This Instant Pot Short Ribs recipe is my family‘s all-time favorite comfort meal. Seasoned in a savory Japanese sauce, the marbled boneless beef cooks to tender perfection in just 30 minutes under pressure. It‘s hearty, delicious, and so satisfying! {Gluten-free adaptable}
When my family and I are in the mood for some warm comfort food, I often turn to this Instant Pot Short Ribs recipe. I mean, who doesn’t love melt-in-mouth marbled beef and perfectly cooked carrots, sweet daikon, and onions all nestled in a flavorful sauce? Serve it with steamed rice and you have the most soul-satisfying dinner on a weeknight. With the pressure cooking function in the Instant Pot, this beautiful dish comes together in just 30 minutes. It’s magical!
If you have only tried and loved the western-style short ribs, the ones that are braised with red wine and served with mashed potatoes, I guarantee that you’re going to enjoy this Japanese version as well. It’s on the lighter side but bursts with sweet-savory flavors.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Easily accessible ingredients. I can get all the ingredients in my local American grocery stores. I hope you can find them as well.
- Time saving and so easy to prepare. A one-pot meal for the win! Toss in the vegetables, sear the meat, hit the button, and viola, dinner is done in 30 minutes.
- It goes well with any Japanese and Asian dishes. Enjoy as it is with steamed rice, or serve alongside with miso soup and a salad for a well-balanced meal.
- So delicious! …is what everyone who tried this recipe has said.
- Tiff said: “I keep coming back to this recipe because it is just SO delicious and easy!”
- Arlene said: “The Short Ribs were so unbelievably, melt-in-your-mouth delicious.”
- Lyn said: “This was most delicious and tender.”
How to Make Instant Pot Short Ribs
The Ingredients You’ll Need
- Boneless beef short ribs – I used boneless ribs for my recipe, but you can use the bone-in short ribs and cook a little longer. See substitution info below.
- Onion
- Daikon radish – It absorbs all the juices and adds sweetness to the sauce. Substitution info is below.
- Carrot – It adds sweetness to the sauce.
- Ginger
- Garlic
- Green onion/scallion
- Salt and black pepper
- Roasted sesame oil – Use it to add a nutty aroma and flavor.
- Seasonings: salt, black pepper, brown sugar, sake, mirin, and soy sauce
The Cooking Steps
- Prepare the ingredients. Cut the onions, carrots, and green onions. Cut the beef short ribs into smaller bite-size pieces and season with salt and pepper.
- Sear the beef in an Instant Pot and transfer it to the plate.
- Add the onion and water, scraping off the bottom of the pot. Then, add the ginger and garlic and sauté.
- Add the beef and all the seasonings. Pressure cook on high for 35 minutes.
- Release the pressure and serve hot.
Ingredients Substitute
- Beef short ribs – I usually have to ask the butcher to remove the bone for me. I really like this cut for this recipe because the fat and collagen in a beef short rib run evenly throughout the meat, producing that juicy texture. If you can’t find short ribs, you can also use the tender part of beef brisket or chuck roast.
- Daikon radish – I don’t recommend skipping it, but you can substitute with turnips, parsnips, or jicama.
- Brown sugar – You can use white granulated sugar, but brown sugar adds more depth and flavor.
Cooking Tips
- Cut the daikon radish and carrot into bigger chunks. As we cook the meat and vegetables all together in the pressure cooker, you want slightly bigger chunks of vegetables so that they don’t get too soft and disintegrate easily.
- Season the beef well with salt and pepper. Salt helps draw out water and enhance the meat’s natural taste. It also makes the piece of meat more delicate and richer in flavor.
- Don’t skip searing. Searing the beef so that the surface becomes caramelized. This enhances the savoriness and complexity of the taste (this is called the Maillard Reaction). I believe it’s worth spending extra time for the best flavor!
- You can increase the amount of meat. This recipe is good for 3-4 people. If you or your family are big meat eaters, you can increase the short ribs up to 2½ lb (instead of 1¾ lb written in the recipe). I’ve tried that amount and the dish still came out great. If you increase the vegetables, however, more moisture is released from the vegetables, which will dilute the flavor a bit. So cautiously increase the amount of veggies, or slightly increase the seasonings ahead of time.
What to Serve with Instant Pot Beef Short Ribs
These short ribs are perfect to enjoy alone with rice, but here are some suggestions if you wish to serve it with a more elaborate meal:
- Rice: White Rice, Brown Rice.
- Soup: Vegetable Miso Soup, Kabocha Miso Soup.
- Salad: Asian Cabbage Salad, Harusame Salad, Japanese Potato Salad.
