Sopes -- Building Something That Lasts, One Layer at a Time

August 2036. Late camp. Caleb Park is something I haven't seen in years — a player who makes everyone around him measurably better by being precisely himself. He doesn't demand anything from his teammates except what the play requires. He makes no speeches. He makes good decisions under pressure repeatedly. When he's wrong, he corrects it on the very next snap. In twenty years I've coached four players like that and they all went on to careers worth watching. I'll be watching Caleb Park play for a long time after this season.

The retention rate in the program is at 94% — players who start their freshman year and complete the full four. That's a number I track. It tells you things the win-loss record doesn't. A 94% retention rate means that boys who are fifteen and scared and overwhelmed decide, season after season, to stay. That's not about the championships, or not primarily — it's about what happens at practice on an ordinary Tuesday in October when no one's watching and a player has to choose whether this is still the thing he wants to do. When they choose yes, it means the program is doing something right below the surface.

I've been thinking about legacy in a less abstract way than before. Not my legacy as a coach — championships are easy to count — but what I leave in the people who came through this place. Twenty years of players. A few hundred boys who are now men who were here for four years and took something away. I don't know most of their lives now. But sometimes one will come to a game or send an email and I see the shape of what that something was. A willingness to stay in hard situations. A habit of accountability. An instinct toward the team over the self. These are things worth leaving.

When I got home after that last practice of August, I didn’t want something quick or forgettable—I wanted to make something with my hands, something that required attention and rewarded it. Sopes came to mind the way the right play call comes to mind: obvious once you see it. Each one starts as a simple disc of masa, pressed and shaped, and then you build on it—layer by layer, ingredient by ingredient—until it becomes exactly what it’s supposed to be. That’s the same work I’ve been doing with players for twenty years, and standing at the stove that evening, it felt right to honor both things at once.

Sopes

Prep Time: 25 min | Cook Time: 20 min | Total Time: 45 min | Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 2 cups masa harina
• 1 1/4 cups warm water (plus more as needed)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (for the dough), plus more for frying
• 1 cup refried beans, warmed
• 1 cup shredded cooked chicken or ground beef, seasoned
• 1/2 cup crumbled cotija cheese
• 1/2 cup sour cream or Mexican crema
• 1 cup shredded lettuce or cabbage
• 1/2 cup fresh salsa or pico de gallo
• 1/4 cup pickled jalapeños (optional)
• Fresh cilantro, for garnish
• Lime wedges, for serving

Instructions

1. Make the masa dough. In a medium bowl, combine masa harina, salt, and 1 tablespoon oil. Gradually add warm water and mix until a soft, pliable dough forms—it should not crack at the edges when pressed. If too dry, add water one tablespoon at a time.
2. Shape the sopes. Divide the dough into 12 equal balls (about the size of a golf ball). Flatten each ball between two sheets of plastic wrap into a circle roughly 1/4-inch thick and 3 inches in diameter.
3. Cook on a comal or skillet. Heat a dry cast-iron skillet or comal over medium-high heat. Cook each sope for 2–3 minutes per side until lightly browned and cooked through. Remove from heat.
4. Form the raised edges. While the sopes are still warm and pliable, use your fingers to pinch and raise a small rim around the edge of each one, creating a shallow well to hold the toppings. Work quickly before they cool.
5. Fry for texture. Heat about 1/4 inch of vegetable oil in a skillet over medium heat. Fry each shaped sope for 1–2 minutes per side until lightly golden and slightly crisp. Drain on paper towels.
6. Layer the toppings. Spread a generous spoonful of warm refried beans onto each sope. Add seasoned meat, a pinch of shredded lettuce, a spoonful of salsa, a drizzle of crema, and a crumble of cotija. Add jalapeños if desired.
7. Garnish and serve. Finish with fresh cilantro and a squeeze of lime. Serve immediately while the sopes are warm and the toppings are fresh.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 310 | Protein: 14g | Fat: 13g | Carbs: 34g | Fiber: 5g | Sodium: 520mg