At Home: Creamy Chipotle Shrimp Tostadas

Bravo’s Top Chef Masters. PBS’ Mexico–One Plate at a Time. James Beard award-winning restaurants. Chef Rick Bayless knows flavor and he recently partnered with Negra Modelo to feature some of his own recipes for their Beer Meets Food campaign.  As an appetizer to pair with the beer, I made his Creamy Chipotle Shrimp Tostadas and wanted to share with you...At Home.  This little bite is loaded with smoky flavor from the adobo sauce and so easy to whip together.  The small servings are great for parties!

Creamy Chipotle Shrimp Tostadas (Adapted from Chef Rick Bayless)

• 1 large, red tomato
• 2 canned chipotle chiles en adobo, plus 2 Tbsp of the canning sauce
• 1 medium red onion, diced
• 1 green onion, root end removed, then chopped finely
• 1 lb. cooked, peeled, small shrimp
• 1 teasp chopped fresh thyme
• 2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
• 3/4 cup Mexican crema, sour cream, crème fraiche or Greek-style yogurt
• About 50 thick, home-style tortilla chips or 20 4-inch crisp tostadas
• ½ cup crumbled Mexican queso fresco or other fresh cheese such as feta or goat cheese

- Cut out the core of the tomato (where it attached to the plant), then cut in half width wise. Squeeze each half gently to remove the seeds and discard. Cut tomato into ¼-inch dice and scoop into a bowl.
- Remove the chiles from the can, and then scoop the 2 tablespoons canning sauce into the bowl with the tomatoes. Slit open the chiles and scrape out the seeds. Chop chiles into small pieces and add to the bowl, along with the red onion and green onion.

- Add the shrimp, herbs and crème fraiche or Mexican crema.
- Mix gently but thoroughly, then taste and season with salt (usually about 1 generous teaspoon).
- Just before serving, pile a portion of the shrimp mixture onto each of the chips or tostadas and arrange on a serving platter. (We made our own chips by simply cutting up corn tortillas, sprinkle with oil and salt, and bake for 10 - 15 minutes until crispy.)

- Sprinkle with the cheese and serve right away.

The adobo sauce added a spicy smoky quality to the sauce that was phenomenal.  Having this cold appetizer was so easy to whip up before guests arrived, and not have to worry about reheating or anything.  Plus, the one chip bites were fun and easy finger foods to mingle with. I would make this again as fillers for tacos or wraps because the shrimp was so good.