Margarita Shrimp Tostadas
These Margarita Shrimp Tostadas are filled with the bright, zesty flavors of summer.
Talk about a day late and a dollar short. Or rather 10 days late and many dollars short of this Breville Toaster Oven I’ve got my eye on. (Speaking of toaster ovens, anyone want to recommend a favorite? I’m all ears!)
But that’s a different story.
I’m sure you all would have appreciated having this recipe before a certain Cinco de Mayo holiday that might have been last week. But I mean, it’s summer, so margaritas are an any-day kind of thing now, right?
I sure hope so, because I couldn’t possibly wait a whole year to share these Margarita Shrimp Tostadas with you all. They are ridiculously good. I made them last week, and I’m already craving them again. There’s so much good stuff going on here…crunchy taco shell, creamy refried beans, zesty lime shrimp, smooth avocado, it’s like a party in your mouth. Speaking of which, so is saying Tostada. I mean, how fun is that word to say? Tos-TA-DA! It’s the fiesta of words, don’t you think?
So here’s the deal with these tostadas. You can make them the easy way or the hard way. And whichever way you choose is the right way. Make sense?
The easy way is this: Buy a can of refried beans from the store. Heat them in the microwave. Buy a bag of pre-made tostata shells. Heat them in the oven.
The hard(er) way is this: Buy a can of refried beans from the store. Heat them on the stovetop with a few added spices to ramp up the flavor. Fry the tostada shells yourself using store bought corn tortillas.
The crazy way is this: Make your own refried beans. Grow corn, grind it yourself, then make and fry your very own corn tortillas. Nurture and grow a lime tree to provide you with the freshest possible juice. Harvest your own jalapenos, lettuce, tomatoes, and cilantro from your meticulously maintained organic garden. Drive to Boston to get fresh shrimp.
Ok, I got a little carried away on that last one. But really, you can make this as hard or as easy as you like. I went with the middle version, but I honestly think these would still be fabulous with microwaved refried beans and store bought tostada shells.
Before I go, let’s just chat about this Margarita Shrimp for a hot sec. Oh sweet heavens, it is glorious. The marinade is a combo of lime, tequila, garlic, and cilantro. <<<<<Enough said.
It is SO flavorful and SO ridiculously easy to make. The shrimp cook in about 3 minutes and yield the most tender, juicy, flavorful little guys you’ve ever eaten. Seriously, even if the tostata is not your thing, you MUST make this shrimp. Slap it on the grill, toss it with some pasta, put it on a stick. I don’t care how you consume it, I just want this shrimp to be a part of your life.
Margarita Shrimp Tostadas
Ingredients
For the shrimp marinade:
- 1 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons lime juice (about the juice of 2 small limes)
- 1 Tablespoon tequila
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3 Tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
For the tostadas:
- 8 corn tortillas (if gluten free, make sure to check the package ingredients)
- Vegetable or canola oil
For the beans:
- 1 can refried beans
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
For the Toppings:
- Shredded lettuce
- Chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 avocado, chopped
- 1 jalapeno, chopped
- 8 grape tomatoes, cut in half
Instructions
Margarita Shrimp adapted from AllRecipes
Need more Mexcellent recipes? It never hurts to have some Homemade Taco Seasoning around…
Also, try my Mexican Chicken Marinade for the best fajita chicken you can make yourself. Or for even more HEAT, try Chipotle Spicy Chicken Marinade on your next grilled chicken.
I did try these last night. I used huge prawns (what my husband brought back from Costco), cutting them in half before marinating them. The shrimp were delicious. Only thing I would do differently next time is to dry toast the tortillas, instead of frying them in oil. But definitely wonderful.
So glad you enjoyed these! The shrimp is definitely the best part–we sometimes skewer them and put them on the grill for a quick meal. I’ll have to try dry toasting the tortillas as well!
You have definitely made the case for these tostadas. I’m going to buy the shrimp this afternoon!
Awesome Laura! I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
I am trying this today and bring it over to my friend t eat while moving into the new house!
That’s wonderful! I hope you all enjoyed it!
Omg yummmm. This is exactly the type of stuff I crave in the summer, thanks for the post!
Thanks for taking the time to comment Gina! I hope you love this as much as we did!
These look awesome, Courtney!
This looks so delicious! LOVE shrimp on just about anything ๐
I’m so glad you shared…and I loved your easy and not so easy variations. Thank you for whetting my appetite!
Anytime! That’s my job. ๐ Thanks for coming by to comment!
hehe, I’m cracking up at growing my own corn and nurturing a lime tree ๐
You could probably do it with all your mad agriculture skills Christina! ๐
Wow, that looks delicous! Shrimp is so so good!
Great meeting you today!
Tiffany Ima
Style Honestly
Courtney, any food blogger worth her salt would pick the crazy way. I’d be shocked if you told me you didn’t grow the corn and hand grind it yourself to make the tacos that you ultimately fried in a cast iron pan that you forged yourself in a mountain with lava spewing around you. Nah, f*ck that. Let’s do it the easy way so that I can get this delicious margarita shrimp tostada into my mouth asap! These are gorgeous photos, girl. I’m drooling over all of them!
Oh Nancy, I love you. Your use of sarcastic over exaggeration is unparalleled, my dear!
so fresh and fabulous!
SHRIMP!!! I will take shrimp any time, any day. any where! Looks incredible!
Me too!
Yeah, I don’t think I’ll be doing these that last way. I think I’m liking that middle road version. Either way, these look spectacular.
Haha. Trust me, I’m not either. ๐
Oh these are awesome looking. Right up my alley! Shrimp! Margaritas! Yes!
I love shrimps with tortillas! The photos are fantastic too. I’m so glad I found your site. ๐
Thanks for visiting Maggie!
I love recipes with simple and hard ways to do them – that way you can take the long way on days when you have the time, or skip to the good stuff when you’re in a rush. I wish someday someone would come up with a vegan version for shrimp. For now, I’d probably make this recipe with some mashed chickpeas combined with the seasonings you have listed above. Yum! By the way, we have a Calphalon Convection Toaster oven and we LOVE it! I highly recommend it because not only can you toast things in itโฆyou can also bake a cake. Pretty cool!
That sounds really good Marly! I bet the chickpeas would be wonderful. Thanks for the rec on the toaster oven too. I’ll have to check that out!
These look perfectly wonderful! I would eat these any time before, during or after Cinco de Mayo!
The Margarita Shrimp sound AMAZING! YUM. I can’t wait to try this.
The only thing I need now is a good margarita to wash this down with. Super yummy looking!
Amen!
need this! sounds incredible!
Get in my belly!
These would go perfectly with my spanish rice. Oh yes, please. 1000x yes!
I don’t own the Breville toaster oven but I do own the Breville toaster and Breville hand mixer. I love them both & highly recommend the brand. Good Luck!
Thanks Tamra! I’ve heard good things about Breville so far, which is why it’s currently on the wish list.
I’m all for the tostadas and I like the middle of the road way. No pre-made tostadas, you gotta fry those babies up!
It’s true…you can’t beat the crispiness of freshly fried tostadas.
I’m already ready for more cinco de mayo fun as evidenced by my enchilada post today. Maybe we can just call it montho de mayo and celebrate for the next four weeks!
I am ALL over that idea. Montho de Mayo it is!
These sound wonderful. Will make them for sure. And I have the least expensive toaster oven WM had and it works just great. It’s about three years old and not one problem. Friends bought “the good one” and had to return it in about two weeks. Now their cheapy is working great, too!!
That’s good to know Bonny! I love when the cheap stuff works better than the fancy pants expensive models!