Get ready to make a favorite restaurant-quality Mexican dinner in the comfort of your own home! That’s right, this Easy Shrimp Fajita recipe is not only easy using a single skillet, it’s a mouth-watering dish that’s loaded with irresistible flavors, tender shrimp, and seasoned veggies.
Add the shrimp (or prawns) and veggie mix to a flour or corn tortilla with your favorite toppings such as sour cream, salsa, or avocado - perfect for lunch and dinner!
We love all sorts of great recipes, especially shrimp recipes, be sure to try these favorites next time: Shrimp Lettuce Wraps, Shrimp Scampi and our latest Cajun Shrimp Pasta.
There is a skip-to-recipe button in the top left corner along with a clickable table of contents list (just below) that will quickly take you to the part you are more interested in. Enjoy!
Table Of Contents
Why It's Yummy
- Minimal cooking equipment using one skillet that will reduce fuss and cleanup later on.
- Make-ahead by marinating the shrimp. You can even store cooked shrimp and veggies to serve the following day.
- Extremely versatile with simple ingredient substitutions to suit your family’s preferences.
If you are like me and love making weekly fajita and taco nights a family tradition you must try these delicious Mexican dinner recipes next: 5 Minute Tuna Tacos, Baked Chicken Tacos, Sweet Potato Tacos or this Taco Dinner Board.
Ingredients
My few comments on the ingredients + don't forget to read the Tips section!
The full recipe and ingredients can be found in the recipe card below this post.
- Fresh Shrimp (Prawns in UK) - if you want to make the best shrimp fajitas, raw and larger deveined (with or without tails) shrimp is your best choice here. It is true that shrimp cooked in shells will have more flavor (but a bit messy to eat) and are usually cheaper. If serving fajitas the traditional way, in a wrap, use deveined shrimp and just remove the tails. If cooked until just pink, you'll still enjoy restaurant-quality juicy shrimp!
- Fajita Veggies - Using a tricolor choice of peppers (red, yellow, and green bell peppers) provides a lovely display of color in this dish. You could also include jalapeno peppers for a kick of heat or green poblano that tend to be milder than the red variety.
- Brown Onion - Brown or yellow onion is the best for these fajitas although red onion could also be used instead - just be careful not to overcook it since it will lose color quickly. Make sure to cut your onion into ½ inch thick slices or even wider. It is one of the main ingredients, so onion powder wouldn't be a great substitute.
- Fajita Marinade - While I’ve made my own marinade using a mix of spices such as cumin, smoked paprika, chili powder, and salt and pepper, feel free to use a store-bought fajita mix and combine it with the other marinade ingredients listed. For the best tasting marinade, use freshly squeezed lime juice and garlic cloves.
- Garlic - I like to use fresh garlic but to save time garlic powder is your best alternative.
- Spices - For the heat, I use both cayenne pepper and chili powder. This is personal preference, and if you are not used to spicy food, start with ¼ teaspoon of both and increasing until the desired flavor. Just make a taste test once all the ingredients are in the pan and top with more if needed. Also, instead of regular chili powder, I'm a huge fan of chipotle chili powder. Try it! It has a very intense smoky flavor and is spicy but you only need a pinch!
- Tortillas - serve the fajitas in a wrap, gluten free, corn taco shell or for a low carb version in a lettuce wrap. Have you tried my Low Carb Keto Lettuce Wraps With Chicken yet?
Instructions
Cut and arrange vegetables on a plate for an easier process.
In a medium shallow bowl mix all the spice mixture ingredients. Reserve 2 tablespoons for the veggies later.
Add the shrimp and toss until evenly coated. Cover and leave to marinate for 20-30 minutes in the fridge. Toss the veggies with the reserved marinade.
Add a little cooking oil (I like to use avocado or grapeseed oil) in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
Once the oil is hot, saute the veggies until softened but still crisp. Season with salt and pepper if needed in the end. Set aside.
Cook the prawns in the same pan with the marinade liquid.
About 1 minute per side, just until you see the shrimp is becoming pink. Return the veggies to the pan and stir until all mixed well and remove from heat.
Season with more salt and pepper and a squeeze of lime juice.
Serve hot in warm tortillas with toppings, some black pepper, and red pepper flakes.
Tips
- Always opt for the biggest shrimp for these fajitas. They are the star of the show so you do want that flavor and texture to really shine through!
- Raw Shrimp - Frozen or fresh large shrimp works the best for these fajitas and I also make sure that they are deveined. Whether you opt for shrimp with or without tails is completely up to personal preference. If using frozen shrimp, make sure to first thaw it in cold water for 20 minutes.
- Instead of a combo of spices, you can use 2-3 tablespoons of premixed Taco or Fajita Seasoning.
- Marinating time - 30 minutes of marinating is enough to create great flavor. Extended marinating time can actually cause the shrimp meat to break down and become mushy due to the acidity of the marinade.
