If this doesn't light your fire, your match is wet...

Yep, I think my dad summed this dish up best.  If it doesn't light your flame, your match is wet.  This is the second dish I made for the basketball party.   I love parties.  I'm not sure you read that with the correct emphasis.  I LUUUV parties.  In case you haven't read my bio, my favorite thing in life is family, friends, food, and a nice cold beer.  Well you can always find at least two of the above at any party you may stumble into.  Our little basketball party definitely didn't disappoint.  Does this look like a fun crowd or what?

For some reason I had a hankering for some shrimp tacos.  I came across this recipe in Food and Wine.  The flavors work so well together with the tangy pickled onions, sweet onion sauce and...no.  I'm not even going to waste anymore of your time.  Go.  Just go.  You need to go and make this tonight.  Seriously.

Shrimp Tacos with Pickled Onion Slaw

INGREDIENTS

• Red Onion Salad
  1/2 cup white wine vinegar 
  1/2 cup sugar 
  Salt 
  1 medium red onion, thinly sliced 
  1/2 cup fresh orange juice 
  1 small white onion, finely diced 
  1 tablespoon pure maple syrup 
  2 tablespoons malt vinegar 
  1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds 
  2 tablespoons vegetable oil 
  2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 
  1/2 large ripe mango, cut into thin sticks 
  1/2 cup thinly sliced green cabbage 
  1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves
• 
  
Shrimp Tacos
1 tablespoon vegetable oil 
1 small white onion, finely chopped 
1/2 pound medium shrimp, shelled and deveined 
Salt and freshly ground black pepper 
1/2 cup barbecue sauce (I use North Carolina's own Bone Suckin' Sauce)
1/2 cup shredded jalapeño Jack cheese 
Four small corn tortillas, warmed 
2 tablespoons salted roasted pumpkin seeds, 1 thinly sliced seeded serrano chile and 2 tablespoons cilantro leaves, for garnish

• DIRECTIONS

  In a small saucepan, bring the vinegar, sugar and a pinch of salt to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Pour the hot pickling liquid over the red onion in a small, heatproof bowl and let cool, then refrigerate overnight. 
  
  In another saucepan, combine the orange juice, white onion, maple syrup, malt vinegar and cumin seeds. Boil over moderately high heat until the liquid has reduced to 2 tablespoons, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a blender, add the oil and lime juice and puree until smooth; season with salt. 
  
  Drain the red onion and transfer to a bowl.
  
   Add the mango, cabbage, cilantro and half of the vinaigrette and season with salt.
  
  In a skillet, heat the oil. Add the onion and cook over moderate heat until softened, 5 minutes. Add the shrimp, season with salt and pepper and cook, turning, until white throughout, 3 minutes. Add the barbecue sauce and bring to a simmer. Off the heat, stir in the cheese. Spoon the shrimp and red onion salad onto the tortillas and roll them up. Garnish with the pumpkin seeds, chile and cilantro, and serve with the remaining vinaigrette.

  

  This is how it looked before I folded it into taco form, and then devoured it in 3.6 seconds.