Mexican Shrimp Soup

Caldo de camarón

If you’ve ever tasted Mexican Shrimp Soup (or Caldo de Camarón), you know what Sundays in Mexico taste like.

My mother used to cook this soup almost every Sunday. Even in the middle of summer! Her theory was that drinking something hot on a hot day—like shrimp soup—regulates your body temperature, making you feel cool. She was right!

More than tasty, this shrimp soup recipe can cool you off on a hot day!

What to Expect from this Mexican Shrimp Soup Recipe.

This Mexican shrimp soup brings together fresh shrimp, dried shrimp, guajillo and cascabel chilis, and tender vegetables all in one spicy bowl of comfort food. The dried shrimp adds a distinct salty flavor to this dish, which you can have as an appetizer or a complete entrée.

Shrimp Soup a la Mexicana.

The ingredients in our shrimp soup are similar to the Thai version, which uses bell pepper, vegetable broth, coconut milk and cilantro. But of course, it has an entirely different taste. The chili base, made with guajillo and cascabel chilis, makes our recipe uniquely Mexican and uniquely flavorful. A squeeze of fresh lime juice and a sprinkle of onions will send your taste buds soaring!

How to Make Caldo de Camarón.

Ingredients:

For the Soup

1 lb tomatoes.

½ white onion.

2 cloves garlic.

3 lbs Cambray potatoes, unpeeled.

1 branch epazote.

2 lbs fresh shrimp.

1 lb dried shrimp (camarón seco) (small or medium).

8 guajillo chilis.

1 cascabel chili.

1 ½ cups carrots, peeled and diced.

1 to 2 bay leaves.

1 tablespoon olive oil or other cooking oil.

1 tablespoon dry oregano.

6 cups of water.

Salt and black pepper to taste.

For the Garnish.

Limes.

Onion, finely diced.

Oregano.

It’s time to make some Mexican shrimp soup!

Soak the Chilis.

To create a flavorful base for our soup, we’ll need to soak the guajillo and cascabel chilis. While ground, dried chilis make powerful spices, soaking chilis takes off some of the heat to provide a smoother-tasting broth.

Start by washing the chilis. Cut off the tops and then slice lengthwise. Cut off the veins and remove the seeds. These are the hottest parts of the chili. Discard tops, veins and seeds.

Fill a sauce pan with water. Over medium heat, soak the chili peppers for 15 minutes.

The chilis will go from brittle to soft, and will take on a deep red color. Once the chilis have soaked, remove them from the pot into a separate bowl and reserve the water.

Make the Broth.

Place the onion, tomato and garlic in a pot on the stovetop with water and bring to a boil.

As you cook, you’ll see the skin of the tomatoes begin to peel away. Once the vegetables have changed color and softened, remove from the heat and drain the vegetables.

Add the tomato, onion, garlic and chilis to your blender. Pour in some of the reserved water from the soaked chilis to make blending easier. Take a look at the beautiful color of those chilis!

Purée for about a minute to a minute and a half until smooth. Transfer the mixture to a separate bowl and reserve.

Prepare the Veggies.

Wash and dice the Cambray potatoes into ½-inch to 1-inch pieces. Do not peel! Most of the nutrients from the potato is just under the skin, so keeping it on makes for a healthier soup and adds a little flavor and texture lift.

Peel the carrots (or zanahorias) and dice into ¼-inch pieces.

Perfectly diced veggies!

Grind the Dried Shrimp (Camarón Seco)

For this shrimp soup recipe, we’ll grind the heads only of the dried shrimp, and add the body to the soup in a later step. First, remove the heads of the dried shrimp by gently pulling and twisting with your fingers.

Place the heads only into the blender.

Ground the heads to a fine powder.

Make the Soup

Heat the cooking oil in a soup pot over high heat. Then add the potatoes to the pot.

Reduce to medium-high heat and stir the potatoes constantly so they don’t stick to the bottom. Then add the diced carrots and continue to stir. Sauté vegetables for two minutes over medium-high heat.

Continue to stir. Sauté vegetables for two minutes over medium-high heat.

Using a fine mesh sieve, slowly strain the chili mixture into the soup pot with the veggies. You can use a spoon to stir the mixture inside the sieve to make it drain faster. Discard the contents of the sieve.

Cook the broth for about three minutes, stirring occasionally. Then add 6 cups of water to the broth and bring to a boil.

Sprinkle in the ground shrimp heads and stir.

Add the bay leaves and salt to taste. Be sure not to add too much salt because the dried shrimp is already very salty. If you need more salt, you should add it just before the soup is ready.

Sprinkle in the oregano.

Then the dried shrimp.

If foam forms on the surface, skim it off with a spoon and discard to ensure you get the cleanest broth possible.

Sprinkle in the black pepper.

Add the epazote.

Keep watching the foam. If more rises up, skim it off!

Add the fresh shrimp prawns, shrimp shells and all!

Bring to a boil, cover, and cook for 10 minutes. When you can easily pierce the carrots and potatoes with a fork, your caldo de camarón is ready!

Be still my heart. This looks delicioso! (That’s “delicious” in Spanish). I could eat this shrimp soup right out of the pot!

Serving Mexican Shrimp Soup.

Serve this delicious shrimp soup with a squeeze of fresh lime juice, a sprinkle of onions and a chunk of crusty bread or warm corn tortillas.

¡El Mejor Caldo de Camarón! (The Best Shrimp Soup!)

This is the best shrimp soup you’ll ever taste, and the perfect meal to wrap up your weekend. Whether you’re eating it for the first time or the thirty-first, we’re sure you’ll love it as much as we do!

Buen provecho.

This Mexican shrimp soup brings together fresh shrimp, dried shrimp, guajillo and cascabel chilis, and tender vegetables all in one spicy bowl of comfort food.

Prep. Time: 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 8 people

Author: Andrés Carnalla

Equipment:

Cutting board.

Blender.

Sauce pan.

Soup pan.

Bowls.

Kitchen knife.

Spoon.

Fine mesh sieve.

Notes:

Substitutions and Additions:

Green onion for white onion.

Cilantro for epazote, although the taste will slightly change.

Sweet potatoes for Cambray potatoes.

Add in chipotle for a smoky flavor.

Include other fresh vegetables like zucchini.

Throw in some scallops for an even heartier seafood soup.

Spice it up with sliced jalapeños, cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes.