2-dimensional Co nanoparticles embedded in N-doped carbon nanosheets (NCNS) are derived from indium-based frameworks which are impregnated with discrete [Co(NH3)6]3+ ions by high-temperature pyrolysis as a new approach to convert a 3-dimensional porous metal-organic frameworks (CPM-5) to 2-dimensional functional nanosheets. The as-made porous Co, N-doped carbon nanosheets (NCNS–Co 0.5 In 0.5 ) perform the excellent ORR catalytic activity with a half wave potential of 0.82 V in comparison with the commercial Pt/C. Meanwhile, it also owns good stability and methanol tolerance as a suitable catalyst for zinc-air batteries with a high power density of 132.2 mW cm−2. This method can easily be extended to other In-based MOFs, including QMOF-2, In-MIL-68, InOF-1, in which all the corresponding derived materials exhibit efficient ORR performance. Especially, the porous Co, N-doped carbon nanosheets annealed from InOF-1 (InOF-1-Co-800) display an Eonset of 0.93 V, a half-wave potential of 0.85V, and a diffusion-limited current of 5.40 mA cm−2 density. Our work provides a new path to tune the morphology and catalytic performance of MOF derivatives.