- Side Dishes: Kinpira Gobo, Tamagoyaki, Chrysanthemum Green Salad.
Why I Love Pressure Cooking
An Instant Pot (I have this and this) has both slow cooker and pressure cooker functions, but I almost always use the pressure cooker as I don’t prepare dinner early enough to slow cook.
Since I work from home, I try to get as much work done as possible while my children are at school. By the evening, I usually have about 30-45 minutes to prep dinner before driving them around for after-school activities.
To make these short ribs, all I need is to chop up the vegetables and sear the beef. After all the ingredients go into the pressure cooker, I hit the start button and leave the kitchen. By the time we get home, the food is all cooked and ready to be enjoyed.
I also schedule my rice cooker to finish at dinner time so we have freshly cooked rice at the table. While the family is settling down, I quickly prepare miso soup and salad.
Thanks to the electric pressure cooker, my family gets to sit down together for a home-cooked meal despite everyone’s busy schedule.
More Instant Pot Recipes
Cooking with an Instant Pot has been a real timesaver. It’s hard to believe that I can cook up a luxurious meal for the family on a busy weeknight! If you’re looking for more comfort foods that you can cook with an Instant Pot, here are some of our favorites:
- Instant Pot Pork Belly
- Instant Pot Slow Cooker Chicken Wings
- Instant Pot Sticky Asian Ribs
- Instant Pot Asian Pulled Pork
- Instant Pot Honey Spare Ribs
- Instant Pot Takikomi Gohan (Japanese Mixed Rice)
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Instant Pot Short Ribs (Pressure Cooker)
Video
Ingredients
- 8–10 slices ginger (peeled and sliced from a 1-inch, 2.5-cm knob)
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 onion (8 oz, 227 g)
- 3 inches daikon radish (10.5 oz, 300 g)
- 1 carrot (5 oz, 140 g; or use 2 thin carrots)
- 1 green onion/scallion
- 1¾ lb boneless beef short ribs (fat and collagen run evenly through this cut for a juicy texture; you can ask the butcher to debone English-style short ribs; or substitute the tender part of a beef brisket or chuck roast)
- ½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- ⅛ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
To Prepare the Ingredients
- Peel the ginger knob and cut thinly into 8–10 slices ginger. Mince or crush 2 cloves garlic (I use a garlic press).
- Cut 1 onion in half. Slice each half into 5–6 wedges.
- Peel 3 inches daikon radish and cut in half lengthwise, then slice it ½ inch (1.3 cm) thick. Tip: If you prefer a firmer texture, cut the daikon into bigger pieces.
- Peel and cut 1 carrot into bite-size pieces. I use the rangiri Japanese cutting technique to slice the carrot diagonally while rotating it a quarter turn between cuts. This makes an ideal shape for stews and simmered dishes and increases the surface area to help absorb the seasonings. Tip: If you prefer a firmer texture, cut the carrot into bigger pieces.
- Cut 1 green onion/scallion into thin rounds. Set aside for garnish.
- To promote searing, pat dry all sides of 1¾ lb boneless beef short ribs with paper towels. Then, cut it into 1-inch (2.5-cm) pieces.
- Season with ½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt and ⅛ tsp freshly ground black pepper.
To Cook
- Press the Sauté button on your Instant Pot (I use a 6-QT Instant Pot Ultra) and heat 1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil.
- Now, sear the meat in batches (do not crowd the pot to avoid steaming). When the inner pot is hot, sear a single layer of meat, 1 minute per side. Don‘t touch the meat while it‘s searing. When a beautiful crust forms, the meat will release naturally from the pot. When this happens, flip it over.
- When seared, transfer the first batch to a plate. Continue with the next batches.
- You might sear 3–4 batches for about 8 minutes total. Transfer the last batch to the plate. Deglaze the pot with a bit of water and wooden spatula to release any flavorful bits stuck to the bottom.
- Add the onion and 2 Tbsp water to the pot. Sauté while scraping the bottom of the pot with the spatula for 2 minutes.
- Add the garlic and ginger and sauté for a minute.
- Add the short ribs and their juices back to the pot.
- Add 2 Tbsp brown sugar, 2 Tbsp sake, 4 Tbsp mirin, and 4 Tbsp soy sauce.
- Mix it all together.
- Then, add the daikon and carrot. Mix it all together.
- Cover and lock the lid. Point the steam release handle at Sealing and not Venting. Press the Keep Warm/Cancel button to stop sautéing. Select the Pressure Cooking mode or switch to the Manual mode and cook under high pressure for 35 minutes.
