This recipe for cast iron skillet shrimp fajitas is a blend of seasoned shrimp, colorful veggies, and the best chipotle creama on top. It’s all ready in one pan. It all comes together in about 30 minutes, and you don’t have to do too much chopping. Amen.
What I love most about this recipe is how the cast iron skillet does all the hard work, charring the veggies and browning the shrimp without you having to do anything crazy. This recipe will serve four adults and a few more if kids are in the mix. 😉
Table of Contents
Ingredients and Tools You’ll Need
Cast iron gets really hot and stays hot, unlike thinner pans that cool down the moment you add food. This gives you a nice sear on the outside of your shrimp and veggies without having to cook them to death. But, don’t worry if you don’t have a cast iron skillet. It’s no big deal.
The Mexican table crema is thinner than sour cream and slightly sweeter. You can usually find it in grocery stores with a good selection of Hispanic foods. If the chipotle in adobo sauce is hard to find, you can use a mix of smoked paprika and a pinch of cayenne pepper as an alternative.
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This will make about four large servings. You can easily double the recipe for more. Just cook the shrimp in batches. You can adjust the recipe by clicking the 2x or 3x buttons in the recipe card below, and it will do the math for you.
Equipment
- cast iron skillet
Ingredients
For the Shrimp and Veggies
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
- ¼ teaspoon sugar
- 1 ½ pounds shrimp size 21-25 per pound, peeled and deveined
- 1 red pepper, cut into thin strips
- 1 orange pepper, cut into thin strips
- 1 yellow pepper, cut into thin strips
- ½ purple onion sliced thin and slices cut in half
- 1 lime plus additional for serving if desired
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
For Assembling
- tortillas warmed
- avocado
- guacamole
- pico de gallo
- Chipotle crema recipe below
Chipotle Crema
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ½ cup Mexican table crema or sour cream
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- ½ lime squeezed
- 2 teaspoons minced chipotle with sauce
How to Make Shrimp Fajitas
Fajitas are quick and easy, but they feel like a sort of exciting dinner, like something you’d eat on vacation. Maybe that’s just me. Anyway, getting them right is well worth your time.
Cook the shrimp in batches if necessary. Overcrowding the skillet can cause the shrimp to steam rather than sear, which is not what we want.
Step One: Make the Chipotle Crema
Just whisk together mayo, Mexican crema (or sour cream if that’s what you have), minced garlic, lime juice, and a couple of teaspoons of minced chipotle peppers. If it’s too thick, add a little water or milk. Done.
Step Two: Mix Your Spices
Chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt, smoked paprika, garlic powder, and pepper. Whisk in 2 tablespoons of oil. This is your flavor base for everything.
Step Three: Get Your Cast Iron HOT
Like, really hot. You want that sizzle when the food hits the pan. Add a tablespoon of oil.
Step Four: Season Everything Separately
Pat your shrimp dry (this is important!), then toss with about half the seasoning mixture. In another bowl, mix your sliced peppers and onion with the remaining seasoning plus a pinch of sugar. The sugar helps the veggies caramelize.
Step Five: Cook the Shrimp First
Just 1-2 minutes per side in a single layer. Don’t overcrowd. Set them aside on a plate.
Step Six: Cook Your Veggies
Cook them 7-10 minutes until they’re soft and starting to get those nice brown edges.
Step Seven: Bring It All Together
Turn off the heat, add the shrimp back to the pan, squeeze fresh lime over everything, and sprinkle with cilantro.
Serve with warm tortillas and whatever toppings you like – avocado, pico, more of that crema.
Storage Instructions
The shrimp and vegetables will last in the fridge for up to 3 days. Shrimp should be stored in the coldest part of your fridge, which is generally the bottom part of the fridge. The crema can last up to a week.
Store the shrimp and vegetables in separate airtight containers. This helps maintain the texture of both components, as vegetables can release moisture.
If the crema thickens in the fridge, you can thin it with a little water or lime juice before serving.
Unfortunately, this recipe does not freeze well.
What to Serve
You can serve this with not much else; we usually just do chips and guacamole.
- Rice
- Refried beans or black beans
- Tortilla chips and salsa
More Shrimp Recipes For An Easy Dinner
Shrimp is such an easy protein source for dinner because it cooks so fast.
- I’ve made many versions of shrimp alfredo pasta and finally found my favorite.
- Wild west shrimp is deep-fried and covered in a buttery, lemon-pepper sauce.
- Deep-fried coconut shrimp will make you feel like you’re on vacation.
- Add shrimp to a sandwich and you get shrimp po-boy sandwiches, one of my favorite dinners. Ever.
- This cold and creamy shrimp macaroni salad is a perfect make-ahead side.
Printable Recipe
Skillet Shrimp Fajitas
Equipment
- cast iron skillet
Ingredients
For the Shrimp and Veggies
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil divided
- ¼ teaspoon sugar
- 1 ½ pounds shrimp size 21-25 per pound, peeled and deveined
- 1 red pepper cut into thin strips
- 1 orange pepper cut into thin strips
- 1 yellow pepper cut into thin strips
- ½ purple onion sliced thin and slices cut in half
- 1 lime plus additional for serving if desired
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
For Assembling
- tortillas warmed
- avocado
- guacamole
- pico de gallo
- chipotle crema recipe below
Chipotle Crema
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ½ cup Mexican table crema or sour cream
- 1 garlic clove minced
- ½ lime squeezed
- 2 teaspoons minced chipotle with sauce
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Instructions
- Make the Chipotle crema. In a small bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, crema/sour cream, garlic, lime, and chipotle. If using sour cream, thin the sauce with a little water until desired consistency is reached. Milk could also be used.
- Combine seasonings. In a small bowl, combine chili pepper, cumin, oregano, salt, pepper, smoked paprika, garlic powder, and pepper. Whisk in 2 tablespoons of oil.
- Preheat pan. In a large heavy-bottomed skillet or cast iron pan, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. You want everything to sizzle when it hits the pan, so it should be hot.
- Season shrimp and vegetables. Dry shrimp with a paper towel and place in a medium-sized bowl. In a separate medium-sized bowl, mix sliced peppers and onion. Add ½ of the seasoning mixture (about 1 ½ tablespoons) to the shrimp and mix together. Add sugar to the remaining seasoning mixture and mix in the bowl with the peppers and onion.
- Cook shrimp and veggies separately. Cook shrimp in heated oil for 1-2 minutes on each side in a single layer. Repeat with any additional shrimp if needed. Place shrimp on a plate and set aside. Add sliced peppers and onion to the skillet and cook until softened, 7-10 minutes.
- Assemble. Turn off the heat and return the shrimp to the pan. Stir together the shrimp and pepper mixture. Squeeze lime juice over the shrimp and peppers mixture and sprinkle with chopped cilantro. Serve immediately with warm tortillas and optional additional toppings. Top fajitas with crema if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Love,
This sounds interesting. As vegetarians, we’ll substitute soy curls for the shrimp. Seaoned with nori and Old Bay, they make a nice alternative.
My favorite iron skillet was a gift from a former patient. It was his mother’s; more than 100 years old and still in perfect condition. I use it almost every day.