Fast & Easy Soda Pop Ribs

We made this recipe by The Midnight Baker for Soda Pop Ribs a few weeks ago and it was really good. Since this is Kimstapot and we're here to start with yummy recipes, then cater it to our taste, here's our iteration. By the way... it's super easy!

INGREDIENTS (Updated 2/20/18. See below**)

• 1-2 racks St. Louis-style Pork Spareribs* **
• 1 cup cola (we used good ol' original formula Coca-Cola)
• 2 cups root beer (we used IBC Root Beer)**
• Your favorite rib seasoning
• Your favorite BBQ sauce (we used Sweet Baby Ray's Original)**

INSTRUCTIONS (Updated 2/20/18)

• Remove the membrane from the back of your ribs. Click here if you need a how-to video on how to remove it
• Generously cover the rack of ribs with your favorite rib seasoning
• Then add 1 cup of cola, 2 cups of root beer, and your rack of ribs wrapped so that the meaty side is facing the center of the pot
• Manual pressure cook on high for 25 minutes, natural release for 10 minutes, then quick release the rest
• Preheat your oven to broil. I set ours to 350 degrees
• Remove the ribs from the Instant Pot, place on a foil-lined baking sheet, and baste the rack with your favorite BBQ sauce using a basting brush
• Broil for about 5-8 minutes, depending on how caramelized you're going for
• Pull from the oven, cut and serve immediately with some sides

Here's what's different with our version compared to the original:

• We wanted to add an extra dimension of flavor, which is why we seasoned the meat
• We used the steam rack because we wanted the texture of the rack to be balanced. In the original, part of the rack was in the soda and the rest was above the liquid 
• We pressure cooked and natural released longer. When we followed the original recipe, the meat was still a bit tough for our liking. It could have also been that the first rack we used was a lot meatier 
• Instead of making our own BBQ sauce, we opted for fast & simple and used Stubb's. If you're looking to create a BBQ sauce from scratch, we highly recommend the BBQ sauce recipe in the original Soda Pop Ribs recipe by The Midnight Baker

* Latest iteration (updated 2/20/18)

• We tried this recipe with St. Louis-style Spareribs (instead of baby back ribs) and fell in love. The meat of on the spareribs is a little thinner and and more balanced across the entire rack, making it easier to get a consistent texture in the Instant Pot. We still prefer smoking baby back ribs in our Big Green Egg. Your choice!
• Our original post only said 1 rack. However, you can follow the same recipe with 2 racks of ribs . Note: While we're doubling the racks, don't double up on the soda
• We prefer using IBC Root Beer instead of A&W
• We switched to Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ. This is more of a personal preference. Use whatever BBQ sauce is your favorite for ribs
• After a few changes and different tests, we found it better not to use the steam rack. Place the ribs straight into the Instant Pot and let the soda do it's magic

* Note: When shopping for a rack of ribs, look for good marbleization in the meat and consistent thickness across the rack. Some racks are a bit overly fatty or meaty on one end and thin on the other end. A high-quality, well-balanced rack of ribs is key when it comes to cooking ribs. We might even recommend selecting a rack that's not overly meaty... OH GAWD! 

It's seriously so fast & easy to make these fall-off-the-bone ribs. Try ours or try the original. Either way, you can't go wrong. You have to try it tonight!

Don't have an Instant Pot yet? When you're ready to take the plunge into an awesome cooking experience, here's the Instant Pot we recommend: Instant Pot DUO60 6 Qt 7-in-1 Multi-Use Programmable Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Steamer, Sauté, Yogurt Maker and Warmer. It's so well-priced and has all the features we use 99% of the time.