I've already shared with you how much I love to celebrate Taco Tuesday by cooking up my homemade version of San Diego style
Beer Battered Shrimp Tacos and now I'm going to share another one of my favorite taco recreations....And also profess my embarrassing love for Taco Bell.
Sadly, this love is not just reserved for drunken late night food. I traveled all over Europe and ate some of the best food of my life, but as soon as I landed back in American soil I begged my cousin to take me to Taco Bell. When we were getting ready to move to Maui, I googled to check there was a Taco Bell nearby. Its bad. But yet its so good. You can judge my Taco Bell obsession all you want, heck I judge myself, but you cannot hate on my love for T Bell too much to not try my recreation of their glorious Double Decker Taco. My spicy, zesty Shrimp Double Decker Taco is SO much better than the original....and as a faithful Taco Bell supporter you know that's a bold statement.
I start out by using my favorite fast shrimp recipe. I marinate shrimp in olive oil, cayenne pepper, chili powder, salt, and pepper for about twenty minutes while I prep all my other ingredients. Then I saute garlic and white onion in a little olive oil and add the shrimp until cooked through. Off the heat I squeeze in the juice of a whole lime and that's it. Spicy, garlicky shrimp bursting with fresh lime flavor.
Now for the assembly line. Spread one softened flour tortilla with a layer of heated refried beans, add a crunchy taco shell to one side, arrange a layer of the spicy shrimp (I often break the crunchy taco shell so I can fit in as many little shrimp as I please), then top with shredded lettuce, chopped tomato and avocado, cheddar cheese, and a dollop of sour cream!
Serve with wedges of lime for some extra zing and to really bring out the fresh flavors of the tacos. Oh and prep yourself two tacos, because one of these bad boys just won't be enough.
I can't believe I haven't mentioned the best part. When you make Double Decker Tacos at home, you can have a nice frosty Margarita on the side. Sorry T Bell, I got you beat on this one.
Even if you turn your nose up at fast food joints, there is something to be said about the awesome texture contrast of a Double Decker Taco. You get the soft warm flour tortilla and the crunch of a hard shell taco...best of both worlds! So if you won't try one at Taco Bell, at least you can try one now with my homemade version.
And for all my fellow spice lovers, there is enough heat packed in the shrimp from the cayenne pepper and chili powder that you won't even need any hot sauce packets! But as always, if you and your family are not a fan of spicy food, you can cut back or completely omit the cayenne and chili and it will still be delicious.
Shrimp Double Decker Tacos
(This recipe only makes about 4-5 tacos because I normally only make it as a quick dinner for the two of us, but its very easy to double if you are feeding a larger crowd)
For the Spicy Garlic Lime Shrimp:
1/2 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined and tails removed
1/4 cup white onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1-2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon chili powder
a big pinch of cayenne pepper-feel free to omit if you don't want the heat!
salt and pepper
1 lime
Marinate the shrimp in about 1 tablespoon of olive oil (or enough to coat the shrimp) with all the spices and salt and pepper for about twenty minutes. Heat a pan with the remaining olive oil and saute the onion and garlic until soft. Add the shrimp and cook until just pink. Remove pan from heat and squeeze with the juice of the entire lime.
For the Double Decker Tacos:
warmed flour tortillas
crunchy taco shells
refried beans
grated cheddar cheese
shredded lettuce
diced tomato
diced avocado
sour cream
lime wedges
Spicy Garlic Lime Shrimp
Spread one warmed flour tortilla with a layer of heated refried beans, add a crunchy taco shell to one side, arrange a layer of the spicy shrimp, sandwich together the taco, then top with desired garnishes.
