Husband and wife Chirag and Bhavana Patel aim to please vegetarians, Indian families and connoisseurs of international cuisine alike with their homemade Indian food at Madhuram Mirch Masala.

"We are like an extended kitchen for Indian families, or for people who like Indian food," Chirag Patel said.

Bhavana Patel grew up in a family of farmers in the western Indian state of Gujarat, and when she went to college in a larger town she developed a passion for cooking by experimenting with new dishes. The Patels moved to Houston from Ohio several years ago, purchased the restaurant in 2011 and transformed the menu from the inside out, making many of the dishes and ingredients on the menu from scratch.

"When you go to most restaurants today, it's hard to find things that are stomach friendly," Chirag Patel said. "Your eyes are being satisfied and your tongue is being satisfied, but your stomach is not and you can't eat [that food] everyday."

Most of the food at Mirch Masala falls into two categories: street food or authentic home-style cooking. Customers can find several types of chaat, or street food, on the menu at Mirch Masala.

A type of street food, the ragada patice consists of fried patties topped with a green pea curry and chutney ($4.99), while the dahi puri features crispy shells filled with potatoes, chickpeas, onions, chutney and yogurt ($4.99).

Although Mirch Masala does not offer any daily specials, Chirag Patel said the restaurant's specialty is that everything is made fresh.

"It's about the attitude toward the food when cooking," he said. "We want to wish the best to the people who will be eating the food. We try to keep that in mind when we're in the kitchen."

Festival of Light

All Indian festivals are based around the lunar calendar, including the upcoming Festival of Light, or Diwali, which takes place for five days beginning Nov. 3.

Diwali celebrates the victory of good over evil and marks the beginning of the Hindu new year.

There will be a Diwali celebration from 6–11 p.m. Nov. 9 at the Sugar Land Skeeters Stadium, featuring a fashion show, cultural performances, a bazaar, fireworks, street food, children's rides and a parade of Hindu gods.

Owner recommendations

• Vegetarian Thali—Served with an appetizer, two vegetables with roti and rice, a pickle, yogurt and dessert ($7.99).
• Chole Bhature—Chickpeas and onions cooked with spices and served with a large puffed flour puri ($5.99).
• Vegetable Biryani—A specially cooked basmati rice mixed with vegetables and exotic spices is served with fresh, house-made yogurt ($6.49).
• Vegetable samosas—Two pyramid shaped crispy crusts stuffed with potatoes, peas and onion ($2.99).

Curry options

Indian cooking, especially dishes such as curry, utilize an array of herbs, ranging from mustard seeds to curry leaves to black pepper to coriander seeds. Mirch Masala offers more than 15 different types of curry dishes, including the following:

• Kadi Pakora—Yellow curry mixed with pakora
• Aloo Bhaji—Potatoes with spices
• Bhindi Masala—Okra cooked with onions and spices
• Paneer Tikka Masala—Paneer cooked in a cream sauce and mildly spiced
• Dal Fry—Fried lentils with tomato, onions, spices and herbs
• Kala Chana—Spiced black chickpeas
• Gobi mix—Cauliflower, potato, peas and carrots cooked with herbs and spices

10758 FM 1960 W. Houston 281-955-9878

Hours: Tues.–Thu. 11 a.m.–9 p.m.

Fri.–Sun. 11 a.m.–9:30 p.m.