Cajun-Style Shrimp Tacos with Chipotle Crema

Today, I became a “Shrimp Taco” believer. I love tacos and I like shrimp, too. However, I have been reluctant to put the two entrees (tacos and shrimp) together because it seems like an odd pairing. After noticing “Shrimp Tacos” as a menu item at enough local Mexican-type restaurants, I realize that these must be pretty good. I finally decided to make “Cajun-Style Shrimp Tacos” for supper. Surprise and Wow! This turned out to be a quick and easy preparation and really tasty.

At our home, I always serve tacos with a smorgasboard of toppings for family members to create their own tacos. And, I added a knock-out homemade Chipotle Crema. Easy supper. I plan on adding this to my list of “family favorite” taco meals.

Taco Tuesday Traditions

Our family has observed “Taco Tuesday” suppers for as long as I can remember. Back in the day as a youngster — before Mexican restaurants, (and even Taco Bell), arrived on the scene — we made homemade tacos. We used Old El Paso Taco Dinner Kits which contained crispy hard corn taco shells, a seasoning packet and taco sauce. Simply add your own ground meat to the seasoning packet and serve with chopped lettuce, tomatoes and green onions for toppings. As the years went by, we increased the variety and number of smorgasboard toppings. We often make a “taco salad” meal just of the toppings, meat and crumbled corn taco shells. Now, I also make the seasoning for the ground beef from scratch as a way to eliminate the high sodium seasoning packets and ramp down on the spices to meet our family’s dietary needs. And we have learned to include both flour tortillas and corn tortillas rather than the hard taco shells in the dinner kits.

Cajun-Inspired Shrimp Tacos

Tonight, I made “Shrimp Tacos” with using a Cajun-inspired theme. I tossed the shrimp in homemade Cajun seasoning and sautéed in a little butter. Yes, just a little butter. Traditional Cajun recipes use extreme amounts of butter — you can get the same results with much less. Onions and bell pepper are often used as seasonings in Cajun cooking — I sautéed these vegetables in a little oil to use as a taco topping — to continue the Cajun theme. Plus, I used a “Big Bertha” green pepper from my garden.

Shrimp for Tacos

Two keys to these tacos are using flavorful shrimp and the Chipotle Crema (more about that later). I have found a brand of frozen, peeled and deveined shrimp which I absolutely love. The dishes which use these shrimp are flavortul and juicy — not tough at all. So much easier than purchasing fresh shrimp and peeling them myself.

These shrimp are individually frozen. Defrost just what you need for a recipe. They are medium-sized shrimp, 31-40 count.

Defrost the shrimp in cool water or in the refrigerator. Then drain and pat dry.

I used a quick and easy method to cook the shrimp. Toss the shrimp in a homemade Cajun seasoning blend. Heat the butter in a non-stick skillet and sauté.

It took just a couple of minutes to cook the shrimp in the hot skillet and the shrimp were cooked perfectly. The shrimp just need to turn pink, about 3 to 5 minutes. Don’t overcook the shrimp!

Cajun Spice Blend Seasoning. I now make my own simple, mild Cajun Spice Blend. I have eliminated the cayene pepper from this blend, as we just can’t tolerate the “hot” pepper ingredient any longer. But the salt, oregano, garlic and onion powders as well as paprika make this a great blend. Plus, I do add a little black pepper.

To make the blend, stir the ingredients together in a small bowl.

“Smorgasboard” for Shrimp Tacos Tuesday Night

I like to vary the toppings for “Taco Tuesday” suppers and use whatever ingredients are available. Tonight, I’m including several special, interesting toppings in addition to my usual tomatoes and green onions, and sometimes salsa and cheese.

Napa Cabbage: I love Napa cabbage and purchase it whenever available. This mild flavored, leafy cabbage has just a little “zing” but is not as strongly flavored as green cabbage.

Napa cabbage is shaped like a head of Romaine lettuce. It is easy to chop up (unlike a head of green cabbage) and makes a welcome change from any sort of lettuce on the tacos.

Sautéed onions and bell peppers: Bell peppers are plentiful in the summertime, so lets include them in meals for variety and nutritional value. Sautéing onion and pepper strips tones them down just a bit. Usually served with sizzling fajitas, you can add these ingredients to tacos, too.

The “Big Bertha” green pepper which grew in my garden was the incentive for using a sautéed onion and pepper tonight. Another way to use my garden vegetables.

To prepare these, slice the onion and cut the pepper in strips. Then sauté in a little vegetable oil in a non-stick skillet until they are tender. Spinkle on some of the homemade Creole seasoning as they cook.

Chipotle Crema: The “surprise” ingredent in this night’s meal is the “Chipotle Crema.” This topping added a great, smoky flavor component to the shrimp tacos. It features a chipotle pepper in adobo sauce.

What is a chipotle pepper? I learned that it is a raw, red jalapeno pepper which has been dried and smoked. Often chipotle peppers are packed in adobo sauce. This sauce is a marinade of tomatoes, chiles, garlic, vinegar, and spices. This sauce has some “bite!”

To make the crema, mixed a chopped chipotle pepper in adobo sauce with sour cream, mayonnaise, lime juice and garlic. Simple and quick. It gave a smoky flavor to the sour cream which is often included as a topping for tacos.

Flour tortillas and corn tortillas: What type of tortillas are used with tacos? Although corn tortillas are used for Mexican street tacos and are more common in Mexican cuisine, either type can be used to make a taco.

I have become a quite fan of both soft yellow corn tortillas and soft flour tortillas. Can’t make up my mind which is best, so I’ll use both on my smorgasboard tonight. Let’s use 6″ tortillas, so each person can make a couple of the tacos

Soft flour tortillas are easily to get ready — just place a few flour tortillas at a time on a microwavable plate, cover with wax paper and heat for about 30 seconds until they are warm and pliable. Corn tortillas are very fragile and tear easily. It takes a little more effort to get them ready. My method is to fry the corn tortillas individually in a non-stick skillet with a tiny bit of oil until heated through. When bubbly, turn over and fry the second side. Then either fold the corn tortilla in half while still hot, or serve it flat.

Other Smorgasbord toppings:

I love to add guacamole, pico de gallo, green onions, Mexican-syle or cheddar cheese and sometimes refried beans (when I’m using a large flour tortillas), to my smorgasbord of toppings. I think we have enough now for a meal!

Now that all the ingredients are ready and the table is set, it’s time to make tacos. These “Cajun-Inspired Shrimp Tacos” are delicious.

My “taste tester” husband loved the shrimp tacos — and that’s the best vote. We are enjoying this contemporary twist on traditional, “Old El Paso Taco Dinner Kits,” using Cajun-Style shrimp and Chipotle Crema. This will make a great addition to Taco Tuesdays.