I do love football season and all the delicious home-gating dishes I create. This season I decided to up my game with a Restaurant-Style Blackened Shrimp Nachos.
And since my wife’s not a big fan of tortilla chips I also made a Blackened Shrimp Salad with a side a chips, hoping I could tempt her to try them.
As a chef, I’ve always loved shrimp and loved working with shrimp in my dishes like my shrimp cocktail recipe. I almost feel like Bubba from Forrest Gump when I start talking about all the different ways I can serve shrimp.
And blackening my favorite gulf shrimp adds another level of deliciousness to those sweet treats from the gulf.
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make my Blackened Shimp Nachos. In Chef Speak this is called the Mise en Place which translates into Everything in its Place.
Not only does setting your ingredients up ahead of time speed the cooking process, but it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
In my quest to use better ingredients, I opted for Organic Blue Corn Tortilla Chips. Feel free to use the chips of your choice.
Do I have to use peppers in my nachos?
No, you don’t. These are your nachos and you can make them how you want them.
I’m not as big a fan of heat, so plain jalapenos don’t always thrill me. But pickled jalapenos can be a nice addition.
What else can I add to my Blackened Shrimp Nachos?
One of my friends likes to add a cheese sauce to the nachos, making them even more ooey, gooey and delicious.
If you really want to up your game add some crumbled cooked chorizo sausage before you melt the cheese. Giving us a surf and turf version of my nachos.
And if you a fan of sour cream, don’t hold back. It’s all good!
My Blackened Shrimp Nachos came out of the oven looking OMG delicious and it was all I could do to restrain myself long enough to take the pictures.
Do I have to make the shrimp blackened?
No, you don’t. You can saute them in whatever seasoning you like. Perhaps a little old bay, or cook them in a light garlic aioli.
How do I make Blackened Seasonings?
It’s easy to make you own cajun seasoning for blackening meats and seafood. These simple eight spices are what I use to make my cajun seasoning blend.
- Sweet Hungarian paprika
- Table salt
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Dried oregano
- Dried thyme
- Cayenne pepper
- Black pepper
When you want to change up the flavors try using Smoked Paprika instead of regular paprika. Cumin also makes a nice addition to the flavor.
For more heat increase the chili powder to perk up the dish.
If you like a little sweetness add a teaspoon of brown sugar to the mix.
There are lots of different flavor combinations you can come up with using the spices you have on hand.
Can I use the blackened seasoning with other seafood?
Yes, you can. It would be good on just about any type of fish, scallops or even lobster. You can even use the seasoning with chicken or tofu.
Another way to enjoy this deliciousness is in a Blackened Shrimp Taco Salad. You’re using the same basic ingredients, just not melting the cheese.
My wife wanted a salad instead of the nachos. I did sneak some chips on her plate, but they were still there when she was done eating.
It’s easy to customize the salad with the ingredients you enjoy. It would also make a nice DIY salad bar for game day.
And if you’re just looking for a lighter snack, make up a batch of guacamole and salsa fresca, and enjoy your chips in style!
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Blackened Shrimp Nachos
Ingredients
Blackened Seasoning
- 11/2 teaspoons Hungarian paprika
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Blackened Shrimp Nachos
- ½ lb shrimp peeled and deveined with the tails removed
- 3-4 mini sweet peppers
- 1 tablespoon blackened seasoning (see recipe above)
- 1 cup cheddar or Monterrey Jack shredded
- 1 jalapeño pepper thinly sliced (or you can substitute jarred jalapenos if you can’t find fresh ones)
- 2 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
- 4 cups Mission Organics® Tortilla Chips (about half a bag)
Salsa Fresca
- 1 medium tomato diced
- ¼ cup red onion diced
- 1 teaspoon cilantro finely minced
- juice from one lime (more or less to your tastes)
- sea salt to taste
Guacamole
- 2 Hass Avocado ripe
- ¼ cup tomato diced
- 1 teaspoon cilantro finely chopped
- juice from one lime (more or less to your tastes)
- jalapeno or hot sauce optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 while you gather your ingredients
- Season shrimp with blackening spices using as much or as little as you prefer.
- Heat up a cooking pan over medium-high heat. Add shrimp and quickly sear them on both sides until just done. Take shrimp out of the pan and set aside. *You can also bake the shrimp in the oven or grill them.
- Place the tortilla chips onto a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. The paper will help you transfer the completed nachos to a serving dish.
- Place the shrimp onto the chips, then add the sweet peppers.
- Add the shredded cheddar to the nachos, evenly distributing the cheese. *use more cheese than you think you need. As it melts it won’t look to be as much as you imagined.
- Sprinkle cilantro over the cheese, then add sliced jalapenos if you want a little extra heat.
- place sheet into preheated oven and bake for 7-10 minutes or until the cheese is nicely melted.
Salsa
- In a mixing bowl add diced tomatoes, onion, cilantro and lime juice. Season with sea salt to taste. * If you like heat feel free to add some diced jalapeno or hot sauce.
Guacamole
- Mash avocado with a potato masher or fork until you have the desired texture.
- Add the diced tomato, cilantro, and lime juice. Season with sea salt to taste. *If you like heat feel free to add some diced jalapeno
Nutrition
Brandy Ellen Writes
Finally! A recipe I can try to make with our fresh jalapenos! Our plant grew so many that we’re at a loss how to use them all up. I do love shrimp, so this is a new recipe that I’ll look forward to trying.
Heather
These nachos are incredible. Love the spice of the blackened shrimp.
Capri Lilly
Yumm! This recipe is great! So delish!
Amy
Spring is here and we can start eating outside. This would be perfect when we have friends over!
Nancy L
This looks absolutely delicious! I am a huge fan of shrimp nachos and I prefer blue corn chips over regular corn chips. Lately, I haven’t been able to find the blue corn chips at my store. Not sure why?
Taleen | Just As Tasty
Oh yum! I love loaded nachos but have never even thought to add shrimp. Thanks for sharing, this looks delicious!
Gloria Duggan
Blue nachos are the best. This looks so delicious. I need to get this done for next game night….what a tasty way to enjoy a board game.
Claudia
If I could give this more than five stars, I would! These are the fanciest nachos I’ve ever seen!
Orlie Marin
Nachos are my favorite food, and I’m always looking for new ways to spice them up! This is perfect.
Amber Myers
This would be such a tasty lunch. I love nachos. I know my kids would be all about this.
Emily
I love all of your seafood recipes and this shrimp nacho recipe was a hit in my house!! Thanks for sharing.
melissa chapman
Good nachos start with a good chip or tortilla and Mission makes a great product. My son loves shrimp so these nacchos will have to be my next meal.
Pam Wattenbarger
They do look delicious! I can see why it was hard to restrain yourself to take pictures. We use these chips a lot since they are gluten-free. 🙂
Bec
Those blue corn tortilla chips make the disk look amazing – bet it tastes as good as it looks!
Chef Dennis Littley
I love those chips and the blue are my favorite!
Amanda Kanashiro
These look so good! Came across the video on facebook and had to see if it was naturally gluten free. I can’t wait to try it!
Chef Dennis Littley
Thanks for stopping by Amanda and I’m happy to say it is completely Gluten Free! I do love Mission Organics Corn Chips and Tortillas!