Quick and Easy Spicy Shrimp Tacos filled with spicy shrimp, Mexican pickled red onions, queso fresco, and a mango avocado salsa. They are a party in your mouth-- just like our carne asada tacos!
I love tacos! Are you ready for a simple yet tasty meal?
These shrimp tacos definitely fit the bill!
Reasons to make Spicy Shrimp Tacos
- Quick and easy plus a crowd-pleasing: Prepare our easy shrimp tacos in up to 30 minutes. They are so delish that even kids eat them and enjoy them! The shrimp cooks in just 4 minutes. It’s one of those "minute meals!" You spend more time chopping the ingredients for the salsa than cooking the protein.
- Versatile: This shrimp dish is so versatile that you can serve it as an easy dinner or for Taco Tuesday, or as a bite for sports games such as the Super Bowl. Use medium-size tortillas if serving them for dinner, or small tortillas to serve as bites or street tacos for the games.
- A complete meal: Our tacos contain carbs, lean protein, and veggies. They are perfect for busy weeknights!
- Healthy: They call for a healthy source of protein and contain a veggie-fruit salsa. Use gluten-free tortillas or keto tortillas, depending on your diet. This is truly a healthy shrimp recipe!
Ingredients and Substitutions for these Easy Shrimp Tacos
- Shrimp: Use tail-off raw shrimp that has been cleaned and peeled. If making our spicy shrimp tacos for dinner, buy extra-large fresh shrimp, but if serving them as small bites, medium shrimp works better! You may replace shrimp with fish to make fish tacos, but it will need to cook longer!
- Spices, herbs, and extra flavorings: I used salt, black pepper, ground cumin, and chili powder for a kick. I also used mint and lime juice to brighten the flavor of the shrimp, as well as white rum and fresh cilantro (or parsley) for extra flavor!
- Tortillas: Warm tortillas are the base of our tacos. You can use flour or corn tortillas, or gluten-free or keto tortillas, depending on your preferences or diet.
- Mango avocado salsa: Although optional, this adds freshness and a ton of flavor to these tacos! Use pico de gallo instead if you prefer!
- Pickled red onions: They will add color and a zing to the tacos. You can choose between the salsa and the pickled onions if you want, but top your tacos with at least one of them.
- Queso fresco: If you don’t have this, use another crumbled cheese such as feta.
- Sour cream: This is an optional topping! Choose one that fits your diet or use Greek yogurt instead!
Shrimp Tacos Recipe
We drew the inspiration for these spicy shrimp tacos from a traditional Cuban summer cocktail drink, mojito – which is made with fresh lime juice, mint, sugar, club soda, white rum, and ice.
We incorporated lime juice, white rum, and mint into a marinade to flavor the shrimp.
That’s right! 🙂 The very shrimp that will make our street tacos sizzle with a bold, super delish flavor.
But that’s not all!
Besides the shrimp flavored with a mojito mixture and cooked to perfection, our spicy shrimp tacos call for crumbled queso fresco, Mexican pickled red onions, and a mango avocado salsa (optional).
Although it is optional, the mango avocado salsa is a flavorful attraction all on its own– mango, avocado, red onion, cilantro/parsley, jalapeno, lemon juice, and salt make this salsa the perfect element to heap onto the shrimp.
Both have kind of a Caribbean vibe! A kaleidoscope of colors and flavors.
Is your mouth watering already?
Definitely, something to bring the heat to the game and fill your belly with joy. It just screams FIESTA!
As a final touch, you could drizzle these spicy shrimp tacos with sour cream and pair with a drink: a mojito itself, or you can serve with a Brazilian lemonade, caipirinha, or this peach michelada instead. Cheers!
Can I use frozen shrimp?
Yes, you use frozen shrimp! But make sure the shrimp is also raw. It will absorb the spices while cooking!
If your shrimp is frozen, either thaw it in a bowl of cold water or let it sit in the marinade for up to 20 minutes at room temp. Never use hot water because it will start to cook the shrimp and the possibility of overcooking it is higher!
