Instant Pot Mango Chipotle Ribs

It’s been a while since I’ve professed my love for the Instant Pot, so I thought I’d give a little sugar to my favorite kitchen appliance. It can do anything, and this recipe proves it. Turns out this handy dandy gizmo is perfect for making fall off the bone, tender as can be, ribs- in 30 minutes. Yes, 30 minutes. Totally beats the hours it takes to make them otherwise, and you only have to turn your oven on for 10 minutes, TOPS. It’s what I call easy, sweat free, summer weeknight cooking, and I am going to make these all summer long.

My ribs get a good rubdown with a smoky spice blend made from lots of ground chilis, smoked paprika, and plenty of cumin and garlic. A generous amount of salt and brown sugar act as a dry brine keeping the meat juicy and super flavorful. Once they’ve gotten the Instant Pot spa treatment, slather them up in BBQ sauce. Fresh mango and chipotle peppers give this sauce an extra sweet and spicy kick that’s finger licking good, so get your Wet-Naps ready, friends, things are gonna get sticky!

Bones

Instant Pot Mango Chipotle Ribs

Instant Pot Mango Chipotle Ribs

Ingredients:

2 racks baby back ribs, approximately 2.5 lbs each

3 Tbsp + 1 tsp kosher salt

2 tsp ground coriander

2 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp ancho chili powder

1 tsp chipotle chili powder

1 tsp guajillo chili powder

1 Tbsp + 1 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp garlic powder

2 Tbsp brown sugar

1 Tbsp avocado oil

1 shallot, minced

1/2 C canned tomato sauce

1 1/2 C diced mango

1 chipotle pepper, canned in adobo

1/2 C apple cider vinegar

Remove membrane from the back of the ribs. Make dry rub for the ribs by combining 3 Tbsp kosher salt, ground coriander, smoked paprika, ancho chili powder, chipotle chili powder, guajillo chili powder, 1 Tbsp ground cumin, garlic powder, and brown sugar in a small bowl. Place ribs on a large baking sheet and sprinkle both sides of the ribs with the dry rub, using half the spice mixture for each rack. Massage dry rub onto the meat and then cover with plastic wrap and marinate in the refrigerator for 2 hours.

While the ribs are marinating, make the BBQ sauce. In a medium sized sauce pan, add avocado oil and shallot. Sauté over medium heat until softened and translucent. Add tomato sauce, mango, chipotle pepper, 1 tsp kosher salt, and 1 tsp ground cumin. Simmer over medium low for 20 minutes. Using a stick blender or a regular blender, blend sauce until smooth. Adjust seasoning with salt as needed.

In your instant pot, place the metal rack accessory in the bottom of the pot. Wrap each rack of ribs around the perimeter of the pot. Add apple cider vinegar to the pot. Secure the lid and make sure valve is set to sealing. Using the manual or pressure cook function, set timer to 30 minutes. When the time is up, quick release the pressure valve. Carefully remove ribs from pot and transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet. The meat will literally be almost falling off the bone at this point.

Brush each rack of ribs generously with mango chipotle BBQ sauce. Broil ribs on high for 5-10 minutes, or until the sauce begins to caramelize.