Here by popular demand: Instant Pot Korean Short Ribs! It’s made in a jiffy and Whole30 and gluten-free, too!
Ever since the scales fell from my eyes and I became a raving Instant Pot evangelist a few years ago, readers have been asking me to convert their favorite recipes so they can be cooked in this magical device. Requests run the gamut from the simple (kalua pig!) to the impossible (fish ’n chips!). Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings, folks, but not every dish can or should be cooked under high pressure. Here’s a good rule of thumb: if you can make the dish faster and/or tastier using a different method, don’t cook it in your pressure cooker. For example, if you insist on cooking delicate fish fillets in your Instant Pot, the statistical likelihood of overcooking those pricey pieces of protein is 99.99%. For the love of cod, people: reach for parchment paper (and the technique shown in this recipe) or a frying pan (and the method demonstrated in this recipe) instead. And to the reader who asked me for an Instant Pot kabob recipe: I hate to break it to you, but a pressure cooker is crap at grilling and/or broiling meat.
That said, some recipes—particularly stews, braises, and soups—are forehead-smackingly perfect for converting into Instant Pot versions. Take this recipe, which is a super-straightforward adaptation of my classic Slow Cooker Korean Short Ribs recipe. This deeply flavorful, Asian-inspired dish has long been a fan favorite, but it turns out that my Korean Short Ribs are even simpler to prepare in the Instant Pot—and just as deliciously satisfying to eat. For the sake of speed and ease, you don’t even need to broil the ribs like in the slow cooker recipe: Just season the ribs, blitz the sauce, and cook everything for 45 minutes under high pressure. BOOM! (Note: That was an exclamation of triumph—not the sound of a pressure cooker exploding, because the Instant Pot is super-safe.)
Time to make Instant Pot Korean Short Ribs!
Serves 6
Ingredients:
- 5 pounds bone-in English-style short ribs (don’t go above 5 pounds or it won’t fit in a 6-quart pressure cooker)
- 1 tablespoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt (use half the amount if you’re using a fine grain salt)
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup coconut aminos
- 1 tablespoon rice, white balsamic, or coconut vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Red Boat fish sauce
- 1 medium pear, Asian pear, or Fuji apple, peeled, cored, and chopped coarsely
- 6 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
- 3 scallions, roughly chopped
- 1 hunk of fresh ginger, about 2 inches, peeled and roughly chopped
- Small handful of roughly chopped fresh cilantro
Equipment:
- Large bowl
- Measuring spoons
- Measuring cups
- Cutting board
- Chef’s knife
- High-speed blender (I own a Vitamix and a KitchenAid, but used the latter for this recipe)
- Silicone spatula
- 6-quart Instant Pot or stove-top pressure cooker
Method:
Pat the short ribs dry with a paper towel and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Use your hands to rub the salt and pepper all over the ribs.
Transfer the seasoned ribs to a 6-quart (or larger) pressure cooker.
You may have to play some short rib Tetris to make sure all the meat fits in the pot. Sometimes, I have to cut off the bone from the meat so I can fit the meaty pieces properly (but I still throw the bones on top for added flavor). Ideally, though, everything fits like a puzzle.
Toss the coconut aminos, vinegar, fish sauce…
…pear/apple, garlic, scallions, and ginger in a high-speed blender or food processor…
…and blitz until smooth.
Pour the sauce over the short ribs in the pressure cooker, and stir everything around so the sauce reaches the bottom of the pot.
If the sauce doesn’t reach the bottom of the pot, the ribs might burn and you’ll get an “ovHT” or “BURN” error message on the Instant Pot display. (Got the error message even though the sauce hit the bottom of the pot? Turn off your Instant Pot, and add ¼ cup broth or water. Scrape up any brown bits on the bottom and then, restart the Instant Pot. That should clear the error.)
Shut and lock the lid, turn the valve at the top to “sealing,” and program the Instant Pot to cook under high pressure for 45 minutes.
