Shrimp Fajitas

These shrimp fajitas are a super easy, family friendly dinner that’s incredibly delicious. This is highly requested by my entire family whenever we have fresh or frozen shrimp on hand.

These fajitas consist of tortillas, marinated then grilled shrimp, sautéed peppers and onions, homemade guacamole, and a corn sour cream crema.

They come together in 45 minutes, after the shrimp have been marinated! The rest of the components are super simple and super delicious.

These are also super fun for dinner because they are assembled right at the table, allowing anyone to customize their fajita!

Ingredients:

• 8 tortillas

For the shrimp marinade:

• 1.5-2 lbs shrimp, peeled
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 lemon, zested and juiced
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 1/2 tbsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp coriander
• 1/4 tsp cayenne
• 1/2 tsp sumac
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp salt

For the sautéed vegetables:

• 2 bell peppers
• 2 white/yellow onions
• 1/2-1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon

For the guacamole:

• 2 medium avocados
• 1/4 red onion
• 2 handfuls cherry tomatoes
• 1 jalapeño
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/4 lemon, juiced
• 1-2 tbsp olive oil

For the corn crema:

• 2 ears corn
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 tbsp water + enough water to fill a small pot enough to boil the corn
• 1/2 tsp + pinch of salt
• pinch of pepper

Instructions:

For the shrimp:

1. Add all of the listed ingredients (olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, pepper, paprika, cumin, coriander, cayenne, sumac, and oregano) to a bowl with the shrimp. Give them a gentle stir and cover with plastic wrap. Put in the fridge to marinate for 10 minutes to 3 hours. The marination of the shrimp will help develop their flavor and emphasize their natural sweetness, so try and allocate as much time as you have for it.
2. When ready to cook, heat up a cast iron grill or large pan. Cook the shrimp for about 2 minutes on the first side and 1-2 minutes on the second side, just until opaque and cooked through in the center. Make sure not to keep flipping them, try and flip them only one time, to help get a good color on both sides. To cook this amount of shrimp, it typically takes about 3 batches, which equates to just about 10 minutes to cook all of them. It’s also better to undercook them marginally because they will continue to cook from the residual heat after you take them off the heat.

For the crema:

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add 1/2 tsp of salt, then add the corn and boil for 10 minutes. Make sure the water is boiling the whole time, and there is no need to cover the pot.
2. Heat up a grill or pan and grill the corn for about 15-20 minutes, until charred. Let the corn cool. I would say to grill the corn for about 3-5 minutes on each side, but since corn is cylindrical that doesn’t make sense. However, I would grill the corn on “4 sides”.
3. Combine the sour cream, pinch of salt, pepper, and water in a bowl. Use a knife to cut the corn kernels off of the center of the ear and add it to the sour cream. Mix, and adjust the seasoning. If you find that you accidentally added too much salt, feel free to add some lemon juice to bring back some acidity.

For the sautéed vegetables:

1. Prepare the onions and peppers by slicing them both thinly. Heat up a cast iron pan and add the olive oil. Sauté the vegetables for 5 minutes on high heat, stirring occasionally. Try not to stir too frequently as you want the vegetables to develop some color.
2. Add the salt, pepper, paprika, and cinnamon and continue cooking the vegetables on medium-low heat for another 20-25 minutes until they are soft and cooked through. I would also recommend not covering the pan with a lid because I find that creates a lot of water in the bottom, and there are few things worse than watery vegetables.

For the guacamole:

1. Start by cutting the avocados in half and remove the pit. Add the avocados into a bowl and mash until smooth. Finely dice the tomatoes, red onions, jalapeño, and cilantro. Try your best to get pieces that are smaller than bite-size but that won’t immediately disappear into the avocado mash. Add to the mashed avocado with olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Adjust the seasoning to your taste.

Assembly:

1. For the tortillas: Heat these on an open flame or in a pan 10-15 seconds per side until warmed through.
2. Make the fajita: Into a warmed tortilla, add 3-5 shrimp, a spoonful of vegetables, guacamole, and crema. Try not to overfill it (I always end up adding too much of the delicious fillings, but the messiness adds to the fun of the food!) Enjoy!

Shrimp Fajitas

These shrimp fajitas are a super easy, family friendly dinner that’s incredibly delicious. This is highly requested by my entire family whenever we have fresh or frozen shrimp on hand.These fajitas consist of tortillas, marinated then grilled shrimp, sautéed peppers and onions, homemade guacamole, and a corn sour cream crema.

