Grilled Corn Chorizo Sopes with Queso Fresco
WHAT YOU NEED
- 2 ears fresh corn, husks removed, and kernels cut from cob
- 4 oz. Cacique® Beef, Pork or Soy Chorizo, remove from packaging
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Cacique® Crema Mexicana, for garnish
- SOPES:
- 2 cups masa corn flour
- 1½ -2 cups water
- 1 quart canola oil
- Note: If you are short on time, you can purchase Cacique® Sopes de la Casa® that can be found in Hispanic markets. (Skip steps 2 & 3 and follow instructions in step 4)
- NOPALES PICO DE GALLO (Note: You can use jarred nopales and skip step 5):
- ½ lb. nopales (cactus petals), pre-cleaned
- 1 cup tomato, small dice
- 1 bunch scallions
- 1 cup canned pickled jalapeños, small dice with seeds
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- 1 Tbsp. lime juice
- ½ tsp. baking soda
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 4 oz. Cacique® brand Ranchero Queso Fresco, crumbled
HOW TO MAKE IT
- For corn filling: In a medium sauté pan, cook chorizo and corn for 10 minutes, crumbling the chorizo with a wooden spoon while cooking. Set aside and keep warm.
- For sopes: Place the masa corn flour in a bowl and add about ½ cup of water at a time and mix with your hands until masa turns into dough. Make 3-inch rounds of the masa using the palm of your hands. Cover the masa ball loosely with plastic wrap and flatten with a cutting board or tortilla press so that the masa is about ¼ inch thick.
- After flattening the masa, heat a wide thick bottom sauté pan or comal (tortilla cooker) over medium heat for 5 minutes. Once hot, place the sope on pan or comal and cook for about 1-2 minutes each side or until golden brown. Place sopes on a baking sheet and carefully pinch the perimeter of the cooked masa to create a little barrier wall that will hold your fillings.
- Begin to preheat another pan with 1 quart of canola oil to 375ºF. Fry the pre-cooked sopes a couple at a time in the 350ºF oil until golden brown. Once browned, carefully remove onto paper towels to drain any excess oil.
- For nopales pico de gallo: Fire up the grill or BBQ. While the BBQ is heating, bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Once water is boiling, add 1 teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon of baking soda to the water and boil the nopales for 10 minutes.
- Remove the nopales from the water and set aside. Once the grill is hot, lightly oil the nopales and scallions, season with salt and pepper and grill until a bit charred. Remove from the grill and set aside.
- Once at room temperature, dice the nopales and scallions into small pieces. Place nopales, scallions, tomatoes, pickled jalapeños, cilantro and lime juice in a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
- For presentation: Place the hot corn and chorizo mix inside the sope, top with a spoonful of nopales pico de gallo, then crumble Cacique® Queso Fresco on top and a drizzle of Crema Mexicana. Serve immediately.