Let the pressure release naturally. If the pressure hasn’t dropped after 25 minutes, release it manually by turning the top valve to the “venting” position. Pop open the lid and check that the ribs are fork-tender. If they’re not, cook ’em for another 5 to 10 minutes under high pressure.
Transfer the ribs to a plate or platter, and taste the liquid for seasoning. Adjust if necessary with additional salt and pepper. Yes, there will be plenty of fat at the top of the liquid, which is totally normal and expected with this cut of meat. If you want, you can skim the fat off the top and then spoon the sauce on top of the ribs.
Garnish with cilantro before serving!
This dish tastes even better the next day, so I recommend making it ahead of time. You can refrigerate it for up to 4 days or freeze it for up to 3 months. It’s like a yummy, meaty gift to your future self!
After the stew has been refrigerated or frozen, the fat on top will solidify, making it easy to remove if desired. (I’m not fat-phobic, but I prefer to take it off ’cause I don’t like an overly greasy sauce.)
Plus, you can totally reheat the stew in an Instant Pot—simply dump the ribs and sauce back into the Instant Pot and cook under high pressure for 5 minutes. Keep the short ribs warm until you’re ready to serve!
Dig in!
Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes on my iPhone and iPad app, and in my cookbooks, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2013), Ready or Not! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2017), and Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2021).
PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE CARD
Instant Pot (Pressure Cooker) Korean Short Ribs
Ingredients
- 5 pounds beef short ribs don’t go above 5 pounds or it won’t fit in a 6-quart pressure cooker
- 1 tablespoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt use half the amount if you’re using a fine grain salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup coconut aminos
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar white balsamic, or coconut vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Red Boat fish sauce
- 1 medium pear Asian pear, or Fuji apple, peeled, cored, and chopped coarsely
- 6 garlic cloves peeled and roughly chopped
- 3 scallions roughly chopped
- 1 hunk of fresh ginger about 2 inches, cut into 2 pieces
- Small handful of roughly chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Pat the short ribs dry with a paper towel and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Use your hands to rub the salt and pepper all over the ribs.
- Transfer the seasoned ribs to a 6-quart (or larger) pressure cooker, making sure all the ribs fit in the pot.
- Add the coconut aminos, vinegar, fish sauce, pear or apple, garlic, scallions, and ginger in a high-speed blender or food processor. Blitz until smooth.
- Pour the sauce over the short ribs in the pressure cooker, and stir everything around so the sauce reaches the bottom of the pot. If the sauce doesn't reach the bottom of the pot, the ribs might burn and you'll get an "ovHT" or "BURN"error message on the Instant Pot display. (Got the error message even though the sauce hit the bottom of the pot? Turn off your Instant Pot, and add ¼ cup broth or water. Scrape up the brown bits on the bottom and then, restart the Instant Pot. That should clear the error.)
- Shut and lock the lid, turn the valve at the top to “sealing,” and program the Instant Pot to cook under high pressure for 45 minutes.
- Let the pressure release naturally. If the pressure hasn’t dropped after 25 minutes, release it manually by turning the top valve to the “venting” position. Pop open the lid and check that the ribs are fork-tender. If they’re not, cook ’em for another 5 to 10 minutes under high pressure.
- Transfer the ribs to a plate or platter, and taste the liquid for seasoning. Adjust if necessary with additional salt and pepper. If desired, skim the fat off the top.
- Spoon the sauce on top of the ribs, and garnish with cilantro before serving.
Liz | climb lift eat says
Yaaas this recipe is one of my favorites, and now that it’s adapted for the Instant Pot I can enjoy it on weeknights as well!
Denise says
Do you have a slow cooker version?
Michelle Tam says
Yep! Right here: https://nomnompaleo.com/post/3762844557/slow-cooker-korean-grass-fed-short-ribs
Jess_Star says
How long to cook if using slow cooker? 8 hours on low? Thanks!
nomnompaleo says
Click on the link for my Slow Cooker Korean Short Ribs recipe and you’ll get the step-by-step instructions.