They come together in 45 minutes, after the shrimp have been marinated! The rest of the components are super simple and super delicious.

These are also super fun for dinner because they are assembled right at the table, allowing anyone to customize their fajita!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Mexican

Servings 4 people

Calories 544 kcal

Equipment

• cast iron pan/grill
• good knife

Ingredients

  

• 8 tortillas

Shrimp:

• 1.5-2 lbs shrimp medium, peeled
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 lemon zested, juiced
• 1/2 cup cilantro finely chopped
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 1/2 tbsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp coriander
• 1/4 tsp cayenne
• 1/2 tsp sumac
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp salt

Sauteed Vegetables

• 2 bell peppers medium
• 2 yellow/white onions
• 1/2-1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon

Guacamole

• 2 avocados medium
• 1/4 red onion
• 2 handfuls cherry tomatoes
• 1 jalapeno
• 1/4 cup cilantro finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/4 lemon juiced
• 1-2 tbsp olive oil

Corn crema

• 2 ears corn medium
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 8 cups water plus 1 tbsp
• 1/2 tsp salt plus an additional pinch
• one pinch pepper

Instructions

 

For the shrimp:

• Add the shrimp and the ingredients listed for the marinade (olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, cilantro, paprika, cumin, coriander, cayenne, sumac, oregano, salt, and pepper) to a bowl and mix gently.
• Cover with plastic wrap and set in the fridge to marinate anywhere between 10 minutes and 3 hours.
• When ready to cook the shrimp, heat a large cast iron pan or grill. Cook the shrimp for 2 minutes on the first side, then 1-2 minutes on the second side until completely opaque in the center.

Sauteed Vegetables:

• Slice the peppers and onions into thin, longer slices and set aside. Heat a large cast iron pan and add 1/2 tbsp olive oil. Add the peppers and onions and cook for 5 minutes.
• Reduce the heat to medium/low and add the salt, pepper, paprika, and cinnamon. Cook for a further 20-25 minutes until the peppers and onions are soft.

Guacamole:

• Cut the avocados in half, take out the pit, and scoop them out into a bowl. Mash with a fork or potato masher until smooth.
• Chop the tomatoes into small pieces, and finely dice the onion and jalapeno. Add these, along with the cilantro, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper to the mashed avocado.
• Mix gently and adjust the seasoning to your taste.

Corn crema:

• Bring the 8 cups of water to a bowl. Add 1/2 tsp of salt and the 2 ears of corn, then boil for 10 minutes. After, remove the corn and dry it off.
• Heat a large cast iron pan/grill. Add the corn and grill it until it is somewhat charred, about 15-20 minutes. Cool.
• Mix together the sour cream, water, pinch of salt, and pinch of pepper. Using a knife, cut the corn kernels off of the center of the ear of corn and add to the sour cream. Mix.

Assembly:

• Heat the tortillas in a pan of your own choice or on an open flame for 10-15 seconds on each side.
• To assemble, take a tortilla and add 3-5 shrimp, a spoonful of sauteed vegetables, and a scoop of both the guacamole and crema. Enjoy!

Notes

• The calories listed above do not include tortillas, as those depend on the ones you choose to use.
• Macros: 34 g fat, 24.1 g carbohydrates, 39 g protein
• The shrimp can also be substituted with chicken, beef, or even tofu! Feel free to make changes and adjust the seasoning to your taste to help it coordinate with the protein you choose. 
• When I make this recipe, I typically use one cast iron grill and one large cast iron pan for all of the components. To make it in 45 minutes, here are the steps that I follow: I start with the shrimp, and get those marinating in advance. Then, I put the water on the stove to boil for the corn. After, I start by preparing the vegetables for the saute and for the guacamole, so I can have those in advance. After I have those prepared, the water is typically boiling for the corn. While the corn is boiling, I start the sauteed vegetables. After the corn is done boiling, I throw it on the grill and make the guacamole and sour cream mix for the crema. During this, the vegetables are still slowly cooking and I can start the shrimp on the remaining area of the grill. The shrimp cook super fast, so I take this time to set the table and clean while I wait. By the time I get all the shrimp cooked (it typically takes about 3 batches) the corn is done and I can start heating the tortillas. I can also add the corn to the crema, and everything is ready to go!
• See the blog post above for a more descriptive version of this recipe. 

Keyword delicious, dinner, easy, family, healthy, shrimp