As a kid, I remember the Coctel de Camarones or Mexican Shrimp Cocktail, that my Dad would prepare. And as a kid, I also remember that it was mostly for the adults, lol! We would get a little taste and we were happy as could be. I mean feeding Coctel de Camarones to 8 kids plus 2 adults could get pretty expensive. My family’s recipe was pretty close to this one, minus the Clamato juice. We would use V-8 juice instead and make it really spicy. It’s great as starter for a special meal or as a light meal on it’s own.
Coctel de Camarones-Mexican Shrimp Cocktail
Only on special occasions would my family prepare coctel de camarones(shrimp cocktail). Growing up in a family with roots from Northern Mexico, it was a lot of beans, rice, eggs, meat and potatoes. The shrimp was a delicious change of pace!
Print
Pin
Rate
Servings: 4 Servings
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 1 pound large uncooked shrimp cleaned and peeled
- 5 cups water for cooking the shrimp
- Salt to taste
- 1 1/4 cups ketchup I used a spicy ketchup
- 1 1/4 cups Clamato juice
- 2 cups english cucumber diced
- 1 to 2 serranos minced
- 2 roma tomatoes seeded, diced
- 1/3 cup white onion finely diced
- 1/3 cup cilantro chopped, plus more for garnish
- 1 large avocado diced
- Juice of 3 to 4 key limes
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Valentina or Tapatio hot sauce to taste
- Saltine crackers or tostadas
Instructions
Directions
- Add the five cups of water to a pot. Salt the water to your liking and heat to medium. Once the water comes up to a boil add the shrimp. Poach the shrimp in boiling water for just just 2 minutes or until they turn pink. Drain and transfer shrimp to a bowl of ice water, set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients in the order listed. Taste for salt, pepper and hot sauce. Drain the chilled shrimp and add to the sauce mixture. Cover and chill for 1 hour before serving. Serve with saltine crackers, garnish with more cilantro.
Video
Notes
During the summer, I like to add a few fresh fruits to my coctel de camarones. Mango, peaches and jicama are a tasty addition to garnish your Mexican shrimp cocktail!
Tried this recipe?Mention @pinaenlacocina or tag #pinaenlacocina!
All your recipes are wonderful, they never fail me or my family
Sandra, thank you so much for taking the time to leave me this comment. It really inspires me to try and do the best job possible.
5 cups of water made my coctel very soupy.
The 5 cups of water is for cooking the shrimp. It doesn’t go into the coctel.
Hi Sonya, I’ve made this recipe several times and it’s always delicious and very authentic. One question: how far ahead can this be made? 1 day? or more, or less?
Happy Thanksgiving!
I would not prepare it the day before. Prepare it the same day you ate going to serve it. A few hours ahead is fine.
So very Wonderful!! I’ll never have to order this favorite again!
Hi Carie! I am so happy you enjoyed the recipe. Thank you for taking the time to leave me a comment.
I made this and I loved it!
I had Coctel de Camarones for the first time and fell in love! This recipe has way more veggies than the restaurant, but the taste was even better!!
I ate this with ritz crackers and saltines. I truly enjoyed both! I will be having this again!
I like a lot of veggies in my coctel. I am so happy you enjoyed the recipe!
Wow! Love it!
Thank you!!
this really hit the spot! I added double the tomatoes because I couldn’t help myself
Hi Rose! I am so happy you enjoyed the recipe!
I prepared all the ingredients separately mixed all the chopped veggies together kept the shrimp the cocktail sauce and the veggies separate and assembled at the last minute and it was a huge hit. This also allowed me to customize for everyone attending.
That’s a great idea Fred! Thank you for taking the time to send me some feedback on the recipe!
This is absolutely delicious!!!!! I just prepared and soooo very excited to have for dinner this evening. Thank you for this wonderful recipe!!
Thank you Stephanie! I am so happy you enjoyed the recipe!
Hi do I have to use the Serrano peppers?
Hi Adrian, on the instructions, number 2. Add all of the ingredients in the order listed. That includes the serrano peppers.
This is the absolute best recipe I’ve come across for coctel de camarón! It was so easy and my husband and I enjoyed it over lunch, he absolutely loved it!! This recipe is an absolute must for anyone wanting to make this dish. Sonia, thank you so much for sharing this incredible recipe, I no longer have to buy this because it’s so easy and every bit of flavor that should be there is there!
Thank you Jessica for taking the time to comment. I really appreciate it! I love this recipe and have been preparing it for many years now!
Hi I just want to say great recipe is great. But no you don’t need the serranos peppers. I made it for my husband who really doesn’t like too spicy without them and he loved it.
For my taste, I do need the chile serrano. That’s how I grew up enjoying coctel de camarones. I would be reaching for the hot sauce if there were no chile in there. That’s the beauty of cooking at home. I always encourage my followers to make the recipes their own. Have fun!