Vicky says
Can you please share where you get your ribs in SF? Tried some from wholefoods last week and they were extremely fatty (I know short ribs in general are on the fattier side but the pictures above look a lot leaner).
nomnompaleo says
I order grass fed short ribs through Good Eggs ( https://www.goodeggs.com/sfbay/home) and Belcampo Meat Co.
Liz N. says
This is so going down in my house this week. I need to dust off my Instant Pot (I’ve had it for years now, ever since your first IP recipes) and I’ve neglected it. I can’t wait to make these!
Hannah says
HI this looks wonderful – but I do not have a pressure cooker – is there a way to create the same dish but using a slow cooker or even in the oven?
Thanks for your help
nomnompaleo says
Yep! Click on the link for Slow Cooker Korean Short Ribs in the description.
Alfred S. Moy says
If you’re in Honolulu, you can have my Macy’s pressure cooker for free.
Marissa Lewis says
Oh my gosh your comment after “Boom!” had me laughing so hard! I can’t wait to try this in my Instant Pot. I’m already a huge fan of your slow cooker version!! Yum:)
John Godino says
Wowzer, yummy but $$$! Grass fed short ribs off Good eggs range from $9 to $12 per lb. So, you’re looking at $45 to $60 for meat alone for this recipe, a lot of which is fat you may or may not eat and bone, which you prolly won’t eat either. A new paradigm for online recipe posting – post the total per person cost right up front, along with “# served”.
Alfred S. Moy says
Short ribs are worth the cost. I cut out the bones and boil for couple hours with onion, garlic and ginger to make a delicious broth. Add your favorite veggies and you have a wonderful soup. Cost $1-2:00 per person so stretches your dollar. 1/4# – 1/3# ribs per person will be enough meat for most people. Cost should come out to about $5.00 per person; fairly inexpensive for a delicious meal. BTW, I love my Instant Pot and all its features! I am one happy cook! Wish I heard about it early on. Now what to do with my expensive Macy’s stainless steel pressure cooker?
John Godino says
Well, if you read the recipe, it says serves six. And it calls for 5 pounds of meat, so that’s more like 0.8 lbs of meat per person, or ballpark, $10 in meat person. I have a lot of experience in eating beef short ribs, and no way is a quarter pound per person realistic. They’re kind of like popcorn. They’re so good you don’t really want to stop.
Monica says
Would love to try this today but my short ribs are frozen. Have you tried pressure cooking w/frozen meat? Curious if it would work.
nomnompaleo says
The only time I cook with frozen meat is if it’s already cooked and I’m reheating it, or I’m throwing frozen bones in stock/broth and cooking it for 60-90 minutes under high pressure. Here’s a good guide to cooking from frozen: https://www.hippressurecooking.com/how-to-pressure-cook-frozen-meat/
Emm says
Is there any reason why this wouldn’t work with another cut of beef that is suitable for stewing, without bones? Thanks.
nomnompaleo says
Cubed chuck roast will work!
Emm says
Thanks!
Sarah McEachern-Menard says
My grocery store only had boneless short ribs..should I decrease the cooking time?
nomnompaleo says
Try 40 min.
Shoshana Zeisman says
Did you try this with the boneless short ribs? I was hoping to make this and wanted to see how it turned out.
Peter M says
what is the coconut aminos for?
nomnompaleo says
It’s a soy sauce replacement.
Peter M says
Great thank you!
Alfred S. Moy says
Can I use my favorite kalbi marinade recipe? Been wanting to make braised Korean short ribs for a while. Thank you for the kick start! Lol.
Summer Fullerton says
Made this tonight it was fabulous!
Cheryl Baclit says
I can’t find this recipe on the app! Is it named differently?
nomnompaleo says
Just type “Instant Pot” in the Search function and it should show up. Or just look in the What’s New section.