- Warm tortillas - wrap tortillas in foil and transfer for 5-10 minutes to a preheated oven at about 400 Fahrenheit. Another easy and quick method is to dry-fry the tortillas on a small pan over medium heat without any oil. Once the tortillas become golden brown and slightly charred, they are ready.
- Make-ahead - what I love about Mexican food recipes, is how easy it is to make them. I usually have my own homemade fajita seasoning (same as the marinade just without oil, lime juice) ready to go and I cut the veggies 1-2 days in advance. Once dinner time comes, it takes literally minutes until serving time. You can marinate the shrimp for less than 30 minutes, or just skip it entirely. The spices in the skillet along with the veggies will give enough flavor to the whole dish.
Serving Suggestions
If you are a frequent visitor on this site, you've probably noticed that my favorite foods of all time are Mexican recipes and Asian/Indian fusion dishes.
They pack so much flavor and are always nutritious which makes me feel full (without excessive snacking) for long long times.
I love serving Mexican fajitas with condiments such as: Guacamole, Pico De Gallo, Avocado Corn Salad.
Side dishes: Cauliflower Rice, Cajun Corn On The Cob, Lime Cilantro Rice.
Freezing And Storing Instructions
Store these easy shrimp fajitas in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
The marinade can be made a week in advance and stored the same way separately from anything.
Once cooked, the fajitas can be frozen but I don't recommend it. The shrimp and veggies will not have the right texture and flavor once thawed.
FAQ
A fajita is a marinated strip of meat (usually beef or chicken) that is grilled and mixed with vegetables to be served with tortillas and toppings/condiments.
There are quite a few variations to the traditional fajita, including the use of shrimp as in this shrimp fajita recipe.
Traditionally, meat is grilled in a skillet but you could opt to cook the marinated shrimp and veggies on a sheet pan to bake in the oven.
Whether you use red shrimp (like I have) or another type, the cooked meat should have a slightly pinkish hue to it. If it’s very white then you’ve most likely overcooked the shrimp but if it’s translucent, it’s definitely still raw and needs additional cooking time.
Easy Mexican Dinner Recipes
- Easy Steak Fajita Tacos
- Mexican Street Tacos
- Creamy Chicken Enchilada Casserole
- Baked Buffalo Chicken Tostada
- Beef Enchilada Casserole
- Baked Chicken Taquitos
- Chicken Enchiladas With White Sauce
For more easy gluten-free dinner recipes check out my dinner recipe index here.
I hope you'll enjoy this easy Shrimp Fajitas recipe, please leave a rating on this recipe below and leave a comment, take a photo of your food and tag me on Instagram @theyummy_bowl. I love seeing your creations!
Thank you for reading,
Love,
Julia
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Recipe
Easy Shrimp Fajitas (Prawn Fajitas)
INGREDIENTS
For Shrimp
- 1 pound large raw shrimp (deveined with tails or without)
- 3 small bell pepper (tricolor or at least 2 different colors, cut into ½ inch thick strips)
- 1 brown onion (cut into ½ inch thick strips)
Fajita Seasonings and Marinade
- 1 teaspoon lime juice and more for serving
- 2 teaspoon cumin
- 2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 mediums garlic clove (minced)
- ¼ teaspoon chili powder (or chipotle powder)
- ½ teaspoon cayenne powder
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 4 tablespoon olive oil
For Serving
- taco size tortillas (corn or other gluten free tortilla)
- avocado
- shredded cabbage
- shredded cheese
- cilantro
- lime wedges
INSTRUCTIONS
- Prepare the cut veggies on a plate.
- In a medium shallow bowl mix all the marinade spice mixture ingredients, reserve 2 tablespoons for the veggies later. Add the shrimp and toss until evenly coated. Cover and leave to marinate for 20-30 minutes in the fridge.
- Toss the veggies with the reserved marinade.
- Add a little cooking oil (I like to use avocado or grapeseed oil) in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, saute the veggies until softened but still crisp. Season with salt and pepper if needed in the end. Set aside.
- Cook the prawns in the same pan with the marinade liquid. About 1 minute per side, just until you see the shrimp is becoming pink.
- Return the veggies to the pan and stir until all mixed well and remove from heat. Season with more salt and pepper and a squeeze of lime juice. Serve hot in warm tortillas with toppings, some black pepper, and red pepper flakes.
Video
NOTES
- Raw Shrimp - Frozen or fresh large shrimp works the best for these fajitas and I also make sure that they are deveined. Whether you opt for shrimp with or without tails is completely up to personal preference. If using frozen shrimp, make sure to first thaw it in cold water for 20 minutes.
- Marinating time - 30 minutes of marinating is enough to create great flavor. Extended marinating time can actually cause the shrimp meat to break down and become mushy due to the acidity of the marinade.
- Warm tortillas - wrap tortillas in foil and transfer for 5-10 minutes to a preheated oven at about 400 Fahrenheit. Another easy and quick method is to dry-fry the tortillas on a small pan over medium heat without any oil. Once the tortillas become golden brown and slightly charred, they are ready.
PRIVATE NOTES
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
I hope you'll enjoy these easy one skillet Shrimp dinner!