Crispy Shrimp Tacos with Cilantro Lime Sauce
Crispy shrimp tacos are marinated in a ‘buttermilk’ mixture then cooked until perfectly golden brown and crispy. They’re packed with flavor, have great texture, and are served with a creamy cilantro lime sauce. This recipe is dairy free and gluten free.
Looking for more taco recipes? Try my dairy free crunchwrap supreme, crispy baked beef tacos, or sauteed baja shrimp tacos with slaw.
What You’ll Love About This Recipe
Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make these crispy tacos:
- Fresh or frozen raw shrimp – Use peeled and deveined shrimp. If using frozen, thaw them first.
- Seasoned dairy free buttermilk – oat milk, white wine vinegar, kosher salt, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper.
- Potato starch – a great alternative to panko breadcrumbs that gets really crispy once cooked in oil.
- Cilantro lime sauce – cilantro, dairy free sour cream or cashew cream, olive oil, lime zest and lime juice, garlic, kosher salt, and black pepper.
- Cabbage slaw – green cabbage and carrot.
- Warm tortillas – corn or flour tortillas
- Olive oil or avocado oil – for cooking the shrimp.
How to Make Crispy Shrimp Tacos: Step By Step
Here are some quick visual instructions. The full instructions and ingredient list will be in the printable recipe card below!
- Marinate shrimp. Whisk together oat milk, vinegar, kosher salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper then pour over peeled and deviled shrimp and stir to coat. Set aside for a few minutes.
- Make sauce. Add all the sauce ingredients to a blender or food processor and blend until completely smooth, scraping down the sides as needed.
- Make slaw. In a medium bowl, combine the green cabbage and carrot. Toss with a couple tablespoons of the sauce. Set aside.
- Dredge. Add the potato starch to a shallow bowl. One by one, remove the shrimp from the marinade, letting excess drip off. Dip both sides fully in the starch, tapping off the excess. Transfer breaded shrimp to a plate.
- Cook the shrimp. Heat a high walled large skillet over medium heat with enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan. Cook the shrimp in a single layer for a few minutes on each side, depending on their size until golden brown and crispy. Transfer to a wire rack and continue with the process until you’ve cooked all the shrimp.
- Assemble. Add slaw to the bottom of a warm tortilla, followed by crispy shrimp and a drizzle of the creamy sauce. Serve with lime wedges if desired.
Helpful Tips
- Use large shrimp. Small shrimp cook too quickly and aren’t ideal for tacos.
- Use a high wall pot such as a dutch oven to help prevent oil splatters.
Quick Tip: Warm tortillas before assembling. This helps make them more pliable and prevent them from cracking open. You can do this in a warm dry skillet, the microwave or very carefully over a low open flame.
Storage
Store leftover sauce and fried shrimp in separate containers in the fridge for up to 2 days. Reheat in an air fryer or skillet to retain crispiness. Assemble tacos just before serving.
Make It Your Way: Substitutions & Variations
Please remember that recipes are just a starting point.
How can you make these easy crispy shrimp tacos using what you already have? Here are some ideas…
- No potato starch? – use corn starch.
- No green cabbage? – you can also use napa cabbage or purple/red cabbage.
- Switch up the sauce – bang bang sauce, dairy free caesar dressing, kimchi mayo, etc. The tacos work with any kind of sauce. It just depends what flavor profile you want.
Frequently Asked Questions
Transfer the cooked shrimp to a wire rack to retain their crisp texture and then only cook what you plan on eating right away. The starch loses its crispy coating once refrigerated. So, you’ll either need to reheat them in the oil or wait to cook the breaded shrimp until just before serving.
Although you can cook shrimp in the air fryer, they get crispier in a skillet. So for the best flavor and texture, I recommend cooking them on the stove.
More Taco Recipes
- Dairy Free Crunchwrap Supreme
- Sauteed Baja Shrimp Tacos With Slaw
- Crispy Baked Beef Tacos
- Skillet Fish Tacos With Mango Salsa
I hope you love these Crispy Shrimp Tacos! If you make this recipe, please leave a comment & a star rating below. Thank you!
Crispy Shrimp Tacos with Cilantro Lime Sauce
Ingredients
Crispy Shrimp
- 1 pound large peeled and deveined shrimp thaw first if using frozen
- ½ cup creamy unsweetened oat milk
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon diamond crystal kosher salt reduce to ½ teaspoon if using anything else
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¾ cup potato starch or corn starch
Creamy Cilantro Lime Sauce
- 1 cup cilantro leaves and stems roughly chopped
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons dairy free sour cream
- zest and juice of 1 lime about 2 tablespoons juice
- 2 tablespoons olive oil or avocado oil
- 1 small garlic clove minced
- ½ teaspoon diamond crystal kosher salt start with ¼ teaspoon if using anything else
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Slaw
- 3 cups thinly sliced green cabbage
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 2 tablespoons cilantro lime sauce
For Serving
- warm corn or flour tortillas
Instructions
- Marinate shrimp. Whisk together oat milk, vinegar, kosher salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper then pour over peeled and deviled shrimp and stir to coat. Set aside.
- Make sauce. Add all the sauce ingredients to a blender or food processor and blend until completely smooth, scraping down the sides as needed.
- Make slaw. In a medium bowl, combine the green cabbage and carrot. Toss with a couple tablespoons of the sauce. Set aside.
- Dredge. Add the potato starch to a shallow bowl. One by one, remove the shrimp from the marinade, letting excess drip off. Dip both sides fully in the starch, tapping off the excess. Transfer breaded shrimp to a plate.
- Cook the shrimp. Heat a high walled large skillet over medium heat with enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan. Cook the shrimp in a single layer for a few minutes on each side, depending on their size until golden brown and crispy. Transfer to a wire rack and continue with the process until you've cooked all the shrimp.
- Assemble. Add slaw to the bottom of a warm tortilla, followed by crispy shrimp and a drizzle of the creamy sauce. Serve with lime wedges if desired.