Cheryl Baclit says
Sorry Michelle! I still can’t seem to find it.. only instant pot boiled eggs. Is there a new version out?
nomnompaleo says
All new recipes get automatically added without needing to update the app. If your app is acting glitchy, you can delete the app completely off your device and download it again (for free) from the App Store.
Cheryl Baclit says
Thanks! I woke up today and this recipe shows on the App now!
Cheryl Dusablon says
I made these short ribs last week after watching your FB live session. I can’t tell you how fantastic they were and how much I LOVED them. The short ribs were so fall off the bone tender. The sauce was simply amazing. So easy to throw everything together and into the Instapot. I had leftovers the following night and was sad they were all gone. Will be making this recipe again soon. Just when I thought you couldn’t top the pulled pork and cabbage recipe you did it! Thanks for all the awesome recipes!
Allison Carpio says
THIS WAS SO BOMB. I do everything you tell me to and I’m a kitchen hero.
Kathy Simon says
John Godino, I’d like to introduce you to our meat and poultry farmers, Mary and Jill, of Crane Dance Farm. They are the owners and stewards of all that lives and thrives on their farm in West Michigan.
(cranedancefarm.eatfromfarms.com) They raise their beef from birth (on mom) and gradually to grass and only grass or grass hay. Yes, some of the cuts are “expensive”, but not the short ribs that come in at $6.50#. Five pounds cost $32.50 and provided two full meals for my husband and I with a small midnight snack as well.
If I did the math right, that’s $8.125/per person, per for the absolutely safest, nutritionally superior, and incredibly delicious beef for a major meal I’ve ever tasted. A bargain for a special meal.
This recipe was also our maiden voyage with our new Insta-Pot. Kudos all around for recipe and ease of IP use!
Felt so comfortable with IP this first week, and we were craving rice pudding. No rice, but LOTS of quinoa, fresh, raw whole milk, maple syrup and a pinch of cardomom – found a recipe we could tweak and turned out a delish East Indian pudding called Kheer (adapted from this old gal.com). Perfectly prepared in the IP.
One important note about coconut aminos if you get migraines. While the coconut amino label does not say it’s fermented, it does say “aged”. We made the recipe as printed and our most sensitive migraine sufferer had a terrible reaction. For this individual we should have tried maybe 2 tablespoons instead of a half cup, the same way we’ve had to tweak recipes with soy sauce, fish sauce, black bean sauce (NO-it’s fermented) etc. We use fish sauce, oyster sauce, and soy sauce, but restrain ourselves in amounts used. That seems to keep our migrainours in the extended family migraine free and still enjoy the myriad of Asian cooking we love!
Dale says
Could I follow the recipe using oxtails?
nomnompaleo says
Yes!
DMG says
Great! Thank you Michelle!!!!!
Teresa Smith says
Allergic to fish. Is there a substitute I can use or can I just skip it?
Joi Park says
Can I use the leftover bones for bone broth? (Just finished making this for tomorrow. Tastes awesome! Can’t wait to see what the family thinks.)
nomnompaleo says
I don’t think so! They’re pretty spent by the time they’re done!
Joi Park says
Aw, that’s what I figured. Thanks for the quick reply! And for the great recipes, especially for the Instant Pot. I’m never disappointed with your dishes!
anne blumer says
I bought some lovely bone-in beef short-ribs at the farmers market today and was excited to cook this recipe with my new instant pot. I have never been more disappointed in a recipe. The meat does not look like the roasted golden ribs photographed here. And, the meat was not fork tender even after cook ’em for another 10 minutes under high pressure. The meat looked grey and it was sinewy. I’m a big fan of yours, but this was a major #fail.
nomnompaleo says
I’m sorry it didn’t turn out. Were you cooking the ribs under high pressure? It sounds like they were undercooked and you need to cook them longer. Tough cuts like short ribs will get more tender the longer you cook them (unlike lean cuts of meat).
