Shrimp Tostadas are sure to be your newest go-to easy Mexican inspired dinner! Crunchy corn tortillas topped with homemade guacamole, flavorful seared shrimp, cotija cheese, and lots of fresh vegetables.
Do you love easy shrimp recipes? Try the grilled shrimp tacos, easy sautéed shrimp, or garlic shrimp rice bowl.
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Easy Mexican Tostadas
Shake up your usual weeknight dinner routine with a fun recipe like Shrimp Tostadas! They are completely customizable from the spice level to the veggies and cheese you want to use.
Shrimp is a great protein to use because of how quick and easy it is to cook. It’s also very quick to marinate and give them a ton of flavor. For this tostada recipe, you just need to give them about 15 minutes to marinate in a mixture of oil, lime juice, agave nectar, garlic, and spices. That is also about the time you’ll need to prepare toppings and guacamole.
While you can opt to use store-bought guacamole, I highly recommend that you grab some avocados and give it a shot! Ripe avocados, freshly squeezed lime juice, chipotle chili powder, and just a pinch of salt are all I use to make this guacamole and it pairs perfectly with the shrimp. (You can even go further and make my favorite guacamole with a few more ingredients.)
What are tostadas?
The word “tostadas” comes from the Spanish word for “toasted,” and it refers to the crunchy, fried corn tortilla that is the base of this dish. These crunchy corn tortillas are often served with an array of toppings like refried beans and proteins like chicken, beef, or seafood, and fresh veggies.
Ingredient Notes
Marinating Shrimp:
Shrimp – If you use frozen shrimp, make sure they’re fully thawed and patted dry prior to marinating.
Olive Oil – use a neutral oil that had high heat tolerance.
Lime – Fresh lime juice is always the best! You’ll need the juice and zest of one large ripe lime.
Agave Nectar – This adds just a touch of natural sweetness to the marinade.
Chipotle Chili Powder – This is a mildly spicy powder that can be made spicier with a sprinkle of cayenne.
Garlic – Fresh garlic will give you the best flavor.
Guacamole:
Avocados – Make sure your avocados are nice and ripe! This can be tricky. The best way to tell if your avocado is ripe is to give it a gentle squeeze. It should still be relatively firm but have a give to it as well.
Lime Juice – Fresh is always the best choice!
Tostadas:
Crispy Corn Tortillas – You can either buy crispy corn tortillas meant for tostadas or prepare them yourself.
Vegetables great for tostadas: tomatoes, red onion, cucumber, red bell pepper, jalapeño peppers.
Queso Fresco – Add more or less of this ingredient as you see fit. You can also use cotija cheese.
Cilantro – this is an optional topping but will bring so much bright flavor.
See recipe card for complete information on ingredients and quantities.
Cooking Instructions
Marinate the shrimp.
Clean and devein the shrimp. Mix the shrimp together in a bowl with all of the marinade ingredients and set aside to marinate for about 15 minutes (1).
Make the guacamole.
Halve the avocados, discard the pits, and scoop out the avocados from the skin.
Mash the avocado meat with a fork and mix in the lime juice, chili powder, and salt. Set aside.
Cook the shrimp.
Preheat a pan over medium-high heat. Add a little oil and sear the shrimp for about 45 seconds to 1 minute per side. Flip the shrimp once the color turns opaque. Once flipped, add the remaining marinade to the pan. Sear the shrimp until totally opaque (2). Take them out of the pan as soon as they are cooked.
Assemble the tostadas.
Spread guacamole over each tostada (3). Add your toppings (4), divide the shrimp evenly among the tostadas, top off with crumbled cheese and cilantro (5), and serve immediately.
Prepare your own crunchy tortillas or buy?
While you can easily find crunchy corn tortillas that are ready to use for tostadas on the market, you can also prepare it yourself. Use corn tortillas and you can bake, pan-fry, or fry them to make them crunchy.
To bake: brush corn tortillas with canola or vegetable oil on bowl sides and spread them on a metal baking sheet, in one single layer. Bake in the oven preheated to 400° for about 5-7 minutes per side.
To pan-fry: preheat a large cooking pan over medium-high heat and add 2-3 tablespoons of canola or vegetable oil. Cook corn tortillas in batches until golden and crunch on one side, flip and cook the other side. Add a little more oil in between batches if needed.
