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Shrimp Elote Tacos

Shrimp elote tacos with charred shrimp and a creamy cotija cheese sauce, finished with smoky corn and fresh cilantro. Ready in about 25 minutes, with a street-food style layering of seafood and elote topping on warm corn tortillas.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: Mexican
Calories: 540
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

shrimp
  • 1.5 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined
olive oil
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
garlic
  • 3 clove cloves garlic, minced
cumin
  • 1 tsp cumin
salt and pepper
  • 0.25 Salt and pepper to taste
corn
  • 2 cup corn kernels
elote sauce
  • 0.5 cup mayonnaise
  • 0.25 cup cotija cheese, crumbled
  • 0.25 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
  • 2 tbsp lime juice
tortillas
  • 8 corn tortillas
garnish
  • 0.25 Fresh cilantro and lime for serving

Equipment

  • 1 large skillet
  • 1 separate skillet

Method
 

Make the elote sauce
  1. Combine mayonnaise, cotija cheese, Parmesan cheese, and lime juice in a small bowl until smooth and creamy. Stop when the sauce looks thick enough to drizzle.
Cook the shrimp
  1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, then add minced garlic and cook about 30 seconds until fragrant. A light sizzle should start right away.
  2. Season shrimp with cumin, salt, and pepper, then add to the skillet and cook 2-3 minutes per side until pink and cooked through. Flip only once for clean charring and doneness.
Char the corn
  1. In a separate skillet, char corn kernels over medium-high heat until lightly blackened, about 3-4 minutes. Stir occasionally so some kernels blister while others stay bright.
Assemble the tacos
  1. Warm corn tortillas on a griddle until pliable, about 30-45 seconds each. They should feel flexible without turning crispy.
  2. Spread a spoonful of elote sauce on each tortilla, then top with cooked shrimp and charred corn. Drizzle with additional sauce so it coats the shrimp.
  3. Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve with lime wedges. Finish with a final squeeze of lime juice right before eating.

Notes

For best texture, keep shrimp on high heat only until just pink—overcooking makes them rubbery. Store leftovers in the fridge up to 2 days; rewarm shrimp gently and reheat corn in a skillet. Freezing isn’t recommended for tacos, since tortillas and shrimp texture change. For a lighter option, swap mayonnaise for Greek yogurt in the elote sauce while keeping the cheese and lime juice.