anne b says
I cooked them for the amount of time in the recipe.
jeremykidder says
In your video, you mentioned that you don’t save the fat. I can’t stand to throw mine away, as I too have an excellent source for my beef. So, since potatoes are back, I save mine and when I have enough, I make old fashioned beef tallow french fries. My family loves them! No veggie oil, and you have to commit a decent amount of time in the kitchen to make them, so you can’t eat them as often as say, McDonalds.;)
Alaina Hanson says
This recipe was so so DELICIOUS!! I can’t wait to make it again!!
Elizabeth Shaw says
I’m about to make these – just wondering, do I keep them cooking for 45 mins and then let the pressure release, or do I set it for 45 and then let the pressure release naturally, around the 25 min mark?
nomnompaleo says
Let the pressure drop naturally after it cooks for 45 min. The natural release takes an additional 25 min after it finishes cooking.
cathy y says
I made this recipe a couple nights ago and was quite disappointed. The flavor was bland and didn’t really have any “korean” flavors. I also made Michelle’s “damn fine chicken” tonight, the ingredients for flavor seemed very similar (one with vinegar one with out) and either turned out to be like Michelles. What am I doing wrong? The meat is quite tender though.
nomnompaleo says
I’m sorry the dish didn’t turn out to your liking. I wish I could help, but I’m not sure what went wrong because I’m not with you in the kitchen.
Romas David says
Great recipe. I actually really appreciate this amazing recipe. I will make it for my family. Thanks!
Paula Rodriguez says
I made these for myself while meal prepping for the week. I made them exactly as the recipe instructed and they were amazing. My question is, my wife tasted them and she really liked it (which is saying a lot because she just started eating red meat for the first time in 20 years when I recently started AIP) but she cannot eat high fodmap foods, apples and pears affect her very badly. What fruit can I use besides apple or pear? Or can I just leave it out? I make paleomom’s short ribs (no fruit in recipe) and it wasn’t as amazing as this one (sorry paleomom).
nomnompaleo says
I’m not sure which fruit would work because everything I can think of is considered high fodmap!
Amy Tam says
I’m making this tonight and could only find the short ribs that are thinly cut into strips with several bones (think Korean style). How should I alter the cooking and natural release times? Thanks!!! I’ve tried almost all of your instant pot recipes and just bought the newest cookbook. So sad I was out of town when you came to Toronto!!!! =(
Leslie Gunn says
Did you figure something out?
jr says
I’ve been making my way through the Nom Nom Paleo Instant Pot recipes and this one was another hit! I wasn’t able to find good bone-in short ribs so I ended up using the boneless option from Costco, 3 pounds worth (I figured that was close to the amount of meat that 5 pounds of bone-in would have). One benefit of the boneless is that you can fit them into the pot a little easier, if nothing else. I did reduce the time to 40 minutes and released the pressure a bit sooner than 20 minutes after they finished. They were fantastic. The meat browns just right despite never being seared, falls apart, and all of the extra fat melts off and into the sauce. I removed the meat and switched the pot to saute to reduce the sauce a bit, then served it on the side.
Maggie Grace Rasor says
I’m glad I read your reply. I bought some boneless “ribs” today and was wondering how long to cook them. Thank you.
James R Love says
Would ginger powder work as a substitute?
ChibiSeira says
I bought a smaller pack of short ribs before finding this… can I basically follow the recipe but with less meat (maybe cut the sauce in half)? No idea how cook times vary with amounts with this thing….
Todd Siemers says
Next up on my Whole30 Nom Nom voyage of discovery. I’ll be making this tonight but not sure what the difference will be if I use regular balsamic in place of white. Please advise and/or I will report back with the results!
Todd Siemers says
Amazing!!! Was so incredibly tasty and couldn’t have been any easier to prep and cook. This is going in the regular meal rotation for sure. FYI, I misread and didn’t see you could use just plain ol’ white vinegar, which is what I ended up doing.
