How To Make Instant Pot Short Ribs

Here’s my recipe for the best EVER Instant Pot short ribs! The short ribs are cooked to perfection in so little time (compared to other cooking methods), and with very little effort! Just like my Instant Pot Lamb Shank recipe, you will end up with fall of the bone tender meat in the richest and most delicious sauce! I love how glossy and rich the braising liquid turns out, and I often thicken it to turn it into a flavorful gravy to serve over creamy mashed potatoes. Try my recipe for short ribs or use any other red meat here for the best restaurant-quality meal that you’ll make at home! If you’re looking for baby back rib recipe, then check out this Instant Pot Ribs recipe.

The Ingredients

To make this Instant Pot short rib recipe, you will need:

Beef short ribs: Go for the meatiest short ribs that come from the chuck. Look for well-marbled meat without too much fat, and for meat that is firmly attached to the bone.Mirepoix: a combination of onion, carrot, and celery.Red wine and stock: For the wine choose an inexpensive dry red wine like chianti, sherry, cabaret sauvignon, merlot, or shiraz. As for the stock you can use beef or chicken stock/broth.Garlic, tomato paste, oil, soy sauce, salt, and pepper.Bay leaves, and fresh thyme.

Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.

Prepping the Beef Ribs

There are 2 different cuts of short ribs, English cut and flanken cut. The english cut is widely available, and is what you can see in my images of this post. I prefer the English cut because they’re meatier segments that are taken from one section of the rib as opposed to the fanklen style where you get thinner stips with multiple bone segments. If you bought a plate/rack, go for English style cut by cutting in between the bones, so each piece has 1 bone. To prep the beef, start by washing the short ribs from remaining blood and bone dust and pat dry using paper towels. You need the meat to be really dry as you’ll be searing it to give it a great color and flavor when it’s caramelized. Remove the silverskin/membrane on the boney side with a towel (see baby back ribs recipe for images and tutorial). Trim any excess fat on the external surface/meaty side (not between the connective tissue) as the fat won’t render down since this is not grilling or smoking, but you can leave a little bit if desired as you will sear the meat.

How to Make The Best Instant Pot Short Ribs

Generously season the short ribs with salt and pepper, then heat oil in the Instant Pot and when it’s smoking hot brown the meat from all sides (do this in batches!). What searing does is caramelize the meat and give it a depth of flavor. Remove the meat from the pot. Cook the onions, tomato paste, and garlic in the pot until everything has softened. Switch off the SAUTE setting, and deglaze the pot with wine using a wooden spoon to scrape off any bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. These brown bits hold a TON of flavor! Add the rest of the ingredients to the pot, and put the meat back in. Pressure cook for 50 minutes (45 minutes for smaller ribs), let the steam release naturally for 15 minutes then do a quick release. Carefully remove the lid,

Common Questions

How to Serve Instant Pot Short Ribs

Braised beef short ribs are often served with creamy mashed potatoes and its braising liquid. You can also thicken the braising liquid to make a gravy. You can also serve the short ribs with creamy polenta, roasted vegetables, roasted root vegetables, or a simple side salad. If you have leftovers, you can easily turn them into delicious tacos, quesadillas, burritos, sandwiches, or fried rice!