- For a stovetop pressure cooker: Cook on high heat until it reaches high pressure. Then, reduce the heat to low and maintain pressure for about 30 minutes. For a standard pot on the stove: Cooking under pressure will yield the best results, but you could cook this in a heavy-bottomed pot with a tight-fitting lid. Add enough beef stock to just cover the sides of the meat, then place the lid tightly and simmer on low to medium-low heat for 3 hours or until the meat is tender; add more stock or water if the sauce evaporates.
- When finished, the Instant Pot will switch to the Keep Warm mode. Let the pressure release naturally (ideally) for 15–20 minutes or quick release it using the pressure release button. Unlock the lid and stir.
To Serve
- Transfer to a serving dish. Garnish with the sliced scallion/green onion. Enjoy!
To Store
- You can store the leftovers in the airtight container and keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or 2 weeks in the freezer.
Nutrition
Editor’s Note: The post was originally published on December 3, 2015. It has been republished with a new video, new step-by-step and final images, and updated content on November 3, 2023.
Aloha Nami san,
I made this last night for my family and it was a big hit! My in-laws loved how soft and flavorful the boneless short ribs were. I had to make a slight adjustment to the recipe because my market didn’t have any daikon. They were, however selling Chinese turnips. I’d never bought Chinese turnips before but it looked a little similar to daikon. After a quick Google search I decided to take my chances. I’m happy to say the dish turned out lovely! However, the next time I make this I’ll look for the daikon. Most markets in Hawaii have them readily available. Thank you for your wonderful recipes! I love your blog!
Aloha Moani! I’m so happy to hear you and your family enjoyed this recipe! Yes, turnips are a great substitution for daikon as they have a similar texture and flavor. Thank you for your kind feedback. 🙂
Love this recipe! It’s so easy to make and very quick too, very hearty and makes leftovers that keep very well.
I am trying it again tonight with large chunks of chicken thighs instead of short ribs, just to see how it turns out, since my partner can’t eat beef (I can though and I had it with the ribs last week and it was sooooo good). We’ll see how it turns out!
Hi Lion! I’m so glad you like this recipe! It’s our favorite meal in fall/winter too! Let us know how it goes with chicken. I haven’t made it. 🙂
I did try it with chicken! I used chicken thigh. It tastes good, similar mostly, but obviously not the same richness and flavor as beef short ribs. I would say if chicken is used the time would need to be adjusted shorter to really give the chicken a better texture as boneless skinless chicken thighs are definitely thinner than short ribs so they cook through faster. They get just a bit of “dry” texture despite they are in plenty of water when they are done, if you know what I mean. So yeah. I feel like maybe pressure cook for 15-20 minutes if using chicken instead? I’m not 100% sure on that timing but that’s what I’d probably try. Anyway, for those who can eat beef it’s definitely the best for this recipe, but of course any meat would work, you’d just have to adjust for the right timing I think depending how thick and dense the meat pieces are.
Hi Lion! Thank you so much for your kind and detailed feedback! I think boneless, skinless chicken thighs need 8 minutes or so in the pressure cooker. Thanks for sharing your cooking experience with us. Happy Thanksgiving to you!! xoxo
Good call on the timing. That timing is probably way better. I know it wouldn’t take long! Happy Thanksgiving!
Thank you Lion! xoxo
Hi Nami! I’m so in love with this recipe, I love that sweet taste of meat and daikon. I really want to make this recipe but I don’t have an Instant Pot, I have a Hitachi Japanese rice cooker (pressure&steam) where I can cook also, even make cakes.
Do you think I can use this one for this recipe and if yes, can you tell me for how long do I have to cook it, how many hours.
Thank you in advance ^〜^!
Hi Catalina! You don’t need a specific instant pot, but pressure cooker will make this cooking really effortless and easy. Does your pressure cooker rice cooker have recipes to cook meat? I don’t know this particular model, but if they have a feature to cook meat, I think you can use it? If the rice cooker doesn’t have that cooking meat option, then I recommend using a stovetop method. 🙂
I have the time and the preference for slow cooking (not necessarily a crockpot), so have no need for an IP or pressure cooker. Nor do I want more toys to store in my kitchen. I love these recipes, and always appreciate your helpful responses for how to convert the IP method for oven or stove top. Many thanks for your consideration!
Hi Chris! I actually love staying in the kitchen and cooking in the pot over the stove. The process (and cooking smell) is very comforting to me. Which is probably the reason why I never owned a stovetop pressure cooker in the first place. With the kids growing up and I work for longer hours (testing recipes and writing for blog etc), I appreciate hands-off electric pressure as a way to cook (otherwise, we would have to eat out). 🙂 Thank you for your kind feedback!
