Shrimp Enchiladas are a delicious seafood dish that is easy to prepare and ready in under 45 minutes. Cheesy, creamy seafood enchiladas are packed with large shrimp, jalapenos, onions, tomatoes and all baked in spicy, creamy sauce.
If you like creamy enchiladas, try our Steak Enchiladas and Vegetarian Enchiladas.
Table of Contents
Shrimp enchiladas make a lovely dinner any day of the week! They are probably the fastest enchiladas that I make and can definitely be a nice week night dinner. Especially, if you’re looking to make a special dinner for someone.
These enchiladas were definitely fantastic: they’re cheesy, creamy, and spicy. (They can be as spicy as you wish!) THe combination of flavors and textures are so good, it’s hard to stop eating them.
All that gooey, melted cheese inside with shrimp, onions, tomatoes, and jalapenos, wrapped in a cream sauce soaked tortilla…ah, perfection! The best part is that you can adjust the heat to your liking. You can add more cayenne pepper (just be careful with how much you add) and add an extra jalapeno if you’d like a spicier dish.
Ingredient Notes
Shrimp – I like to use larger shrimp but size doesn’t matter as much as the quality. If you have access to fresh caught wild shrimp, that would be the best choice. If using frozen shrimp, make sure to thaw them completely first and drain off all the liquid. Make sure to peel and devein the shrimp as well.
Jalapenos – you can regular the spice level of your enchiladas with the chili peppers. Jalapenos are the milder variety so if you want to add more spice, you can add a serrano, red chili pepper, or a habanero pepper as well. You can also use older jalapenos, which are spicier, and keep the seeds in. Chili peppers store most of their spice in the seeds, so leaving them in will increase the spice level.
Onion – use yellow onion, white onion, or red onion. The flavor difference won’t be too noticeable, although red onion does tend to me a touch sweeter.
Monterrey Jack cheese – this cheese is beautiful to use in enchiladas because it has a mild flavor and melts nice and smooth. If you wish, you can use pepper jack cheese instead to add more chili pepper flavor.
Heavy Whipping Cream – heavy whipping cream will give you the richest, creamiest sauce but you can substitute half and half in a pinch. Just don’t go any less creamy than that.
Sour Cream – use full fat sour cream for the best results! I do not recommend substituting Greek yogurt because there is a good chance of curdling or separating when used in cooking.
Cooking Instructions
Make the sauce: Preheat oil in a large cooking pan over medium heat and add sliced onions and jalapenos (1). Let it sauté until they start to soften. Add in diced tomatoes and minced garlic, mix and sauté until veggies are cooked through (2).
While veggies are cooking, whisk heavy cream, sour cream, spices and salt in a mixing bowl or a large measuring glass and pour it into the pan with veggies (3). Stir slowly and carefully until completely incorporated (4) and lower the heat to medium-low.
Cook the shrimp: Add shrimp and cook, still over medium to medium-low heat, until shrimp just turned opaque on the bottom, flip and cook until shrimp turns opaque. Take off heat.
Build enchiladas: Spread some cheese in the center of each tortilla, in a line. Using slotted spoon, scoop out about a quarter of shrimp/veggie mixture, draining most of the sauce, into the tortilla. Spread the shrimp in the line over the cheese.
Roll the tortilla and place it in the baking dish, seam down. Repeat with remaining tortillas, shrimp and veggies.
Baking enchiladas: Pour sauce over enchiladas and spread remaining cheese on top. Bake shrimp enchiladas for about 15 minutes.
Recipe FAQs
Personally, I prefer to use flour tortillas in most of my enchilada recipes. But there is no need to debate, it all comes down to personal preference.
Flour tortillas are softer and sturdier, white corn tortillas do have a tendency to break and crumble. There is also a noticeable flavor and texture difference between the two types of tortillas, that is mostly where personal preference comes in. You can absolutely use corn tortillas if that is what you love or use flour.
If you choose to use corn tortillas in shrimp enchiladas, use larger size homemade or store-bought tortillas. DO use smaller shrimp because corn tortillas are prone to breaking and crumbling.
To soften corn tortillas, lightly brush or spray them with some oil and place them on a sheet tray. Bake at 325° for 3-5 minutes. After they’re warmed, stack them and cover with a damp warmed clean towel to keep them soft while rolling enchiladas.
I don’t usually recommend reheating seafood because it does not reheat well. If you do have to save leftovers and reheat them, definitely don’t reheat shrimp enchiladas in a microwave. Reheat them in a the baking dish, in the oven, at 325° until just heated through inside.
No, these shrimp enchiladas are not good to freeze because of the cream sauce and re-freezing seafood. I never recommend freezing seafood dishes because most people do use seafood in recipes that have been previously frozen.
Some More Shrimp Recipes To Make
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Shrimp Enchiladas Recipe
Ingredients
- 12-14 oz large shrimp
- 1-2 Tbsp vegetable oil for cooking
- 1 small yellow onion sliced thin
- 2 large jalapenos seeded or not, based on desired spice level
- 2 medium tomatoes “on a vine’ diced
- 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper to taste
- 1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- Salt
- 4 soft taco flour tortillas
- 8 oz Monterrey Jack cheese grated, divided in two
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° and grease a 9×9-inch baking dish.
- Preheat oil in a large cooking pan over medium heat. Add onions and jalapenos and sauté until they start to soften.
- Add diced tomatoes and minced garlic, mix and cook until all vegetables are cooked.
- While the veggies are cooking, whisk heavy cream, sour cream, spices and salt in a mixing bowl and pour it into the pan with veggies. Stir well and let it heat through and come to a slow simmer. Lower the heat to medium-low.
