The Day the Instant Pot Changed My Life: Pork Ribs

I did it! I jumped on the Instant Pot craze (repeat, Instant Pot, not InstaPot). Walmart had an amazing Black Friday sale: $48.88 for an 8 qt Lux, so I figured, why not? The second worst that can happen is it becomes another kitchen appliance that collects dust before I sell it on the Facebook Marketplace (if anyone needs a juicer, do I have a deal for you!). The first worst, of course, is that I blow up my house. 

Yesterday, I opened the box and despite what I believe were some instructional shortcomings on behalf of the writers of the Instant Pot manual, I survived the pressure test. Praise be.

Step one, of course, saw me spending hours delving through my Facebook groups, and Pinterest looking for what I hope is the perfect recipe - and of course finding dozens of recipes for other things, as well as some paintings to try, dog toys to buy, and a couple Bible verses to keep me encouraged. I’ve been working on this step since the day I sent the order for the Pot (you can safely assume anytime from here forward that anytime I refer to “the Pot,” that I am speaking of the Instant Pot and not, the recently legalized in Canada, marijuana).

To be honest, I selected a recipe which I thought would be great and purchased all of my ingredients on a shopping trip the other day. The ingredients needed consisted of pork ribs. Everything else I had on hand. It wasn’t until this morning, after rereading this recipe, that it occurred to me that there had to be better out there.

And then I found it – Instant Pot Baby Back Ribs, courtesy of the recipe blog “I Wash You Dry." It required a second trip to the grocery store, but after completing a thorough cost benefit analysis - my friendly neighbourhood Walker’s IGA is only about a 60 second drive away, the temperature had risen from -25°C to a pleasant 1°C, and anything worth doing is worth doing right – I decide it’s worth it and head to the store for the missing ingredients.

The first step in the recipe is to remove the skin from bottom side of the rack of ribs, a task which is supposed to be simple, but for some reason I struggle with. Honestly, until I read this recipe I had no idea that this was a step that a person was supposed to do, and I’ve made ribs dozens of times (typically my grandma’s sweet and sour ribs, but that’s a topic for another day). Admittedly, I didn’t think the risk was worth the reward. It took forever to remove what I did, and ain’t nobody got time for that. If there’s anything these past 10 months have taught me, it’s that life is just too short for some things. However, since I did get the silverskin off about half, we’ll find out if this is a step I should take moving forward or not.

Next comes the dry rub. 1/4 cup brown sugar (a loose quarter cup because the recipe didn’t specify that it was to be firmly packed, and let’s be honest, less sugar is better, especially the second week of January when resolutions are strong), 1 teaspoon each salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder (I am fortunate enough to have one of the best garlic suppliers in the world, hailing from Lillooet, BC - seriously worth the drive to the summer Friday farmer's market), 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (and a dash extra for good measure), and 2 tablespoons chili powder. I added some smoked paprika because I had it in the cupboard and it just seemed like flavour that would work. I did omit the dried parsley and cumin. Spices are expensive, and I already had to buy onion powder and cayenne because I had ran out previously. Besides, I’ve always been of the opinion that the only parsley worth using is fresh parsley, otherwise it’s just decoration, and even fresh, most of the time it’s just to pretty it up. And cumin, who even knows what that is? I didn’t buy that on principle. There is a list of spices that I have never in my life owned or used, and cumin is one of them. If I’ve made it nearly 39 years without cumin, one more meal will be just fine. Maybe some time in the future I’ll splurge and get me some cumin, but today is not that day. "Nope, not today."

I’m a big believer in Costco sized and club size packs, even though there’s typically only two people that I cook for, myself and Dear Husband. Jumbo size can save tons of money and time. As well, one of my first ever volunteer jobs was at a summer Bible camp for 100+ kids, counsellors and staff every week. Not only did this camp job reward me with some of the best experiences of my entire life (Lake of the Trees Bible Camp, look it up, I encourage any BC kid to go), but it also taught me how to cook for the masses, a skill that stubbornly remains all these years later. It’s why I bought the 8 qt Instant Pot - because I know full well that any meal I plan for two ends up a meal for at least 12, or alternatively, days and days of leftovers. I have learned to embrace this. At the very least, it means I only have to cook every two days. And I have really learned to appreciate having ready-to-heat meals in the freezer.

What this means for now is that I have more than twice the amount of ribs that I need for today’s recipe, and I made too much dry rub. No problem. I rub down that second rack of pork deliciousness and grab my handy FoodSaver vacuum sealer. This is THE kitchen gadget for anyone who freezer cooks or packages their own wild game. The second rack of ribs, after being coated with the dry rub and vacuum sealed, will live in my freezer for a few weeks, until it’s time to have ribs again, with the added bonus that they have been essentially marinated and I can skip all the preparatory steps next time.

Back to the task at hand, I measure out the required water, and the two ingredients that caused me to go to the store – apple cider vinegar and liquid smoke. These are the main ingredients the first recipe I chose was missing. Apple cider vinegar will help to tenderize the meat, and both will add additional flavour. I was going to forgo the liquid smoke, another ingredient I never bothered to buy before today, always being partial to the actual grill, but it’s January, it's cold, and it was cheap enough, so I decided to try it.

It’s at this point where Dear Husband gets called into work. He’s seen the ribs in the fridge, he’s heard me talk about the supposed glory of the Instant Pot. Off he goes, mouth-watering, to earn the income that allows me to purchase things like liquid smoke, and even cumin if I ever decided. Don’t worry, he’ll be home late tonight and a plate full of ribs will be waiting.

Into the Pot goes the liquid ingredients, and I wrap the ribs around the Pot and set on the trivet. Close the lid, lock into place, press “meat” on the Pot, set for 25 minutes and pray that this doesn’t end with the house exploding.

And this is where the magic happens…. I don’t know all the science as to what goes on in the Pot. All I know is that whatever it does, it does it fast, and as it turns out, well.

25 minutes goes past, and then I let the Pot do a natural release for 10 minutes, after which I do a quick release (and lived to tell about it). There was some minor panic when the red float valve didn’t pop up, but I said a little prayer and it all worked out for the best.

These ribs were fall off the bone perfect already! I can tell because they were literally falling off the bone.

Back to the recipe…. The writer says to place the ribs on a foil lined baking sheet, brush with barbecue sauce of choice and broil for 5 minutes. This is all well and good, but I will pause to mention the glorious invention of parchment paper. I don’t remember who told me, not all that long ago, that once I tried parchment I’d never go back to foil, but they were 100% correct and a very wise person indeed! Tin foil has its place in the world, but lining pans is not it!

5 minutes under broil, served with some Taylor Buffalo Blue chopped salad that I found at Costco the other day, and a glass of wine (cause why not?). Don’t ask me if this wine pairs well, I’m no connoisseur, but I am a fan of sweet white wines like this Palm Cove Moscato and Rieslings like Relax (these are my two favourites, if you’re ever looking for an impersonal gift for me, wink wink).

Sweet Baby Ray these ribs are delicious! Never again will I spend hours boiling and seasoning and baking, etc. Today will henceforth be known as the day the Instant Pot changed my life. I guess I better find some more recipes to cook in this thing because it’s not going anywhere.