This looks delicious (oishii so)!
Could I make this on the stove or slow cooker? Unfortunately, I still don’t have a pressure cooker.
Arigato!
Apologies, I saw the comments after sending my email. Will follow some of the suggestions regarding stove and slow cooker methods. Hope it comes out just as great-looking as yours!
Hi Barbara! Good luck and let me know how it goes! 🙂 P.S. You will need more broth/sauce if you cook on a stovetop because of the evaporation. Slow cooker or pressure cooker traps all the steam, so we don’t have to worry about sauce being reduced. 🙂
Hi Nami,
Can’t wait to try this recipe! Can i double up, with 3.5 lbs of meat and still cook it all in a 6QT IP and use the same amount of cook time? I always like to dbl up and have extra leftovers for a few days. Thank you.
Hi Grace! Yes, you can double up, but I would probably increase the seasonings too. And when you sear the meat, I recommend doing in batches so you don’t end up “steaming” the beef. 🙂 Hope you enjoy the recipe!
Nami,
I have an instant pot and this was a WONDERFUL and flavorful recipe. It was easy to prepare and It was beautiful to even look at and the smell that wafted through the house after I opened the lid was delightful.
Once again you have brought joy to my kitchen and I thank you!
Hi Gail! Thank you so much for trying this recipe and I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it. Thank you for your kind feedback, Gail!
[…] 9. Short Ribs […]
Hi Nami, thank you so much for creating a community and keeping it alive. 🙂
My partner just got me my first pressure cooker (old fashioned). I made this recipe yesterday and it was amazing! I served it with your 7-herb rice and your dashi-steeped spinach.
I have a quick question: next time can I add Renkon to the pot? I always have hard time integrating Renkon now that we don’t fry food. The vegetables in this recipe are stellar in taste and texture so I was wondering if it would work with Renkon.
If so- do I have to soak it prior and how thin should the slices be? Thank you Nami.
Hi Bambi! Thank you so much for trying this recipe and I’m glad you enjoyed it. And congrats on owning a pressure cooker! Yay!! Your dinner sounds so delicious!
7 \s
Yes, you can use renkon for this recipe – it’ll work great as pressure cooking won’t make renkon too soft or overcook. I would cut using a “rangir” (cut while rotate) Japanese cutting style. 🙂
Hi Nami, this recipe looks amazing. I’m just wondering what can I substitute sake with? or will the taste be different if I skip the sake? Thank you.
Hi Chloe! I would really like you to add sake, as it has umami flavor and tenderize the meat which water can’t do. The first substitute suggestion would be Chinese rice wine, and dry sherry, then the last option is water… Hope you can find sake as sake is a big part of Japanese cooking and you will use it as often as soy sauce. 🙂
This turned out fabulous. I followed the recipe exactly but probably added a larger portion of veggies. The flavor is delicious, meat falling right off the bone.
Hi Jessica! So happy to hear that you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you so much for your kind feedback! 🙂
I have the mini instant pot (half your size). Would the cooking time be the same if I half the ingredients?
Hi Sophia! I have never used the mini IP so I am not 100% sure how it would be like, but I assume the cooking time should not matter that much as long as you reduce the size. Let me know if you try. Hope you enjoy the recipe!
My husband ordered Instant Pot for me last week. It is exactly the same brand but the newer version. I decided to make this recipe for my first time using the instant pot. It was very easy to follow your instructions. The recipe turns out very very delicious. My husband went for a second bowl. Thank you Nami. I am a big fan of you!
Hi Aom! Congratulations on getting the new IP! And I feel honored that you chose this recipe to try your IP for the first time! Thank you for your kind words and feedback! I’m happy you enjoyed the recipe! xo
Thank you so much for the recipe. I made the dish tonight, my picky eaters love it so much and asked for more. Thanks again!!!
Hi Amber! I’m so happy to hear your picky eaters enjoyed this dish! Yay!!! 😀 Thank you so much for leaving your kind feedback. xo
This looks great! I have a couple questions:
– what kind of sake should I get?
– can I add potatoes to this?
Thanks!
Hi Amanda! Yes, you can add potatoes, but if you don’t cut into bigger chunks (or stop pressure cooking in the middle and add in potatoes), potatoes may break into smaller pieces. Sake – I use a regular (cheaper) drinking sake as cooking sake includes salt and other stuff that I don’t need. It’s between $6-10 at Asian and Japanese grocery stores, and lasts pretty long time (unless I cook and use sake everyday like me haha). https://www.justonecookbook.com/pantry_items/sake/.