Shrimp tacos drizzled with Thai red curry sauce and topped with pickled cucumbers, carrots, jalapenos, and peanuts. It's a fusion of flavors that work so well together!
These Thai Red Curry Shrimp Tacos look fancy, but they are actually so easy to make! My inspiration came from a local Phoenix Restaurant that had a Shrimp Curry Taco on their menu and absolutely loved the flavor combination.
I knew I had to re-create the recipe and was excited when I nailed it the first try!
The sauce is my standard Thai red curry, with the addition of a thickener, like cornstarch or arrowroot starch. The thicker curry sauce sticks to the shrimp better and prevents a runny tacos.
Not a fan of shrimp? These would be awesome with a grilled chicken or steak tacos.
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Ingredients
These are the main ingredients you'll need for the Red Curry Tacos:
- Red Curry Paste
- Canned Coconut Milk
- Corn Starch
- Shrimp
- Tortillas
- Carrots
- Cucumbers
- Rice vinegar
- Sugar
Please note that not all curry pastes are the same! I linked the Mae Ploy brand above, which has authentic bold flavors. The Thai Kitchen brand will be significantly more mild. So depending on the brand you are using, please taste and adjust if needed.
How to Make
Start by quick pickling some shredded cucumbers and carrots. Just 30 minutes is all you need and the acidity helps add some brightness and crunch to the tacos.
Simply combine rice vinegar with some sugar and place shredded carrots and cucumbers in a jar give it a shake and place in the fridge.
Next make the red curry sauce, which is just red curry paste, canned coconut milk, and a thickener like cornstarch or arrowroot starch. You want the consistency of gravy but not too thick.
Season the shrimp with salt, pepper, and paprika for some spice and color on the shrimp. Then simply pan fry in some oil until they are no longer opaque. Don't overcook the shrimp.
Assemble the Tacos
I feel like this step is overlooked when making tacos, please heat up your tortillas. I promise it makes a difference in taste!
You can either do this by heating up a skillet, no oil, and place the tortillas for a minute on each side. Or if you have a gas stove, directly over the flame.
Keep the tortillas warm in a tortilla warmer, foil, or wrapped in a kitchen towel until you are ready to serve..
Place Shrimp on a warmed tortilla, drizzle the red curry sauce, top with pickled cucumber and carrots, and garnish with sliced jalapenos, cilantro, and chopped peanuts.
Want a Low Carb Version? Use butter lettuce instead of tortillas. Just as tasty and fresh!
How To Serve and Store
These Red Curry Shrimp tacos are best served immediately. You can prep the pickled vegetables ahead of time, but the sauce and shrimp cook quickly.
These tacos are great on their own, but also go well with some Coconut Lime Rice and a Mango Salsa.
If you have leftovers, store the shrimp, curry sauce, and pickled vegetables separately for up to 2 days in the refrigerator. Then heat the shrimp and curry sauce together and assemble the tacos.
More Thai Curry Recipes:
Thai Red Curry Shrimp Taco Recipe
Ingredients
Red Curry Sauce
- 1 tablespoon Coconut Oil or sub your favorite oil
- 2 tablespoon Red Curry Paste I used Mae Ploy, which is spicier than the Thai Kitchen Brand.
- 15 ounce Full Fat Coconut Milk (1 can)
- 1 tablespoon Cornstarch or Arrowroot starch
- 1 tablespoon Water
Tacos
- 12 Corn Tortillas
- 24 Jumbo Shrimp 2 Pieces of Shrimp per a taco
- 1 tablespoon Oil
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Paprika
- ½ cup Cucumber Shredded
- ½ cup Carrots Shredded
- 3 tablespoon Rice Vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Sugar
- Jalapenos, cilantro, and chopped peanuts For Garnish
Instructions
Pickled Cucumbers and Carrots
- Use either a mandolin with a shredding attachment or a knife to make julienne shreds with a cucumber and carrot. Place in a mason jar or small container.
- Mix Rice vinegar and sugar together to dissolve, then pour over carrots and cucumbers. Give it a good shake or stir and place in refrigerator while you make the tacos.
Red Curry Sauce
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, add coconut oil and curry paste (start with 1 tablespoon if you don't want it spicy). Break it up and after a minute add the coconut milk.
- Mix well, and bring to a light simmer. Taste the sauce and see if additional curry paste or salt is needed.
- Mix Cornstarch or Arrowroot starch with water to make a slurry. Then pour into red curry sauce. Mix well, and turn the heat off. Sauce will thicken as it cools, you want the consistency of gravy. If it's still too thin then add more starch slurry. If too thick add a little bit of water.
Shrimp
- In a large bowl add Oil, Salt, and Paprika to Shrimp, and mix to coat each piece.
- In a saute pan over medium heat, place shrimp so they are not touching each other and cook on each side till they turn pink. This only takes a couple minutes.
Tortillas
- Warm tortillas on a skillet with no oil, or directly over a gas flame. Keep the tortillas warm in a tortilla warmer or wrapped in foil, or a clean kitchen towel.
- Assemble Tacos: Place 2 shrimp on a warmed tortilla, drizzle red curry sauce on top, place pickled cucumbers and carrots, then top with sliced jalapenos, cilantro, and chopped peanuts.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as an estimate only and depends on ingredients and amounts used. Thai Caliente makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information.
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