I had half a pound of frozen shrimp (30/40 count) in my freezer leftover from making Blackened Shrimp Pasta, so I decided to try Blackened Shrimp a new way—Blacked Shrimp Tacos! Because tacos are always good, right??
The blackened shrimp is so simple and so extremely flavorful that they can pretty much carry the tacos themselves. I added a super simple slaw to bulk up the dish and to balance the spicy blackening seasoning. The slight sweetness of the slaw and its tangy Dijon mustard are absolutely perfect with the smoky heat of the blackened shrimp. And then I wanted the Blackened Shrimp Tacos to have just a little more pizzaz, so I whipped up a small batch of smoky garlic lime sauce to drizzle on top.
The flavor play between the blackened shrimp, slaw, and smoky garlic lime sauce is AMAZING.
Toast Your Tortillas For More Flavor
One tip that I always give for tacos is to always toast the corn tortillas first. It really magnifies their flavor and helps strengthen the tacos so that you can stuff ’em full without them ripping apart. I’ve included a photo of my favorite brand, which have proven to be quite sturdy, in the step-by-steps below.
How Many Does This Recipe Serve?
The batch below is fairly small because I only had a half pound of shrimp on hand. With 30/40 count shrimp that meant I had 18 individual shrimp. I put three shrimp in each taco, so that gave me six tacos. Whether you eat 2 or 3 tacos per “serving” is really subjective, so I just listed the price as per taco rather than a suggested servings size.
What to Serve with Blackened Shrimp Tacos
These tasty little tacos go great with: Cumin Lime Sweet Potatoes, Warm Corn and Avocado Salad, Chili Roasted Sweet Potatoes, or Cilantro Lime Rice.
Are These Shrimp Tacos Spicy?
I would call these tacos “medium” spicy, but that will depend on your sensitivity to spicy foods. Because I used a homemade Cajun seasoning blend for the blackened shrimp, you can adjust the heat to your liking. To make the shrimp tacos less spicy, reduce the cayenne pepper by half. To make them more spicy, increase the amount of cayenne pepper.
Blackened Shrimp Tacos
Servings 6 tacosIngredients
COLESLAW
- 1/3 cup mayonnaise ($0.40)
- 1/2 Tbsp honey ($0.06)
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard ($0.06)
- 1 tsp red wine vinegar ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- Freshly cracked pepper ($0.03)
- 1/2 bag coleslaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrots) ($.75)
- 3 green onions, sliced ($0.28)
SMOKY GARLIC LIME SAUCE
- 1/3 cup mayonnaise ($0.40)
- 1/8 tsp garlic powder ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika ($0.02)
- 1/8 tsp salt ($0.01)
- 1 lime (1 Tbsp juice) ($0.39)
BLACKENING SEASONING
- 1 Tbsp smoked paprika ($0.30)
- 1 tsp dried thyme ($0.10)
- 1 tsp dried oregano ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp cumin ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne ($0.03)
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder ($0.03)
- 1/4 tsp onion powder ($0.03)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- Freshly cracked pepper ($0.02)
TACOS
- 1/2 lb peeled and deveined shrimp (30/40 count) ($4.00)
- 1 Tbsp butter ($0.13)
- 1 clove garlic, minced ($0.08)
- 6 small corn tortillas ($0.30)
- 3 green onions, sliced ($0.28)
Instructions
- To prepare the coleslaw dressing, mix together the mayonnaise, honey, Dijon, red wine vinegar, salt, and some freshly cracked pepper in a bowl. Place the coleslaw mix and sliced green onions in a bowl and add about 3/4 of the dressing. Stir until everything is coated in dressing, then add more dressing if desired. Refrigerate the slaw until ready to serve.
- To prepare the smoky garlic lime sauce, stir together the mayonnaise, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and the juice from half a lime (about 1 Tbsp) in a small bowl. Save the other half of the lime to serve as wedges with the finished tacos.
- Heat a dry skillet over medium heat. Once the skillet is hot, toast the tortillas on each side until browned on the edges. Place the toasted tortillas on stacked on a plate and covered with a towel until ready to serve.
- Prepare the blackening seasoning by stirring together the smoked paprika, thyme, oregano, cumin, cayenne, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and freshly cracked pepper in a bowl. Pour the seasoning over the shrimp and stir until the shrimp are coated.
- Add the butter and minced garlic to a large skillet. Cook over medium heat for about one minute, or until the garlic is fragrant and slightly softened. Add the seasoned shrimp and sauté just until the shrimp is firm (about 3-5 minutes). Remove the skillet from the heat to prevent over cooking the shrimp.
- To serve the tacos, place about 1/4 cup coleslaw in each tortilla, top with 3 shrimp, a drizzle of the smoky garlic lime sauce, and a few sliced green onions. Squeeze a wedge of fresh lime over top.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Nutrition
Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Blackened Shrimp Tacos – Step by Step Photos
Mix up the coleslaw dressing first by combining 1/3 cup mayonnaise, 1/2 Tbsp honey, 1 tsp Dijon, 1 tsp red wine vinegar, 1/4 tsp salt, and some freshly cracked pepper in a bowl.
