Tender chunks of pork simmer in a savory tomato-herb sauce in this easy Instant Pot Pork Ragout. It’s a cozy, flavor-packed meal that tastes like it cooked all day, but comes together fast.
Kitchen trends always seem to come full circle. Fondue pots had their moment in the 70s, disappeared, then made a comeback in the 2000s. Crockpots, though, never really left; they’ve only become more essential for busy home cooks.
Now the pressure cooker (Instant Pot) is back in a big way. Unlike the loud, scary stovetop versions from decades past, today’s models are safe, fast, and quickly becoming a modern kitchen must-have.
After all those years of being told to steer clear of a pressure cooker, I bit the bullet and bought one.
The first dish I made in it was BBQ baby back ribs, and yes, fall-off-the-bone ribs in just 20 minutes. Are you kidding me?! This thing is amazing. If you don’t have one yet, get it; you won’t regret it. The instruction manual is pretty minimal, but if you have questions about anything like cleaning or locking the lid, feel free to ask; I’m happy to help!
Since the ribs were such a huge success, I decided to take one of my standby dishes, Pork Ragout, and see how it would translate in the Instant Pot.
Have you ever had a true ragù before? And no, I’m not talking about jarred spaghetti sauce.
In northern Italian cooking, ragù is a meat-based sauce made with sautéed vegetables, aromatics, and a liquid such as stock, wine, or tomatoes, and then slowly braised until rich and flavorful. It’s more about the meat than the tomatoes, unlike the typical tomato-heavy pasta sauces most people think of. In other words, it’s a slow-cooked meat sauce with depth… not just “spaghetti sauce with meat in it.”
This dish is super simple to prepare since I start it the same way I do for the oven or crockpot version. I brown half the seasoned pork, sauté the onions until soft and translucent, then add the garlic, red pepper flakes (trust me, you want these in the dish. They don’t make it spicy, but they add depth and flavor), and tomato paste.
The key is cooking the tomato paste until you can smell it “toasting.” When cooked in a pan without liquid, tomato paste becomes richer and more intense, but it can burn quickly, so you have to watch it closely. You’ll notice it change from a bright red to a deeper, darker color after a few minutes over medium-high heat. That color shift is your cue: the flavor has intensified, and the base will be rich and deep.
You should really do this anytime you use tomato paste; it makes a huge difference in sauces like marinara, pizza sauce, or Italian gravy. Once you “fry” it, you’ll immediately taste the depth it adds, and you’ll never go back.
After that, I deglaze the pot to loosen up all those flavorful bits. Traditionally you’d use wine, but I didn’t have any on hand, so I just let it cook down until most of the liquid evaporated. Then I added the remaining ingredients, set the pressure cooker to high, and cooked for 20 minutes.
The first time I used it, I thought something was wrong because nothing seemed to happen right away. I didn’t realize it has to build pressure for about 8 minutes before the countdown starts. Once it’s going, though, it’s completely quiet, which I love. It also has a nice footprint on the counter: not tiny, but not bulky either.
This is one of those meals that ends up on repeat in our house because it’s simple, comforting, and packed with flavor. Every bite is rich, tender, and exactly what you want from a cozy ragout. I have a feeling once you try it, it’ll earn a permanent spot in your dinner rotation too.
PrintInstant Pot Pork Ragout
Tender chunks of pork simmer in a savory tomato-herb sauce in this easy Instant Pot Pork Ragout. It’s a cozy, flavor-packed meal that tastes like it cooked all day, but comes together fast.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 4-6
Ingredients
- 2 lbs boneless country-style pork spare ribs cut into 1 1/2” cubes
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 medium yellow onion, cut into small pieces
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
- 2 1/2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 3/4 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 28 ounces of crushed tomatoes
- 1 1/4 cups chicken stock (low sodium)
- 1 teaspoon parsley
- 8 fresh basil leaves, torn
Instructions
- In an Instant Pot, set it to sauté. Add in the oil.
- Pat the pork dry and season with salt and black pepper. Place half of the pork in the bottom of your Instant Pot (do not overcrowd). Brown on all sides ~6-8 minutes.
- Add in the onion and stir, cooking until the onion is soft and translucent. ~6 minutes. Add in the garlic, stir, and cook for 1 minute. Add in the tomato paste, dried basil, and red pepper flakes, stirring to incorporate. Cook until you can ‘smell’ the tomato paste cooking. ~30-45 seconds. Make sure you stir this as to not burn it.
- Add 1/2 cup of stock and stir gently, scraping up any bits stuck to the bottom of your pan with a wooden spoon or rubber-tipped spatula. Cook for about 2 minutes or until most of the liquid has evaporated.
- Add in the rest of the pork, chicken stock, and crushed tomatoes. Place the lid on the pressure cooker, lock it, and set it to High pressure for 20 minutes.
- When done, immediately shut off the pressure cooker and allow it to release naturally. ~15 minutes.
- Remove the lid and, using a spoon, carefully spoon off the fat at the top of the sauce. Next, turn the Instant Pot back on and set it to sauté to thicken the sauce. Once your machine is up to temperature for browning, cook for ~5-7 minutes or until thickened. Add in the parsley and torn basil, and taste for seasoning. Serve over pasta.
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