Sopes Recipe - The Spruce Eats

• Sopes make an easy meal with just three ingredients, perfect for quick dinners.
• Pinched edges create a wall, making it perfect for holding generous amounts of toppings.

It seems like nearly every country in the world makes an edible disc-shaped vessel used to scoop or stuff with tasty fillings. India is known for naan, chapati, and paratha, Italy for piadina and pane carasau, and Latin countries for multiple tortilla variations, including the Mexican sope. They’re like little fat, fried corn tortillas with crimped edges that taste delicious topped with anything from refried beans and cheese to chicken tinga.

How Do You Make Sopes?

Sopes are surprisingly easy to make, require only three ingredients, and make for the foundation of a quick meal, especially if you have leftover toppings on hand. The sope dough is made from masa harina—a corn-based flour made with nixtamalized corn.

The nixtamalization process involves soaking corn in a lime solution that produces a softer and more flavorful masa with enhanced binding properties ideal for making tortillas, tamales, and sopes. The dough is then shaped into small, thick tortillas and par-cooked on a screaming hot comal (a flat, heavy pan) before pinching the edges to create a wall and then frying.

Refried Beans From Scratch

Regional Variations on Sopes

Sopes are popular in central and southern Mexico—where they originated—with each region having its preferred way of serving them. In some areas, sopes even take on an unfried form, called picaditas, which are topped simply with salsa, cheese, and onions.

Whether you choose to go with this traditional fried sope recipe or skip the frying altogether, you’ll no doubt find joy in piling them high with your favorite taco toppings and balancing them with one hand before biting into each crunchy corn disc.

Tips for Making Sopes

• Masa harina can be found in the baking aisle of most grocery stores or at specialty Hispanic markets. A popular brand is Maseca.
• The dough should be the consistency of play dough. If the dough is crumbly, add 1 tablespoon of water at a time until the desired consistency is achieved. If the dough is sticky, add 1 tablespoon of masa harina at a time until the desired consistency is achieved.
• Keeping the prepared dough moist helps prevent cracking when forming the discs. Keep any raw dough covered with a moist kitchen towel and wet the tips of your fingers with water between handling.
• When forming the sopes, pinch the edges while pushing down gently; just enough to form the edges but not puncture the base.
• Spooning hot oil over the top of the sope when cooking the bottom side will help speed up the frying process.

Make Ahead

Sopes can be made ahead of time by following this recipe through Step 6, cooling completely, placing them in an airtight container (adding a layer of parchment paper between each sope), and freezing them for up to 1 month. When ready to use, defrost the sopes fully and continue to Step 7.

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