Taco Tuesday...my favorite day of the week.

I'm not sure of the origins of "Taco Tuesday" but I really want to thank whoever thought of it.

I love tacos.  There are so many ways that you can make tacos.  You can go with the old standby, ground beef, which is very common here in this country.  You can do carnitas, barbacoa, fish, seafood, or if you are really feeling adventurous, you can make beef tacos de Lengua which is tacos made from beef tongue.  That's a taco that I am going to pass on, although I have had many friends that have had them, and they say that they are delicious.

For this installment of What's Happening at Rick's Kitchen and Bar we are going to go with "Shrimp Tacos".

These Shrimp Tacos are loaded with plump, juicy shrimp, crisp romaine lettuce, avocado, cotija cheese, red onions, cilantro and an easy shrimp taco sauce that you will want to make for all of your seafood tacos and nachos.  They are very tasty served with any type of tortillas, but I prefer using the sweet Hawaiian tortillas from Mission.

Ingredients

For the shrimp:

• 1 pound shrimp, medium or large
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground cayenne pepper (to taste).
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil

Shrimp taco toppings:

• 8 sweet Hawaiian tortillas (or your choice)
• 2 cups shredded romaine lettuce.
• 1 avocado, pitted, peeled and diced.
• 1/2 red onion, diced.
• 1 cup grated Cotija cheese.
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped cilantro.
• 1 lime cut into wedges.

Shrimp taco sauce ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• juice from half a lime
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp Sriracha sauce, or to taste

Instructions

1. Thaw and pat dry shrimp with paper towels and place in a medium bowl.  Add seasonings and garlic and stir to combine.
2. Place a large non-stick pan over medium high heat.  Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and add shrimp in a single layer.  Sauté 1-2 minutes per side until cooked through.  As soon as they are cooked through (white inside with some pink and red accents outside), transfer to a serving platter and set aside to cool.
3. Heat 8 tortillas in a microwave oven for about 30 seconds until warm.  Wrap the stack of tortillas in a white paper towel before warming.
4. Thinly slice the romaine, dice the avocado, dice the red onion and coarsely chop the cilantro.  Add these to your serving platter along with lime wedges.  Build tacos by arranging toppings and shrimp over each toasted tortilla.
5. In a small bowl, whisk together all sauce ingredients and serve with assembled shrimp tacos.

 I served my tacos with a side of cooked pinto beans with jalapenos and bacon from Serious Bean Company and Dude Perfect.

Drink suggestions:

An ice cold "Mexican" beer such as Modelo or Corona is a great accompaniment to this dinner.

If you prefer wine, I would choose a red or white sangria.

If a cocktail is more to your liking, any style of margarita is a great choice.

 

 I obviously went with a crisp and icy cold Modelo.

I hope that you enjoy this recipe.  Please feel free to comment on any of my posts.