Carne Asada Sopes with Avocado-Corn Salsa and Refried Black Beans

Cooking Steps

1. 

   Prepare Ingredients

   Preheat oven to 450°F. Rinse black beans. Rinse and halve tomatoes. Halve avocado and discard pit. Using a spoon, carefully scoop out flesh, discarding skin. Cut into ½-inch pieces. Place in a medium bowl. Rinse cilantro; roughly chop leaves, discarding stems. Halve 1 lime. Quarter remaining lime. Mince garlic. Peel onion and cut into small dice. Pat steaks dry and rub with half of spice mix, ½ teaspoon salt, and pepper. Set aside.

2. 

   Make Salsa and Dough

   Add tomatoes, half of cilantro, juice of 1 lime, ¼ cup diced onion, 1 tablespoon olive oil, ¼ teaspoon salt, and pepper to bowl with avocado, stir to combine, and set aside. Rub a baking sheet with 1 tablespoon olive oil. In a separate medium bowl, combine masa harina and ¼ teaspoon salt. Slowly stir in ⅔ cup water until fully incorporated. Using your hands, knead dough until smooth and holds together.

3. 

   Form and Bake Sopes

   Using your hands, form dough into 4 equal balls, then flatten each to form a smooth disk, about ¼-inch thick. Transfer to prepared baking sheet. Working 1 at a time, pinch and crimp edges all the way around to form a ½-inch rim (the sopes should resemble small pie dishes). Rub sopes all over with olive oil and bake until lightly browned, 18-20 minutes. Then, remove from oven, sprinkle with salt, and divide between serving plates.

4. 

   Make Refried Beans

   While sopes bake, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a small pot over medium heat. When oil is shimmering, add remaining onion. Cook until soft, 5 minutes. Add garlic and remaining spice mix. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, 1 minute. Add beans and ½ cup water. Increase heat to high. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring, until thick, 15 minutes. Remove from heat. Using a fork, mash until smooth. Stir in ¼ teaspoon salt and pepper to combine.

5. 

   Cook Corn and Sear Steaks

   While beans cook, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium pan over medium-high heat. When oil is shimmering, add corn. Cook until lightly browned, 2-3 minutes, then transfer to bowl with salsa. Stir to combine. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in pan from corn over medium-high heat. When oil is shimmering, add steaks. Sear until browned and medium rare, 4-5 minutes per side. Transfer steaks to a cutting board. Set aside to rest, about 5 minutes. 

6. 

   Plate Carne Asada Sopes

   Once steaks have rested, cut against the grain into ¼-inch slices. Top sopes on serving plates with refried beans, then corn salsa, then steak. Garnish with queso fresco and remaining cilantro and serve with lime wedges for squeezing over. Dig in!