When I get out my charcoal grill, I don’t like to go back and forth between the house and the grill. Instead, I just cook everything on the grill. In this grilled shrimp tostadas recipe, you will grill both the shrimp and the corn tortillas to make the crispy tostada shell.
I find grilling shrimp on a stick much easier than one-by-one, and kabob sticks take up much less space than a grilling basket when it comes to storage.
Grilling the tostada shells takes a little practice to get just right. You don’t want them to burn, but they need to get crisp so you can easily take a bite out of the tostada. Watch them carefully as you grill to ensure they don’t get over cooked.
When building your tostadas, I find that you need something on the bottom for all the toppings to stick to while eating. If not, then the toppings all tend to fall off making a big mess.
I used the avocado on the bottom in the pictures, mashing it down with a fork so the toppings would stick. However, I used the entire avocado on only three tostadas, then made my husbands tostadas with sour cream on the bottom (he doesn’t like avocado).
Unless you want a whole avocado per serving, the sour cream on the bottom is the way to go, so you will see the recipe below is written to reflect that.
Variations to the Grilled Shrimp Tostadas Recipe:
- I love to use Greek yogurt in place of sour cream. In an application like this, you won’t notice a difference in flavor, it is still creamy and tangy. However, even whole milk yogurt has less fat than reduced fat sour cream, making it a leaner option without sacrificing on flavor.
- I love the rainbow of colors used in the toppings on these tostadas, but they could easily be made with one or two fewer toppings if you prefer a simpler approach, don’t have the ingredient on hand, or don’t like something.
- Simple swaps: Guacamole in place of avocado, salsa in place of the tomatoes, salt and pepper in place of the cajun seasoning, or make it vegetarian by using black beans in place of shrimp.
- 18 shrimp, peeled and deveined (about ¾ lb)
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 1 ½ tsp low salt Cajun seasoning
- 6 corn tortillas
- 1 avocado, thinly sliced
- 1 small tomato, diced
- ½ cup cilantro, minced
- ½ cup red cabbage, thinly sliced
- 2 oz shredded cheddar cheese
- 6 TBS sour cream or Greek yogurt
- Preheat grill to medium high.
- Skewer shrimp on kabob sticks (optional), rub with oil, and season with Cajun seasoning.
- Grill the corn tortillas until lightly charred and starting to crisp, flipping after about 2 minutes. They are finished when they are crisp like a tortilla chip and do not bend. If they are burning too much before they crisp up, reduce the heat, or move them to a cooler part of the grill.
- Grill the shrimp until opaque and cooked through, flipping after about 2 minutes.
- Top the tostada shell with a dollop of sour cream, spreading it over the shell. Then add avocado and shrimp, pressing lightly so they adhere. Sprinkle with diced tomato, cilantro, red cabbage and cheddar cheese. Serve immediately.
