One of the greatest pleasures of Mexican street food are sopes: round bundles of masa lightly fried and piled with refried beans, shredded chicken, salsa roja or salsa verde, and cotija cheese. These little antojitos, or snacks, can be eaten throughout the day. There are plenty of variations that can be found between central and south Mexico. Enjoy them with chicken (most popular) or without meat and load on the beans and vegetables! Or make them with slow-cooked beef or chorizo; the possibilities are endless. This batch makes plenty of sauce, so feel free to get out some tortilla chips and dip!
Special ingredients:
- Masa harina is made from corn kernels that have been nixtamalized and ground into a flour-like texture. In order to rehydrate the masa harina and masa, add enough water to create a moist paste. If you don’t work with the dough quickly, it will dry out.
- Ancho chile powder: It might be difficult to find ancho chiles at your local grocery store, so I used ancho chili powder instead.
- Mexican crema: Use sour cream or crème fraîche if you can’t find Mexican crema. You need to thin out 1/4 cup sour cream with about 2 teaspoons water, cream, or milk.
- Cotija: If you can’t find cotija, you can use queso fresco.
Pro tips:
- If the masa appears dry, add 1 tablespoon water until it’s soft and pliable. The dough shouldn’t be sticky. When forming the balls, there should be minimal cracking around the edges.
- Always use a cast-iron pan or comal for making the sopes. You’ll first cook the sopes in the pan with dry heat and no oil. The second round requires a shallow fry in the same pan.
- The first cooking step doesn’t require you to cook the sopes entirely. They need to stay pliable. If they cool too much, they will harden before you can manipulate the dough.
Storage:
Store the sopes in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Reheat them in the oven to warm up.
Tried this recipe? Let us know in the comments below!
