for 45 minutes, then run them under the broiler to brown a little, and you have tender, falling apart boneless ribs.
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Before we get started, I have to add a disclaimer. I know this isn't Real Barbecue. It isn't cooked with smoke or using live fire. Think of this as barbecue sauce braised pork, and go here for authentic, low and slow barbecue. OK? OK. (I'm hoping to head off blistering comments from barbecue fanatics. Wish me luck.)
If I'm disclaiming this recipe already, why am I sharing it? It's one of my go-to "It's a busy Thursday, and I need a dinner with five minutes of effort" recipes. With minimal effort, I get tasty pork, "slow" cooked in a little over an hour in the pressure cooker.
These pork strips are great on their own - I eat them like boneless ribs - but my kids like to shred them and pile them on hamburger buns to make a fantastic pork sandwich.
INGREDIENTS
- 3 pounds pork shoulder ribs (pork shoulder cut into 2-inch thick strips)
- 1 tablespoon barbecue rub (or 2 teaspoons of my salt-free homemade BBQ rub and 1 teaspoon of fine sea salt)
- ½ cup water
- ½ teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)
- 1 cup barbecue sauce (I use my homemade BBQ sauce, or use your favorite BBQ sauce)
How to make Instant Pot Boneless Pork Ribs
Season the ribs with BBQ Rub
Sprinkle the ribs evenly with the barbecue rub.
Everything in the pot
Pour the ½ cup water into an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker. Add the (optional) liquid smoke. Add the ribs in a loose stack, then pour ½ cup of barbecue sauce over the ribs. (Don't stir - we want the sweet barbecue sauce to float on top to keep it from burning.)
Pressure cook the ribs for 45 minutes with a natural pressure release
Lock the lid on the pressure cooker and cook at high pressure for 45 minutes in an Instant Pot or other electric pressure cooker, or for 40 minutes in a stovetop PC. (Use Manual, Pressure Cook, or Pressure Cook - custom mode in an Instant Pot). After the pressure cooking finishes, let the pressure release naturally, about 15 more minutes. (You can quick release any remaining pressure after 15 minutes.)
Serve
Unlock the lid, tilting it away from you to avoid any hot steam. Move the boneless ribs to a platter using tongs or a slotted spoon - be gentle; they will be fall-apart tender. Brush the ribs with the BBQ sauce. Serve, passing extra BBQ sauce at the table. Enjoy!
What are boneless pork ribs?
Boneless pork "ribs" are strips of pork shoulder, cut about 2 inches thick and anywhere from 4 to 8 inches long to look like rectangular "ribs". Occasionally, you'll get a bone in there, but that's a piece of the shoulder blade, not a rib. Do I care they are not actual ribs? No. I love pork shoulder, and cutting it into strips makes it perfect to pressure cook. My local grocery store sells these as "Western Ribs", and I've also seen them sold as boneless country style ribs. (You can substitute bone-in country style ribs, or pork chops cut from the pork shoulder. The cooking time remains the same).
Equipment
Tips and Tricks
- Homemade BBQ Rub and BBQ Sauce: I make my own homemade simple dry rub and barbecue sauce. My homemade rub is salt-free; if you use it, make sure to add the salt. Of course, you can use your favorite barbecue sauce or favorite barbecue rub.
- Mixing the pot liquid with BBQ sauce: My original version of this recipe was more complicated, mixing the BBQ sauce and ½ cup of the pot liquid before brushing it on the ribs at the end. I simplified the recipe, but here are the original "sauce the ribs" instructions: Ladle ½ cup of the liquid from the pot into a small bowl. (If you have time, de-fat the pot liquid in a fat separator for ten minutes, then pour ½ cup of the de-fatted liquid into a measuring cup). Stir ½ cup of barbecue sauce into the bowl with the pot liquid. Brush the BBQ sauce/pot liquid mix over the ribs, then serve.
- No pressure cooker? No problem: This is an update of my most popular crock pot recipe, Slow Cooker Pork Western Ribs for the pressure cooker. Go there to slow cook your ribs instead of pressure cooking them.
