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Tequila Lime Shrimp Salad – fresh Mexican flavors come together into a nutritious and delicious, colorful salad. Made with mixed greens, corn, tomatoes, onions and light, but creamy cilantro lime dressing. A great way to enjoy a fancy salad at home.
Summery shrimp salad, loaded with flavors. Easy to make, you can also prepare the dressing and shrimp in advance. Don’t like shrimp? Grilled salmon or chicken can easily be substituted in the recipe. Perfect for a healthy lunch/dinner. Great for entertaining.
Tequila lime shrimp:
This shrimp is marinated in a mix of tequila, lime juice, olive oil, salt, pepper, cumin and garlic powder. Cooked in some oil on the stove top, but you can also grill it instead. Put on skewers and grill for 2-3 minutes per side until charred.
I used smaller shrimp (51-60)
Tips:
- Choose shrimp with the desired size. Larger shrimp will take longer to cook, but you can use the same dressing on all kinds of shrimp.
- Marinate for at least 30 minutes to up to 4 hours. Don’t leave shrimp in the marinade for longer time, because it may get too dry and rubbery.
- Cook for 1 minute on one side, then turn and remove from heat. Smaller shrimp will cook faster. For varieties like Jumbo shrimp, cook for 2 minutes per side. Do not overcook, Shrimp is usually done cooking and juicy, once the outside turns pink.
Ingredients to make cilantro lime dressing:
-
chopped cilantro
-
garlic cloves, minced or pressed
-
Juice from 1 lime (2-3 tablespoons)
-
salt
-
black pepper
-
Greek yogurt
-
olive oil
How to make Tequila lime shrimp salad with fresh cilantro lime dressing?
The dressing:
You can make the dressing first by blending all ingredients except the olive oil together until smooth. Then with the blender running on low, slowly add in the olive oil until incorporated.
No blender, no problem! While the dressing won’t turn as creamy as this one, you can chop the cilantro, garlic and jalapeno and combine with the rest of the ingredients, then slowly whisk in the olive oil.
Tequila lime marinated shrimp:
Marinate the shrimp, but don’t let it sit in the marinade for longer than 2 hours. It may get too tender and overcook easily.
Cook just until done and add to the salad.
The salad:
I’ve used mixed greens in this shrimp salad recipe, but other type of greens can be used as well. Added tomatoes, corn and onion, but you can also add beans, avocado, tortilla chips and even cheese.
Combine everything in a bowl, including the shrimp and dressing and serve.
More shrimp salad recipes:
- Gulf shrimp iceberg lettuce wedge salad
- Sriracha almond crusted shrimp salad
- Greek inspired salad with shrimp
Tequila lime shrimp salad with cilantro lime dressing
Ingredients
Cilantro lime dressing:
- 1 1/2 cups chopped cilantro
- 2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
- Juice from 1 lime, 2-3 tablespoons
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/3 cup Greek yogurt
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- *1 tbsp chopped jalapeño, optional, to add extra heat or a pinch of cayenne pepper
Tequila lime shrimp:
- 1 lb shrimp, any size will work, but cooking time will vary
- 1 /2 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/4 tsp Black pepper
- 1/8 tsp Cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp Garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp Ground cumin
- 1/4 cup tequila
- Juice from 1 lime, 2-3 tablespoons
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Salad:
- 5 cups Mixed greens
- 1 cup  chopped Tomatoes
- 1 cup corn
- 6 lime wedges
- 1/4 cup red onions
Instructions
For the dressing:
- Place the cilantro, garlic, yogurt, lime juice, salt and pepper, (jalapeño or cayenne pepper) in a blender. Blend until smooth.Slowly, with the blender running on low add the olive oil and blend until incorporated.
For the tequila lime shrimp:
- In a bowl, combine the tequila, lime juice, salt, pepper, chili powder, cayenne pepper, cumin, garlic powder and the shrimp. Let it sit to marinate for 15 minutes.
- Heat olive oil over medium heat in a pan and add the shrimp. Cook for for 2 minutes. Turn and cook for one more minute, then remove from heat.
For the salad:
- Place mixed greens in a bowl.Add the corn, tomatoes, onions and lime wedges. Pour the dressing on top.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Great summer fare. The dressing was a bit tart. A little honey made all the difference !
Love shrimp ! We had it last night. This looks delicious. I will to make this sauce next time
Can I make this without the tequila ?
Yes,just skip the tequila.