Kim D. says
Can this dish be made in a crock pot instead of a pressure cooker?
Barbara Jokisch says
Thank you, THANK YOU, for this amazing recipe. It’s become an absolute family favorite. It’s simply perfect. People who didn’t like ribs before because they only had experienced tough burnt grilled ribs you had to chew for hours are now die hard fans of these falling-off-the-bone things of wonder!
Suzanne Flory says
I DREAM of these – they are that good! I cook, refrigerate overnight, and remove the solidified fat from the top. Then, I remove the bones (they just fall out), shred the meat a bit, and put it in the IP to reheat for a few minutes. I serve over vermincelli rice noodles. SO GOOD!
I also lucked out and found the aminos at my local grocery by the soy sauce. I made it with soy sauce the first time, cutting it by half, and it tasted just fine. I prefer the aminos for some reason though.
Marjory Graham says
I only have 2 pounds of short ribs in the freezer – should I proportionately reduce all the other ingredients and cooking time? Thanks!
Renee says
Can you substitute a different cut of meat for this recipe? Perhaps beef brisket?
Polly Cho says
Could you replace coconut aminos with soy sauce?
nomnompaleo says
Yes, but use a little less because it is saltier than coconut aminos.
Madi says
If you could choose would you recommend the instant pot version or crock pot version? Want to make a special meal for my boyfriend for valentines day! Thank you!
nomnompaleo says
Instant Pot!
Lisa Mc says
Similar question as someone’s above -but I’m not FODMAP I’m allergic to apples and pears… any guesses on a fruit or other food that I could substitute (cooked sweet potato or butternut squash? Honey?) to keep the consistency/taste of the sauce or is it ok to just leave out? Doesn’t have to stay whole30 either. I want to make these for the family to nosh on while cheering on the US during the Korean Winter Olympics! Thanks!! 😀
Jenny Hartley says
Can you use boneless short ribs? And how would you adjust?
William Corr says
Would like to see this as a crock pot sense I have a extremely small kitchen and have a Crock pot in it already lol thank you 🙂
Lisa says
her original recipe is for a crockpot! its exactlythe same except you cook for 8 hours
Julianna Clark Kingham says
I’d like to make this recipe with 2Ibs of chuck roast. Would you change the cooking time for this or decrease the amount of liquid?
Cathy says
I hate to be a buzzkill, but i don’t like fish sauce. I’ve tried several brands (including red boat) but no one in our household likes it.
Will it greatly impact the final results if I leave it out? Any Whole 30 substitutions i can make?
Michelle Tam says
You can leave it out, but it won’t taste as good. No one likes the taste of fish sauce by itself, but just adding a little bit really amplifies umami.
Hannah J Parrish says
if you have them sealed in foodsaver bags, I would just cover them in water…. Fill the sink with water and immerse the ribs still sealed. They will thaw pretty quickly and I figure they will turn out better. I have tied this method and it has worked well for me. While I haven’t tried cooking ribs or butts from frozen, I recently read an article concerning how this practice may make for a tougher piece of meat….. so take that for what its worth, which may not be much….
Kristi Sanders says
Hi! Wondering if the cook time or anything would be differing if using pork spare ribs? I also have about 5.9 lbs, so wondering what I should do with the .9? I have made this before and the sauce is amazing. I have pork ribs on hand and want to use them. I also have your cookbook and use it all the time – thank you for the amazing flavors!
Michelle Tam says
You can probably cook them for only 25 minutes with natural release.
Elizabeth Hubbard says
I am looking forward to trying this recipe tomorrow! Do you have any recommendations on sides that you serve with it?
Michelle Tam says
Cauliflower rice or regular rice!
Pia says
So delicious!! It was like a Eureka moment 😀 Going through your recipes has made me pretty excited about cooking (& meal planning!) and continuing on the Paleo path..