- Nestle in the shrimp in the sauce and cook, still over medium-low heat, until shrimp is opaque on the bottom. Flip the shrimp and cook until shrimp just turn all opaque and take off the heat.
- Use half the cheese to divide it among the four tortillas. Spread the cheese in the center of each tortilla, in the line.
- Using a slotted spoon, scoop out about a quarter of shrimp/veggie mixture, draining most of the sauce, into the tortilla. Spread them in the line over the cheese.
- Roll the tortilla and place it in the baking dish, seam down. Repeat with remaining tortillas, shrimp, and veggies.
- Pour the sauce over enchiladas and spread the remaining cheese on top.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes.
Notes
- Flour Tortillas or Corn Tortillas: Flour tortillas are softer and sturdier, white corn tortillas do have a tendency to break and crumble. There is also a noticeable flavor and texture difference between the two types of tortillas, that is mostly where personal preference comes in. You can absolutely use corn tortillas if that is what you love or use flour.
If you choose to use corn tortillas in shrimp enchiladas, use larger size homemade or store-bought tortillas. DO use smaller shrimp because corn tortillas are prone to breaking and crumbling. - To soften corn tortillas, lightly brush or spray them with some oil and place them on a sheet tray. Bake at 325° for 3-5 minutes. After they’re warmed, stack them and cover with a damp warmed clean towel to keep them soft while rolling enchiladas.
- Reheating shrimp tortillas: I don’t usually recommend reheating seafood because it does not reheat well. If you do have to save leftovers and reheat them, definitely don’t reheat shrimp enchiladas in a microwave. Reheat them in a the baking dish, in the oven, at 325° until just heated through inside.
SunnyDaysNora says
These look PHENOMENAL!! Can’t wait to try them!
lyuba says
Awe, thank you! I hope you will try them soon 🙂
Sonja says
I’m just now finding this wonderful recipe – and I’m SO happy I did! Outstanding! Didn’t change a thing. This gem will definitely go in the “keepers” file! Thank you!
Cheri says
This was excellent. I added 1/4 green pepper. Did not have chipotle powder but didn’t need it. I added 1/4 tsp Old Bay seasoning to shrimp. Wouldn’t change a thing. Served with watermelon or strawberries, and it is company worthy. Will definitely make again!
Lyuba says
Thank you, Cheri! It sounds amazing. I’m glad you enjoyed it. 🙂
Caitlin says
I lightened this recipe slightly by using light sour cream and 1 cup of heavy cream and 1/2 cup of milk. Turned out just as great as the first time I made it sticking to the original recipe. One of my favorite new recipes!
lyuba says
That’s great, Caitlin! I’m happy to hear that 🙂
Niki says
How would I adjust the recipe of I were to double batch? I’ve made this before and it disappeared immediately! Delicious!
lyuba says
Hi Nikki!
You can easily double all the ingredients and make two pans of it. You can bake two pans at the same time. I hope this helps! Thank you 🙂
Michele says
Hi Lyuba!
This recipe is out of this world!! We haven’t had a shrimp enchilada this good at even a high end Mexican
restaurant. I didn’t have Monterey Jack, so I used three blend Mexican cheese. Next time I will try Monterey.
I am so thrilled to have found this wonderful recipe!
Can’t wait to make this again.
Thanks and keep posting more fabulous recipes!!
Michele
Caroline Snook says
OMG, this was soooo good! I followed the recipe as shown, but instead of plain flour tortillas I did use Jalapeno flour wrap tortillas & pepper jack cheese. I’m not a meat eater so I’m always on the lookout for shrimp & fish entree’s and this is by far one of the best recipes ever! Thank You for sharing! 🙂
lyuba says
That sounds like a nice, flavorful substitution 🙂
I’m so glad you liked it and hope you’ll check out my other seafood recipes.
Thank you, Caroline!
Sarah says
Can I use half & half instead of Heavy cream?
Linda Knight says
Made this with pasta as suggested by another someone else, used bowtie. Added cilantro, it was wonderful.
lyuba says
What a great idea! I’m so glad it worked nicely for you 🙂
Pam says
The flavor was awesome. But with the amount of sauce the tortillas were way too mushy. I think I will try the sauce over pasta instead of using tortillas. Again great flavor!
lyuba says
I’m so glad you liked the flavors! I hope you enjoy it with pasta. Another reader tried it that way and liked it 🙂
Thank you!
michele coakley says
I used corn because that’s what i prefer. I’m sure either would be good though. This recipe is excellent! I didn’t add the sour cream because I wanted to use it for garnish on top of the cooked enchiladas. Fantastic! It will be on all my clients menus next week!
lyuba says
Great! I’m glad you liked it, Michele! Thank you 🙂
Chey says
So…. Corn tortilla or white flour tortilla? Which did you use for this recipe, please? Looks beautiful and delicious.
lyuba says
I’m SO sorry that I didn’t see your question before. I use flour tortillas in all my enchiladas and those are the ones I recommend. If you love corn tortillas, feel free to use those.
Thank you, Chey!
Carla says
What kind if tortilla do you use – flour or corn
lyuba says
I’m SO SORRY that I missed your comment, Carla! I use flour tortillas for all my enchiladas. If you do have a personal preference to corn, you are welcome to try those.
Shannon says
Just curious why you prefer flour tortillas. Looks like they would soak up all the goodness, and they’re not as structurally sound as corn.
lyuba says
Personally, I like the taste of flour tortillas better and I do like the texture. Corn tortillas also breaks or crumble easily. I also like that they do soak some sauce flavor but still retain their structure.
Some people do prefer corn tortilla taste over flour thought. You can definitely use the one you prefer 🙂