Red, White, and Blue Shrimp Tacos

September 4, 2018 by Nicole Collins

Guys, there's a lot happening today.

It's the day after Labor Day, which means back to reality after a long weekend. It's the first day of school for a lot of kiddos out there. (At least it is in my county). And, it's Taco Tuesday!

And, that's the most important one of them all, if you ask me.

A few things that I want to mention before we get into today's recipe...

First, I just want to remind everyone that it is still summer until September 22. Everyone likes to pretend that Labor Day is the end of summer. But, I am here to remind you that this is not the case. As if the 95 degree weather outside was not enough remind you. And, I love every sweaty little bit of it!

Get your pumpkin spice out of my face. Put your Halloween decorations away. And, please, please, PLEASE don't scare the summer sun away.

I am soooooooooooooo not ready for cold weather. I wish it would stay warm forever.

Second, I am so ready for my kitchen project to be complete. I've gotten in totally over my head. But, I know it's going to look amazing when it's done.

My body will be glad when it's over too. I'm a hurting cowgirl this morning, that's for sure. I've got battle wounds all over my legs and feet from my escapades of assembling (and dropping a few times) an extremely heavy, 6ft tall pantry yesterday. And, this was after I carried 12 boxes of 40lb flooring panels up the stairs from my car to the kitchen, because I refuse to pay the delivery charge for something that would've been free had I ordered it online.

That's a whole other story for another day. But, I am achy breaky fo sho, today!

Third, IT'S TACO TUESDAY! I know I already told you that once today, but Taco Tuesday! If anything is gonna cure my ailed body and soul, it's tacos.

We're keeping it patriotic and using Labor Day as inspiration for our recipe today. Today, we're making Red, White, and Blue Shrimp Tacos!

These tacos are soooo fun! I love the colors. I love the flavors. And seriously, you can't go wrong with tacos.

We start with some super saucy shrimp. We take some shrimp and let them simmer in a bath of juicy tomato, minced garlic, and taco seasoning. The shrimp goes low and slow, and when it's finished; it becomes a saucy, tomatoey, tacoey, bright red shrimpy pan of goodness. It's low effort, but totally high reward!

One thing to note for our shrimp, make sure you pick a nice, soft tomato for this. I generally prefer a firm tomato. But, we need a juicy tomato so we can have that saucy shrimp. That's right, the seeds and juice from the tomatoes are going in our sauce!

Next, let's talk slaw. Now, I know that slaw is made of cabbage which is green. But, it's a very light green. And, we're adding shredded white cheddar and white corn from the cob to our slaw, so I'd say it's white enough to get by for what we're trying to do here! Plus, the slaw gets tossed in the slightest little bit of basic dressing made of a little mayo and a little lime juice. We don't want a goopy slaw. But, we don't want a dry one, either. Plus, the little hit of citrus helps to cut the richness of this taco.

Then for our blue, we're using blue corn taco shells! Can we talk about how pretty they are?!?! Because, we all know that's really the only reason I bought them. Blue corn tastes the same as yellow corn to me, so the blue shells are totally for aesthetics. But, they're good for you, they're inexpensive, and they're adorable. So, why not?

This taco is everything once it's assembled. You've got the salty shell, the slightly spicy but totally saucy shrimp, and the cool, crisp slaw sitting on top. If I'm craving tacos, this is the EXACT flavor profile I'm looking for. So good!

Alright guys, remember...do not wish the summer away, because you know how I start whining when I get cold!

But for now...enjoy! And, let's eat!

---

Red, White, and Blue Shrimp Tacos Serves: 4 Print

Ingredients:

For the Shrimp:

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 tomato, peeled and diced (keep the seeds and juices)

• 1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined (thawed, if frozen)

• 1 tbsp taco seasoning

For the Slaw:

• 1 tbsp mayonnaise

• juice of ½ a lime

• ¼ tsp pepper

• pinch of salt

• 2 cups shredded cole slaw mix

• 1 ear white corn, in husk

• ½ cup white cheddar cheese, shredded

To Serve:

• 8 blue corn tortillas (I use Old El Paso Stand and Stuff)

Directions:

1. Roast the corn: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place ear of corn still in the husk on a baking sheet. Roast for 30 mins. Set aside to cool.

2. Meanwhile, make the shrimp: In a large sauté pan, heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium high heat. Add the minced garlic, and sauté for about 1 minute until the garlic becomes fragrant. Add in tomatoes (and the juices), and bring to a simmer. Once bubbling, stir in shrimp and taco seasoning. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 20-25 mins.

3. Make the slaw: When corn is cool enough to touch, remove the husk, and cut the kernels off of the cob. In a mixing bowl, whisk mayo, lime juice, pepper, and a tiny pinch of salt until combined. Add slaw, shredded cheese, and corn kernels. Toss to combine.

4. Assemble the tacos: Toast taco shells according to package directions. Divide shrimp and slaw evenly between 8 shells. Enjoy!

Recipe notes:

*Make sure you pick a softer tomato for this. We want a nice and juicy one so we can have saucy shrimp.

*You could certainly use yellow cheddar or yellow corn, but then it wouldn't be red, WHITE, and blue. You could also substitute a heaping ½ cup of frozen corn that's been thawed.

*You can store the shrimp and slaw separately to have these as make ahead.

*Blue corn tastes the same as yellow corn, in my opinion.