- Bone-in Ribs? If you have bone-in ribs, try my Instant Pot Baby Back Ribs, Instant Pot Spare Ribs, or Instant Pot Beef Ribs, Texas BBQ Style recipes.
What to serve with Instant Pot Boneless Ribs
I like to pretend this is a summer BBQ, so I serve these ribs with Potato Salad, Green Beans, Cole slaw, and dill pickle slices.
Print
Instant Pot Boneless Pork Ribs Recipe
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 6-8 servings 1x
Description
Instant Pot Boneless Pork Ribs (Country Style Shoulder Ribs). Boneless "ribs" from the pressure cooker in a little over an hour.
Ingredients
- 3 pounds pork shoulder ribs (pork shoulder cut into 1½- to 2-inch thick strips)
- 1 tablespoon barbecue rub (or 2 teaspoons of my salt-free homemade BBQ rub and 1 teaspoon of fine sea salt)
- ½ cup water
- ½ teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)
- 1 cup barbecue sauce (Use my homemade BBQ sauce, or your favorite BBQ sauce)
Instructions
- Season the ribs: Sprinkle the boneless pork ribs evenly with the barbecue rub.
- Everything in the pot: Pour the ½ cup water into an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker. Add the (optional) liquid smoke. Add the ribs in a loose stack, then pour ½ cup of barbecue sauce over the ribs. (Don't stir - we want the sweet barbecue sauce to float on top to keep it from burning.)
- Pressure cook the ribs for 45 minutes with a natural pressure release: Lock the lid on the pressure cooker and cook at high pressure for 45 minutes in an Instant Pot or other electric pressure cooker, or for 40 minutes in a stovetop PC. (Use Manual, Pressure Cook, or Pressure Cook - custom mode in an Instant Pot). After the pressure cooking finishes, let the pressure release naturally, about 15 more minutes. (You can quick release any remaining pressure after 15 minutes.)
- Serve: Unlock the lid, tilting it away from you to avoid any hot steam. Move the boneless ribs to a platter using tongs or a slotted spoon - be gentle; they will be fall-apart tender. Brush the ribs with the BBQ sauce. Serve, passing extra BBQ sauce at the table. Enjoy!
Notes
I make my own homemade barbecue rub and barbecue sauce. My homemade rub is salt-free; if you use a store-bought rub, and it has salt as the first or second ingredient in the ingredient list, skip the kosher salt - the rub is salty enough.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Category: Weeknight Dinner
- Method: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: American
What do you think?
Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.
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- My Instant Pot and Pressure Cooker Recipe Index
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Carolyn M Osborne
I've made this recipe twice now, and both times it's been reliable, easy, and incredibly delicious. This time I had a little extra time, so I poured out some sauce (abt 1/4 inch deep) onto a broiler pan with grid removed, and placed the "ribs" right from the Instant Pot onto the pan and turned them so they got covered. Hot broiler 3 minutes, turn, broil 3 minutes more, and Wow! The meat was succulent and very flavorful. We had it with rice and corn.
I used about 1 cup of sauce altogether to do this.
Mike, your recipes and techniques are outstanding. Thanks!
Mike Vrobel
You’re welcome! I’m glad you enjoy them.
Diane Schroeder
I just made these Western style ribs and they were very good. I used the rub mentioned in the recipe but used Sweet Baby Rays bbq sauce that I already had. I was unfamiliar with this cut of meat but they looked so good in the store, I knew I could find a recipe somewhere. I wouldn’t change a thing and the cook time was just right.
Mike Vrobel
Thank you, I'm glad it worked so well for you!
Daniel Cold
I found this first on the instapot site but I just google you now because I remember you and some recipes.
That being said I make your rub for the ribs all the time and I'm about to make the ribs again in my instapot
Funny thing my wife won't use my electric pressure cooker because she is old school...oh well.
I wanted to comment because no one has posted lately...really long time.
Anyway it's really good and I finish them off on the grill. Good stuff.