You can also use this method for air fryer shrimp from frozen to defrost the raw, frozen shrimp. It thaws in just 5 minutes!
Shrimp Marinade
Marinades usually serve 2 purposes: to add flavor and to tenderize! You can marinate the shrimp at room temp with a mixture of salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, lime juice, and vegetable oil briefly before cooking. To do this, just mix all these ingredients together in a bowl and cover or place them into a large freezer bag and let the marinated shrimp sit on the counter for 15-20 minutes.
But it is really not necessary! The shrimp will be well-seasoned and have a ton of flavor without marinating!
Moreover, shrimp is not the type of protein that needs to be tenderized in order to cook!
Marinating or not, this recipe let's you cook and enjoy the best spicy shrimp tacos recipe ever!
How to warm up tortillas
Corn tortillas are way more fragile than flour tortillas because they break apart or tear more easily-- especially when they are at room temp!
There is more than one way to warm them up, but my preferred way is this:
- Heat a skillet to medium-high heat.
- Spray both sides of the tortilla with cooking spray, or lightly brush some oil on top.
- Then, place oiled tortillas on the hot skillet and cook for 1-2 minutes on each side or until they get warm and slightly browned. Make sure to watch them closely in order to not brown too much.
The warm flour tortilla is still less breakable than a corn tortilla! That is why I use either a single flour tortilla or double corn tortillas in my tacos.
How to Make Spicy Shrimp Tacos
- To make this spicy shrimp taco recipe, prepare the salsa first (OPTIONAL): In a medium bowl, combine the mango, avocado, red onion, jalapeno, lime juice, salt, and cilantro/parsley. You can use your food processor to chop the salsa ingredients! Cover and chill in the fridge.
2. Meanwhile, prepare the spicy shrimp. Season shrimp with salt, pepper, cumin, and chili powder, mixing well. Then, heat vegetable oil in a large no-stick skillet over medium-high heat and add the seasoned shrimp. Cook shrimp for about 3 minutes. Add the rum and let cook until slightly evaporated about 30 seconds. Reduce heat!
3. Over medium heat, add the garlic, and cook for about 30-60 seconds, stirring every now and then. Do not let brown!
4. Add the mint, remove the pan from heat, and squeeze the lime juice all over the shrimp. Toss the cilantro/parsley and arrange the tacos.
5. To arrange the spicy shrimp tacos, warm the tortillas and then place either: a) one flour tortilla on a flat surface or b) double tortillas (one on top of the other) on a flat surface if using corn tortillas, which are more fragile.
6. Fill the tortilla with a bit of the mango avocado salsa on top, then the cooked shrimp, crumbled cheese, pickled red onions, and a drizzle of sour cream, plus lime wedges on the side.
7. Repeat the process so that you end up with 12 street tacos (small bites) or 6 regular-size tacos (quick dinner meal). Enjoy!
What to serve with
Although our spicy shrimp tacos are a complete meal, you may serve them with any of these sides:
- Instant Pot black beans
- Roasted carrots
- Yuca Fries
- Guacamole (or drizzle avocado crema or avocado cilantro sauce, or with this creamy avocado dip)
Storage
Store salsa and shrimp leftovers in separate airtight containers in the fridge for up to 3 days. Re-heat shrimp in order to assemble the tacos.
Freezing either the salsa or the shrimp is not recommended because the salsa will be mushy after thawing and the shrimp may become rubbery.
Other shrimp recipes to enjoy:
- Blackened shrimp
- Shrimp a la diabla
- Garlic shrimp spaghetti
- Garlic butter shrimp
- Shrimp fajitas
- Shrimp cocktail
PIN & ENJOY!
