This healthy, easy shrimp fajitas recipe comes together in one skillet for a quick and flavorful weeknight dinner! Serve the zesty bell peppers, onions, and shrimp with a stack of soft, warm flour tortillas, a bed of salad greens, or a bowl of rice — and don’t forget the toppings!
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!
Even my pickiest little eaters love these shrimp fajitas! Skip a trip to the local Tex-Mex restaurant, because easy, customizable dinners are the way to go when feeding a family at home.
Make the healthy shrimp fajitas as spicy or as mild as you like, and let the kids choose their favorite toppings. From cheese to sour cream, salsa to guacamole, cilantro, jalapenos, and tomatoes, the options are endless — and everyone will leave the table happy!
What makes a fajita a fajita?
In Tex-Mex cuisine, the term fajita typically refers to strips of grilled meat (such as steak, chicken, or shrimp) served with peppers and onions on a flour tortilla.
Shrimp Fajitas Seasoning
A seasoning blend adds zesty flavor to fajita meat and vegetables. While it’s similar to taco seasoning, fajita seasoning usually has fewer ingredients, a little bit less chili powder, and a more mild profile than taco seasoning. You’ll find a lot of the same herbs and spices in both; however, such as chili powder, salt, cumin, paprika, garlic, and onion.
When preparing this recipe at home, you can control the heat in your homemade fajita seasoning blend by adding more or less cayenne pepper. You can also swap out the homemade seasoning and instead purchase a packet of fajita seasoning from the store!
Ingredients
This is a quick overview of the ingredients that you’ll need for the best shrimp fajitas recipe. As always, specific measurements and complete cooking instructions are included in the printable recipe box at the bottom of the post.
- Fajita seasoning: a homemade blend of paprika, chili powder, salt, cumin, oregano, onion powder, garlic powder, and cayenne.
- Shrimp: we like extra-large shrimp, but any size will work. Just adjust the total cooking time according to the size of your shrimp. Smaller shrimp cook faster!
- Vegetable oil: helps the seasoning adhere to the shrimp and veggies, and prevents everything from sticking to the pan.
- Sweet bell peppers: any color is fine — red, orange, green, or yellow bell peppers.
- Onion: I use a yellow onion, but sweet onion, red onion, or white onion will also work.
- Fresh limes: the fresh lime juice adds a bright, acidic finishing touch. Extra lime wedges are a nice garnish for serving, too.
How to Make Shrimp Fajitas
You can’t beat the ease of these authentic shrimp fajitas, which come together in a single skillet in about 30 minutes! I’ve included the full instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of the post, but here’s the quick version:
- Stir together the fajita seasoning.
- Combine the shrimp, oil, and half of the seasoning mix.
- Cook the peppers and onions in a large skillet with the remaining half of the seasoning mix.
- Cook the shrimp in the same pan.
- Combine the shrimp and the vegetables, and finish with a squeeze of lime juice.
Fajita Toppings
Whether you serve the shrimp and vegetables in flour tortillas, in rice bowls, or on top of salads, a variety of toppings add flavor to every bite. Here are some options:
- Fresh cilantro
- Shredded lettuce
- Pico de gallo
- Salsa
- Cheese
- Guacamole or diced avocado
- Sliced green onion or chives
- Sour cream
- Diced tomatoes
- Lime wedges
Serving Suggestions
Pair the shrimp fajitas with any of these easy sides:
- Rice
Preparation and Storage
- Prepare the fajita seasoning mix in advance and keep it stored in an airtight container in the pantry for up to 3 months. If you make fajitas regularly, triple or quadruple the ingredients to make a larger batch to have on hand.
- Peel and devein the shrimp, and slice the vegetables up to 24 hours in advance. Store the prepped ingredients in separate air-tight containers in the refrigerator. At the end of a busy work day, you’ll just have to quickly cook everything in a skillet.
- Leftover cooked shrimp fajitas will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for about 1-2 days.
- You can freeze cooked fajitas for up to 2 months; however, the vegetables tend to have a mushy, watery texture when thawed, so this is not ideal.
- Reheat the leftovers in a skillet over low heat for about 5 minutes, or in the microwave for 30-60 seconds (until warmed through).
Shrimp Fajitas Recipe Variations
- Don’t want to prepare your own fajita seasoning? For a shortcut, you can purchase packets of store-bought seasoning instead.
- This fajita seasoning has a small amount of “heat,” thanks to a little bit of cayenne. I would consider it comparable to “medium” salsa. If your family prefers a spicier dish, you can increase the amount of cayenne or serve the fajitas topped with jalapeños. By contrast, if you want a more mild fajita seasoning, omit the cayenne.
- We like soft, warm tortillas for shrimp fajitas tacos, but you can also serve the fajitas with corn tortillas, over rice, or on top of salad.
- Serving just two people? Cut all of the ingredients in half. The cooking instructions remain the same.
- Use this recipe for chicken fajitas on a baking sheet, or this recipe for steak fajitas on the grill.
TIPS FOR THE BEST SHRIMP FAJITA RECIPE
- To easily warm the flour tortillas before serving, wrap the stack of tortillas in foil and place them in a 350°F oven for about 10 minutes. Alternatively, you can microwave the tortillas on a plate under a damp paper towel until warmed through.
- Adjust the seasoning to suit your taste preferences. Omit the cayenne for mild fajitas.
- The shrimp is done as soon as it turns pink and opaque. Do not overcook the shrimp or it will have tough, rubbery texture.
Skillet Shrimp Fajitas
Ingredients
- 1 ½ teaspoons paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoons chili powder
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne (omit for a mild seasoning)
- 1 lb. peeled and deveined extra-large shrimp
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil divided
- 1 red bell pepper cut into strips
- 1 yellow or orange bell pepper cut into strips
- 1 small yellow onion sliced
- Juice from 1 lime plus extra lime wedges for serving
- Optional, for serving: salsa, flour tortillas (warmed), rice, sour cream, shredded cheese, guacamole, cilantro, salsa, tomatoes
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine paprika, chili powder, kosher salt, cumin, oregano, onion powder, garlic powder, and cayenne. Set the seasoning mix aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine shrimp, 1 tablespoon of oil, and about half of the seasoning mix.
- In a large cast iron skillet, heat remaining 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. Add bell peppers and onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are browned and tender, about 10-12 minutes. Stir in remaining half of the seasoning mix. Remove pepper mixture from the skillet.
- In the same skillet, cook the shrimp over medium-high heat until pink and firm, about 2-3 minutes per side. Return the pepper mixture to the skillet; stir to combine.
- Squeeze the lime juice over top. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper, if necessary.
- Serve shrimp mixture alongside rice, over salad, or tucked in flour tortillas with your favorite toppings.
Notes
- To easily warm the flour tortillas before serving, wrap the stack of tortillas in foil and place them in a 350°F oven for about 10 minutes. Alternatively, you can microwave the tortillas on a plate under a damp paper towel until warmed through.
- Adjust the seasoning to suit your taste preferences. Omit the cayenne for mild fajitas.
- The shrimp is done as soon as it turns pink and opaque. Do not overcook the shrimp or it will have tough, rubbery texture.