These tacos are light and full of flavor, they are also easy to make and work well for a weeknight dinner. The inspiration came from an early dinner with my girlfriend at a local taco place near our house. They had these delicious fish tacos with a cabbage slaw that had a savory note and finished light and crisp. My girlfriend isn’t a big fan of fish so I changed it up and used shrimp instead. I had never cooked shrimp tacos before so I hopped on the web for some inspiration and guidance. I found all that and more over at Pinchofyum.com; this will be a variation of their recipe.
My favorite part of this dish is the shrimp, they are the heroes of the day with plenty of pow and sizzle to keep you wanting more. The slaw helps cool them down while adding garlic and lime to the mix and keeping everything fresh and light. I experimented with both flour and corn tortillas and settled on using a white corn version I found at CUB, but you can use whatever suits your taste.
When I first made these tacos, it was the end of summer and the nights were long and warm, I can’t help but remember that warmth every time I make these, even in the dead of winter.
Now this is one of my early recipes and the pictures are a bit sub-par, but I’m slowly learning the art of food photography and I think I’m starting to improve so bear with me…
Prep time: 5-10 min. Cook time: 10 min.
Serves: 4 (2 tacos each)
Ingredients:
For the sauce:
- ¼ cup water
- ¼ cup oil (canola or vegetable)
- ½ cup chopped green onions
- ½ cup cilantro leaves (save some for garnish)
- 2-4 garlic cloves (I love garlic)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Juice of 2 limes
- ½ cup sour cream
For the shrimp tacos:
- 1 lb. shrimp de-veined, peeled, and tails removed
- 1 tbsp. oil
- 1 tsp. cumin
- 1 tsp. chili powder
- 1 tsp. southwest seasoning (I used Weber N’Orleans Cajun seasoning)
- ½ tsp. cayenne pepper
- 3 cups shredded green cabbage (or bagged slaw mix)
- 8 small corn or flour tortillas
- 2 avocados
- Cotija cheese and cilantro for garnish
- Lime wedges for serving
Instructions:
- Add all the sauce ingredients except the sour cream to a food processor or blender (I didn’t have a food processor when I first made these) then pulse until combined, but not smooth. Add the sour cream and adjust to taste. Set this aside until ready to assemble the tacos
- Add 1 tablespoon oil to a large skillet, and while that heats up, pat dry the shrimp and place in a small mixing bowl. Sprinkle spices over shrimp and combine. Add shrimp to the pan once hot and cook for 5-8 minutes (depending on the size of your shrimp) flipping occasionally until cooked.
- Add about half the sauce to the cabbage (add more if you like) to make the slaw, I like mine to be a bit light and add more sauce over the top at the end. The rest of the sauce can be saved for the next day if there are any left-overs, do not try to keep the prepared slaw overnight as it will get slimy.
- To assemble the tacos: smash up some avocado and spread on tortilla, then top with a few pieces of shrimp and cover with a bit of the tasty slaw. For garnish and extra flavor; top with cotija cheese, cilantro and serve with a lime wedge.