Easy Spicy Shrimp Tacos
Equipment
- skillet
- bowls
- knife
Ingredients
For the Mango Avocado Salsa (OPTIONAL):
- ½ cup cubed mango
- ½ cup cubed avocado
- ¼ cup chopped red onion
- 2 Tablespoons chopped jalapeno
- 1 lime, juiced
- A pinch of salt
- 2-3 Tablespoons chopped cilantro or parsley
For the Spicy Shrimp:
- 12 ounces extra-large raw shrimp (thawed, deveined, and peel-and-tail-off) If making street tacos, use medium shrimp.
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 Tablespoons white rum OPTIONAL
- 5 fresh mint leaves, chopped
- 2 limes, juiced
- 3-4 Tablespoons chopped cilantro or parsley
Others:
- 6 tortillas If using small tortillas to make street tacos, yields 12 tacos. If using corn tortillas to make regular tacos, use 12 tortillas (one over the other to hold the filling because they tear apart easily), I used low-carb tortillas!
- 8 tablespoon crumbled queso fresco or feta cheese
- sour cream OPTIONAL
Instructions
- To make this spicy shrimp taco recipe, prepare the salsa first (OPTIONAL): In a medium bowl, combine the mango, avocado, red onion, jalapeno, lime juice, salt, and cilantro/parsley. You can use your food processor to chop the salsa ingredients! Cover and chill in the fridge.
- Meanwhile, prepare the spicy shrimp. Season shrimp with salt, pepper, cumin, and chili powder, mixing well. Then, heat vegetable oil in a large no-stick skillet over medium-high heat and add the seasoned shrimp. Cook shrimp for about 3 minutes. Add the rum and let cook until slightly evaporated (about 30 seconds). Reduce heat!
- Over medium heat, add the garlic, and cook for about 30-60 seconds, stirring every now and then. Do not let brown!
- Add the mint, remove the pan from heat, and squeeze the lime juice all over the shrimp. Toss the cilantro/parsley and arrange the tacos.
- To arrange the spicy shrimp tacos, warm the tortillas and then place either a) one flour tortilla on a flat surface or b) double tortillas (one on top of the other) on a flat surface if using corn tortillas, which are more fragile.
- Fill the tortilla with a bit of the mango avocado salsa on top, then the cooked shrimp, crumbled cheese, pickled red onions, and a drizzle of sour cream, plus lime wedges on the side.
- Repeat the process so that you end up with 12 street tacos (small bites) or 6 regular-size tacos (quick dinner meal). Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
- The double tortilla helps to prevent breaking and spilling of the filling.
- The nutritional facts omit any optional ingredient from the calculation, including the mango avocado salsa. It also calculated low-carb tortillas instead of regular tortillas!
- Heat a skillet to medium-high heat.
- Spray both sides of the tortilla with cooking spray or lightly brush some oil on top.
- Then, place oiled tortillas on the hot skillet and cook for 1-2 minutes on each side, or until they get warm and slightly browned. Make sure to watch them closely in order to not brown too much.
Nutrition
** Nutrition labels on easyanddelish.com are for educational purposes only. This info is provided as a courtesy and is only an estimate, since the nutrition content of recipes can vary based on ingredient brand or source, portion sizes, recipe changes/variations, and other factors. We suggest making your own calculations using your preferred calculator, based on which ingredients you use, or consulting with a registered dietitian to determine nutritional values more precisely.
Please note that health-focused and diet information provided on easyanddelish.com is for educational purposes and does not constitute medical advice, nor is it intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease. Consult with your doctor or other qualified health professional prior to initiating any significant change in your diet or exercise regimen, or for any other issue necessitating medical advice.
Post first published on February 1st, 2018.
Deb|EastofEdenCooking says
I'm always looking for new shrimp recipes. It's a personal favorite and oh so good! These mojito flavors really brighten up a winter dinner, fabulous Denise!
John / Kitchen Riffs says
This is definitely mouth watering! Love tacos, love shrimp, so you know I'll love this. :- Thanks!
Raymund says
Now this is my type of snacks!
Josiah - DIY Thrill says
These shrimp tacos look so delicious, such a fun weeknight meal idea!