This saucy shrimp recipe is often referred to as Mexican shrimp cocktail, Mexican-style shrimp cocktail, coctel de camerones, and coctel mariscos when additional seafood is added.

Do I have to grill the shrimp?

No. You can poach your own shrimp, or buy already cooked shrimp for a faster version of this recipe. Refer above to tips on poaching shrimp.

How long can I store this dish for?

Because the acids in the sauce will begin to break down the shrimp and change their texture, you want to serve this within a couple of hours to 24 hours.

Can I make the sauce ahead of time?

The sauce portion of this shrimp cocktail can be made ahead of time and refrigerated until you’re ready to stir in the shrimp and vegetables.

What size shrimp should I use for a Mexican-style shrimp cocktail?

Because most of the shrimp gets chopped into bite-sized pieces, medium shrimp work well for this recipe. They’re large enough to skewer for grilling without having to invest in colossal shrimp that will just be cut up.

Campechana, Grilled Mexican Shrimp Cocktail

Name: Campechana, Grilled Mexican Shrimp Cocktail
Prep time: 50 min
Cook time: 8 min
Total time: 1 h
Cuisine: Appetizer
Ingredients: Flat metal skewers; 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled, deveined; Juice of 1 lime; 2 tablespoons Tajin seasoning (optional); 1 tablespoon vegetable oil; 2 Anaheim chiles; 1 cup Clamato juice (regular or spicy); 1/2 cup ketchup; 1/4 cup freshly chopped cilantro; Juice of 1 lime; 2 tablespoons Mexican hot sauce; 1 teaspoon Jugo Maggi; Fresh ground black pepper to taste; 1 medium Roma tomato, seeded and diced; 1 jalapeño, seeded and diced; ¼ cup English cucumber, diced; 2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion; 1 avocado, pitted and cubed; Lime wedges (for serving); Tortilla chips (for serving)

Ingredients

Scale

Equipment

Flat metal skewers

Ingredients

1 pound medium shrimp, peeled, deveined
Juice of 1 lime
2 tablespoons Tajin seasoning (optional)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 Anaheim chiles
1 cup Clamato juice (regular or spicy)
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup freshly chopped cilantro
Juice of 1 lime
2 tablespoons Mexican hot sauce
1 teaspoon Jugo Maggi
Fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 medium Roma tomato, seeded and diced
1 jalapeño, seeded and diced
¼ cup English cucumber, diced
2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
1 avocado, pitted and cubed
Lime wedges (for serving)
Tortilla chips (for serving)

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

Preheat a grill to medium-high heat for direct grilling.
Clean the shrimp and remove the shells. Leave some of the tails on if desired, to garnish the top of the glass for serving.
Mix together the lime juice, Tajin seasoning, and vegetable oil together in a resealable plastic bag. Add in the cleaned shrimp to the marinade. Squeeze out the excess air and mix the shrimp around. Allow the shrimp to marinade for about 20 minutes until the coals are ready to grill.
Place the Anaheim chiles directly over the coals on the grill, allowing them to blister the skin. Flip them every few minutes until they are almost charred, and place them in a plastic container or bag. Allow them to steam while the shrimp is grilling.
Prepare the skewers. Drain the marinade from the shrimp and lightly pat them dry with paper towels. Thread a shrimp onto the skewer, piercing twice to secure it in place. Do this for the rest of the shrimp.
Clean the grill grates. Place the skewers on the grill directly above the coals, and allow the shrimp to sear for about 2-3 minutes. Flip, and grill for another 2-3 minutes until the shrimp are done, around 120°F internal temperature. The shrimp will be opaque and start to firm up.
Remove the shrimp from the skewers and allow them to rest. Chop up the shrimp into bite-sized pieces, except for the ones you’ll use for garnish.
Take the roasted chiles out of the bag and peel off the skins. Remove the stem and seeds, and dice up the chiles.
In a large bowl, whisk together the Clamato juice, ketchup, lime juice, vegetable oil, hot sauce, Jugo Maggi, and black pepper. This is the base of the cocktail sauce, so adjust the flavors as you desire.
Fold in the chopped shrimp, chopped chiles, tomato, jalapeno, cucumber, red onion, and avocado. Taste the campechano for seasoning and adjust with salt as needed. This dish is best served chilled with tortilla chips.

Notes

Grill the shrimp to temperature, do not focus on trying to get grill marks.
Read the notes in the article for lots of variations with ingredients.

Author: Brad Prose
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Marinating Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 8 minutes
Category: Seafood
Method: Grilling
Cuisine: Appetizer

Keywords: campechana, grilled shrimp, shrimp cocktail, Mexican shrimp cocktail, poached shrimp, seafood appetizer