To fry: you can also use a deep fryer to cook corn tortillas until crispy. Preheat oil to 350° and cook tortillas in batches until golden and crispy. Take them out onto a paper towel to soak up excess oil.
Recipe FAQs
Some of our favorite vegetables toppings for shrimp tostadas include: tomatoes, avocadoes, red onions, cucumbers, bell peppers, jalapeños, and cilantro.
You can use black beans and corn if you wish. Refried beans is also a good topping to use instead of guacamole.
As a cheesy topping, choose crumbled queso fresco, cotija cheese, or even a shredded Mexican cheese mix.
That is a fun question! Our first instincts would be to fold them like a taco, but that would be wrong. The crunchy tortilla will snap in half and all the toppings will fall on your lap.
The way to eat a tostada is to keep the crunchy tortilla intact and just take bites off of it. Hold the tortilla flat from the bottom and carefully take bites of it from the side. Eat tostadas with your hands, not utensils!
Tostadas make a great appetizer or you can serve them as a main course with sides. Some great sides include rice and beans, refried beans, Spanish rice and Mexican Street Corn Salad.
If you’re serving it as an appetizer, consider also making some Chips and Salsa, Queso Dip, or Refried Bean Dip.
As far as drinks, Michelada is always a refreshing and light drink to serve with Mexican dishes. Or go with the classic Margaritas!
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Shrimp Tostadas
Ingredients
For the shrimp:
- 1 1/2 lbs shrimp cleaned
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large ripe lime – juice and zest
- 1 1/2 tbsp agave nectar
- 1 tsp chipotle chili powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2-1 tsp coarse salt to taste
- 2-4 garlic cloves
Guacamole layer:
- 2 large ripe avocados
- 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
- 1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
- 1/4-1/2 tsp coarse salt to taste
For Tostadas:
- 8 crunchy corn tortillas
- 2 medium tomatoes
- 1/4 red onion
- 1/2 cucumber
- 1 small red bell pepper
- 1-2 jalapeno peppers
- 1/4 cup crumbled queso fresco
- 1-2 tbsp cilantro
Instructions
Marinate Shrimp:
- Make sure the shrimp is cleaned and deveined. Mix shrimp in a bowl with the rest of the marinate ingredients and set aside while you prepare everything else.
Guacamole layer:
- Cut avocados in half, discard the put, and scoop out the avocado meat from the skin.
- Mash avocados with a fork in a small bowl and mix with fresh lime juice, chili powder, and salt. Set aside.
Tostadas:
- If you are not using store-bought crunchy corn tortillas, you can cook them yourself.
- To bake: brush corn tortillas with canola or vegetable oil on both sides and spread them on a metal baking sheet, in one single layer. Bake in the oven preheated to 400° for about 5-7 minutes per side. To pan-fry: preheat a large cooking pan over medium-high heat and add 2-3 tablespoons of canola or vegetable oil. Cook corn tortillas in batches until golden and crunchy on one side, flip and cook the other side. Add a little more oil in between batches if needed. To fry: you can also use a deep fryer to cook corn tortillas until crispy. Preheat oil to 350° and cook tortillas in batches until golden and crispy. Take them out onto a paper towel to soak up excess oil.
- Dice, slice and mince the vegetables while shrimp is marinating.
To cook the shrimp:
- Preheat a large cooking pan over medium-high heat. Add a little oil if needed and sear shrimp for 45-1 minute, until that side turns opaque. Flip the shrimp, add the remaining marinade from the bowl, and seat the shrimp and another minute or until turn completely opaque. Take shrimp out of the pan right as soon as they are cooked.
- Assemble tostadas by spreading some guacamole over each tortilla. Then, divide the shrimp evenly among the tostadas, and add your topping.
- Serve right away.
Notes
- How To Eat Tostadas: The way to eat a tostada is to keep the crunchy tortilla intact and just take bites off of it. Hold the tortilla flat from the bottom and carefully take bites of it from the side. Eat tostadas with your hands, not utensils!
- What To Serve With Tostadas: Tostadas make a great appetizer or you can serve them as a main course with sides. Some great sides include rice and beans, refried beans, Spanish rice and Mexican Street Corn Salad.
If you’re serving it as an appetizer, consider also making some Chips and Salsa, Queso Dip, or Refried Bean Dip.
As far as drinks, Michelada is always a refreshing and light drink to serve with Mexican dishes. Or go with the classic Margaritas!
Bella says
This made a really good lunch