What Exactly Are Country Style Ribs?
Oh boy! So you’ve not had country style ribs yet? Well let me tell you, you’re in for quite a treat. While not being actual ribs, they’re thick cuts from the loin/shoulder area and are wonderful for traditional BBQ pork recipes. While slow cooking is a popular method for this dish, our Instant Pot speeds things up and takes it step further by allowing us to sear the pork first, thus creating a flavor profile that is just too good to be true.
Selecting Country Style Ribs
One of the things I love the most about country style ribs (aside from how awesome they are), is that they’re also very affordable and readily available. You will most often find them boneless, cut into long chunks which resemble, well, ribs. Sometimes you will find them bone-in, which is just fine. I like to select country style ribs with some good marbling throughout the meat. This helps make them more tender and juicy.
Start with Classic BBQ Seasoning Rub
Good pork BBQ starts with the perfect seasoning rub. Our Best Damn rub is a combination of brown sugar, salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika and ground mustard. Together, these ingredients bring out the sweet flavors of the pork with the savory elements all in one robust combination. One of the things I love most about this rub is that the ingredients are so easy to find! You probably already have them in your pantry or spice rack. Each adds a unique element and works with the other ingredients to bring out the very best for our country ribs.
Make Seasoning Easy with Less to Clean Up!
Let’s be honest, having a whole lot of dishes to wash after cooking is never fun. And with the Instant Pot being so awesome, we can use it to both sear the meat and pressure cook it. So why bother making more dishes dirty? While you certainly can use a large bowl to mix all the ingredients, I like to use the large, gallon sized zip-top bags. Simply place the meat in the bag, add the oil and get all the cuts will coated, then add the seasoning rub mix. Now close the top and shake, shake shake! You know the drill… get all those country ribs nice and coated with our seasoning rub. And guess what? Now you have one less dish to clean. Love it!
Get a Good Sear
Being able to sear the meat first, right in the pot, is such a huge advantage over slow cooking. Again, it’s one less item we need to wash. Start by pressing the “sauté” button on the Instant Pot (use the high setting), and wait for the beep to indicate it’s reached temperature. This is important. We want the meat hitting a hot surface. Place all the meat in the pot and sear on each side for about 2 minutes each. The sugars and the surface of the pork will start to caramelize, which really adds to the flavor profile.
Deglaze the pot!
After we’ve seared all the sides of the ribs, remove them to a plate and set aside. Press “cancel” to stop the sauté process, and pour in the apple cider vinegar. Now use a wooden spoon or spatula and scrape all the stuck on bits off the bottom of the pot. This is important because leaving them stuck on can cause a burn notice. Also, all the bits are absolutely loaded with flavor! Oh my goodness I can’t even begin to describe how much they add to the flavor profile. You don’t have to pour anything out, just scrape those bits off the bottom and now you’re ready to add the remaining ingredients.
Load up and Pressure Cook
Add the seared country ribs back to the Instant Pot and pour in the chicken broth, Worcestershire and liquid smoke. Then add a sliced onion on top of everything. Secure the lid and pressure cook on high pressure for 45 minutes. After the cook time is complete, let the pressure naturally release for 15 minutes. After that, you can quick release any remaining pressure.
BBQ Sauce Time
Once the cooking and release are complete, remove the country ribs to a plate and set the Instant Pot to sauté mode again. Add the ketchup and corn starch slurry and let it reduce for about 5 minutes. Once the sauce starts to thicken, press “cancel” and the sauce will continue thickening, giving you an unbelievable, homemade BBQ sauce.
Ready to Serve
Your country ribs will be very tender and may want to fall apart. That’s totally ok! Serve them covered in our homemade BBQ sauce.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use bone-in country style ribs?
Answer: Absolutely you can! All time and ingredients will be the same.
What if I don’t have ground mustard?
Answer: Leave it out. But I highly suggest picking some up and your next trip to the supermarket.
Can I substitute for the Liquid Smoke?
Answer: Liquid Smoke is another awesome ingredient you should have on hand. But if not, you can just leave it out. You can also use smoked paprika in place of regular paprika.
Can you overcook country style ribs?
Answer: Here’s the thing, certain cuts of pork are very forgiving in the Instant Pot. Fattier cuts such as pork shoulder are the most forgiving. Country style ribs are right in the middle in terms of being lean/fatty. For best results, follow the 45 minute suggested pressure cooking time. A few more minutes won’t make a big difference, but any more and we might start to have an issue with the meat becoming very dry and brittle.
How to store leftovers?
Country style ribs are a great make-ahead meal for meal planning. Store the cooked ribs in an airtight container with some of the liquid or sauce in the refrigerator. They keep for 2-3 days. You can freeze them too. Again, store in an airtight container with some of that awesome sauce. Keep them for up to 6 months.
What’s Your Side?
A dish such as this – a traditional BBQ style favorite, goes well with so many different sides. I absolutely love our Best Damn Instant Pot Mac and Cheese with this dish. Instant Pot Garlic Parmesan Green Beans and Potatoes is an awesome combination that pairs so well with this dish. And an irresistible favorite is the Best Damn Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts. Oh my goodness they are little nuggets of pure delight!
Recipe
4.7 from 16 reviews
