When the chefs from Mexico City’s lauded Masala y Maíz came to Chicago in 2022 for a pop-up at Bar Sótano, Rick Bayless and chef de cuisine Rishi Kumar sent them to dine at the Coach House, Zubair Mohajir’s South Asian tasting-menu restaurant. But it was Mohajir who found inspiration in Masala y Maíz’s Indian, Mexican, and African mash-up when he later visited. He started playing around with his own fusion at the Coach House, bringing together ingredients popular across Indian and Mexican fare in new ways. This summer, Mohajir and Kumar teamed up to open Mirra and tapped David Mor to create the drinks. Here’s a primer on how they integrated the two cuisines. 1954 W. Armitage Ave., Bucktown

Rasmalai Tres Leches, Negroni, Lamb Barbacoa Biryani, and Chaas Aguachile at Mirra

Four Desi-Mex Mash-ups at Mirra

1. Rasmalai Tres Leches

“We soak citrus olive oil cake with our tres leches, which is coconut milk, sweetened condensed milk, and cream,” Kumar says. “We accent it with saffron and green cardamom, which is the classic combo for Indian desserts, particularly rasmalai. Mango and coconut are big in both cultures — we make a mango mousse and finish it with toasted coconut.”

2. Negroni

“We incorporate sotol, a Mexican spirit with a green grass quality that I love for white Negronis,” Mor says. “We infuse it with toasted coriander. It’s a common ingredient in Indian cuisine and an homage to cilantro in Mexican cuisine. The gin is infused with genmaicha tea.”

3. Lamb Barbacoa Biryani

“It’s inspired by my visit to Mexico City, when Norma Listman of Masala y Maíz took us to her village in the mountains,” Mohajir says. “You walk into this marketplace and there’s eight barbacoa pits that are about 700 years old. I texted Rishi, ‘I’m going to join lamb barbacoa with biryani, but do it dum-style and seal it with dough.’ And he’s like, ‘That sounds pretty fire.’ ”

4. Chaas Aguachile

“Ceviches play a big role in Mexican cuisine,” Kumar says. “I love aguachile more than other ceviches since it’s high in acid and bright. Then we thought, What reminds us of those flavors in India? The broth is made with yogurt and lime, and we add hamachi and garlic-serrano achar.”