CLASSIC SHRIMP GOBERNADOR TACOS

Posted in Seafood by

Another great recipe coming straight from the adorable  Marcela Valladolid, these tacos can be prepared very quickly. Plus, if you make the shrimp filling the day before, the meal will be ready in less than 15 minutes. I tried hard to find the specific origin for Gobernador Tacos, no luck. Then, a dear friend sent me a link with the whole story behind it. (Thank you, Dr. G!). These tacos are very popular in Baja California.  I can guarantee they will be equally popular in your home!  😉

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CLASSIC SHRIMP GOBERNADOR TACOS
(adapted from Marcela Valladolid)

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small shallot, minced
2 tomatoes, seeded. chopped
1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and diced
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined, chopped
1 cup canned tomato puree
1 teaspoon Mexican oregano
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 corn tortillas
1/2 cup shredded Oaxaca or mozzarella cheese
Lime wedges and hot sauce for serving
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In a large heavy saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the minced shallot and cook until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and bell pepper and cook for 3 minutes. Add the shrimp and cook for a couple of minutes.  Stir in the tomato puree, oregano, bay leaf, and smoked paprika. Cook for another couple of minutes, remove the pan from the heat and reserve.  Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Remove and discard the bay leaf.
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Heat a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Lay 2 tortillas, flat on the bottom of the pan, side by side. Put a small mound of cheese on 1 side of each tortilla. Wait until the cheese melts slightly,  and then add about 2 tablespoons of the shrimp mixture to each tortilla. Fold the tortillas over into half-moon shapes and cook to melt the cheese completely, another 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a platter and keep warm.Repeat with the remaining tortillas, cheese, and shrimp mixture. Arrange the tacos on a serving platter and serve with lime wedges and hot sauce on the side.
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ENJOY!
to print the recipe, click here
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sauce
The shrimp sauce, so tasty as the taco filling, is equally wonderful as a main dish.  Just add a little white rice and some guacamole to complete the meal…

served

Deliciously messy to eat, this is a great recipe for a warm summer night!  One extra tip: do not cut the shrimp too small, keep the pieces in large chunks. If you want to splurge, chunks of  lobster tails in these tacos will be absolutely awesome!  Expensive, yes, but awesome!  😉

If you like Mexican food, tune into Mexican Made Easy, it’s always fun to watch Marcela preparing classic dishes,  often with a healthier approach.  Not much else appeals to me in the FoodTV these days, and that’s a little sad.

ONE YEAR AGO: A Walk Towards the Sunset

TWO YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen

THREE YEARS AGO:  Heavenly Home-made Fromage Blanc

FOUR YEARS AGO:  A Perfect Sunday Dinner

28 thoughts on “CLASSIC SHRIMP GOBERNADOR TACOS”

  2. I love Mexican food – these look delicious! I’m not sure that they show Mexican Made Easy on our version of the Food Network but I’ll certainly have a look at the recipes on the website. Thanks for this.

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    • If you search for recipes in the site, take a look at one called “chocolate flan cake” or something along those lines. It was in my TiVo since Friday and it seems like a fantastic recipe, similar to something I had once or twice in Brazil.

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  3. I’ve seen the show on the Food Network but not so much lately … this sounds like a great dish and you know how much I love Mexican food. I wonder if I can put some inside a tamale.

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  5. Well you know we’ll be adding lobst-ah!!! You have me salivating. And the name of this dish is so fun to say. I predict this one will get high spoon ratings. And it’s a perfect meal for our week nights too. I love tacos on the weeknights. 🙂 You’ll be feeding us well this week.

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  6. Love the mixture [well, it’ll be ordinary oregano and mozarella here 🙂 !] And Celia and I think alike: I would be most likely to put this on brown rice for dinner also!! Oh corn tortillas are available in the supermarkets as wraps now: methinks rice is just such a common ‘side’ or ‘base’ here!

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    • Rice is always welcome at our dinner table, white, brown, black (actually I had problems cooking the black Forbidden rice from China, gotta revisit that issue sometime)

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      • Interesting to read:I have only heard of black rice, but never eaten it or cooked it!! Oh: cooked your hoisin chicken yesterday [am afraid with hokkien noodles: was out of soba] and it was so delightful I shall probably share with friends when I get to it 🙂 !

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        • he, he, he…. loved the line ‘I should probably share with friends” – yeap, some meals make you want to have a dinner party right away “while the recipe is still warm in our mind”

          we had a nice get-togehter at home yesterday with our whole lab, tons of fun, we have a fantastic group of people working with us…. life is good!

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    • Lydia, in Brazil there’s absolutely nothing wrong with shrimp and cheese, in fact there is a classic recipe using shrimp in skewers with pieces of cheese (called Camarao a grega, or Greek Shrimp) that is absolutely to die for! Only when I arrived in the US I learned that here cheese and seafood is frowned upon.

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  11. Pingback: What’s Cooking… Turkey Tacos with Black Beans | Notes from a Southern Kitchen

  14. Combine shrimp, cayenne pepper, chili powder, garlic and a few dashes of Tabasco in a small bowl. Season with salt & pepper and marinate for 10 minutes. Heat grill to medium high heat and grill the shrimp, about 2-3 minutes per side. Do not overcook!

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