Place one bag of coleslaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrots) in a large bowl, add 3 sliced green onions, and the dressing. I suggest starting with about half of the slaw dressing first and add more as desired.
Stir until everything is mixed and coated in dressing. Refrigerate until the tacos are ready to serve. The coleslaw will soften a bit with time in the fridge, so if you like a super crisp slaw, wait to add the dressing until just before you serve the tacos.
Next, mix up the small batch of smoky garlic lime sauce. In a small bowl combine 1/3 cup mayo, 1/8 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp smoked paprika, 1/8 tsp salt, and about 1 Tbsp of fresh lime juice (from half of a lime, save the other half to serve as wedges to squeeze over the finished tacos).
Pre-heat a dry skillet over medium heat. Once hot, toast the corn tortillas on each side until they are browned on the edges. Stack the toasted tortillas on a plate and cover with a towel until ready to serve.
Prepare the blackening seasoning by combining 1 Tbsp smoked paprika, 1 tsp dried thyme, 1 tsp dried oregano, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp cayenne, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp onion powder, 1/4 tsp salt, and some freshly cracked pepper in a small bowl.
Pour the seasoning mix over 1/2 lb. 30/40 count peeled and deveined shrimp and stir until they are coated.
Add 1 Tbsp butter and 1 clove garlic to a large skillet and sauté over medium heat for about one minute or until the garlic is fragrant and softened.
Add the seasoned shrimp and continue to sauté until the shrimp are firm and opaque (this is really fast, maybe 3-5 minutes). Remove the skillet from the heat.
To build the Blackened Shrimp Tacos, place about 1/4 cup coleslaw on each tortilla, top with 3 shrimp, a drizzle of the smoky garlic lime sauce, and a few sliced green onions.
Yaaaassssssssss.
I have never tried shrimp tacos before. I like this idea.
Made these and had to comment! They were SO. DANG. DELICIOUS. My husband and I honestly just wanted to say, “screw it” and eat all the tacos with no leftovers for lunch…but we restrained ourselves…barely. I will be making this again in the very near future (I think for my in-laws who are gluten free).
I served this with a side of green onion & lime lime rice and it made a nice complete meal out of it with fruit. I also added a little franks hot sauce to the coleslaw dressing to give it some more heat. I ran out of mayo so I couldn’t make the lime sauce but it will be on the menu next time!
This is easily one of those recipes that will impress all your friends and family but it so simple. I feel that this website has so many of those and I am LOVING the new meal prep series.
Thank you!
Made these tonight and my boyfriend said they were some of the best shrimp tacos he’d ever had, and he’s a taco connoisseur! Will definitely make these again.
This is my most favorite recipe to date. It was very easy to make on a weeknight and loved by my husband and toddler, too. Thanks Beth.
I absolutely loved these! Simple to make and so flavorful. I’m making it again today.
Can I just say DAMN! These were AMAZING. I usually don’t have good luck trying new recipes, but my husband is so patient with me. I had to tweak some things as I didn’t have all the ingredients (white rice vinegar instead of red wine, yellow mustard instead of dijon, chili powder and red chili flakes instead of cayenne.. I also didn’t have enough mayonnaise for both….so I ended up making the sauce and slaw TOGETHER) Needless to say, I was worried. Like I was “going to have to go get take out” worried. Husband and kid approved. Make these damn delicious tacos people and just enjoy all the flavors! Adding this to our list of go to favorites!
You’re speaking my language, Beth. I LOVE shrimp tacos!!!! :-)
Yummy! I had avocado I added to the sauce
B-
Couldn’t help smiling when I read your synopsis above the recipe. Specifically, “Because tacos are always good, right?? ”
From “The Dawn Patrol” by Don Winslow
“Everything,” Boone says, “tastes better on a tortilla.”
This is an article of faith with Boone. He’s lived his life with it and believes it to be true. You take anything—fish, chicken, beef, cheese, eggs, even peanut butter and jelly—and fold them in the motherly embrace of a warm flour tortilla and all those foods respond to the love by upping their game.
Everything does taste better on a tortilla.
Has anyone experimented with using fish like tilapia instead of shrimp?
There is a glaring error (blacened?) in one of your PIN photos.
WOW. That is mortifying! Thank you for the heads up. It’s fixed now for all future pins but unfortunately there’s no way to take back all the pins that are already out there! *hides under a rock*
Great recipe! My family loved it and believe me, I have a couple of very picky eaters. Thank you :)
These look like a real crowd pleaser! Definitely going to have to try them!
I made these tonight, and doubled the recipe, for my husband and two teenaged sons. There are almost NO leftovers, except for what I pulled out ahead of time for my lunch tomorrow! (This is what I’ve learned to do if I want to eat the next day….) LOVED THIS RECIPE.
Wow! These were amazing! We will definitely be making these again. As a wife and mom of 4 finding something that everyone likes is nearly impossible. These, however, made everyone VERY happy! Thank you for sharing this recipe!