NEW SERIES. EPISODE 3; Lawyer & Politican Miriam Gonzalez Durantez COOKS Marmitako

Marmitako, or Basque Tuna Stew, with Lawyer Miriam González Durántez 1st July
2026

Miriam González Durántez is a force, and Claire loved cooking with her for this episode of 5 O’ Clock Apron Podcast. Worth noting here that Claire is keen to get the elephant in the room over with as soon as Claire and Miriam start cooking in Miriam’s immaculate London kitchen with Claire quizzing Miriam on her title of Lady Clegg.

Miriam is quick to dismiss the title, with characteristic grace, as one she doesn’t necessarily identify with, saying it was given to her, because she is the wife of Nick Clegg. Clegg being the one-time deputy prime minister for the U.K. Miriam is a busy woman with a distinguished career to showcase, splitting her week between London and Madrid. An international lawyer, founder of the charity Inspiring Girls and, just as pressing, now shouldering a new responsibility of politician. When Claire and Miriam meet to cook and record this episode, Miriam is in the midst of setting up a new political party in Spain (she can’t say the name of the party at the time of the recording), aiming, she tells Claire; “to stop the country from going further right” and as Miriam says; “I’ve been involved in politics all my life, now is the time for me to stand up”.

For the episode, Miriam cooks a Basque tuna stew called Marmitako, clearly an intuitive and skilled cook, she is also quick to hold Claire to account during much of the cooking process; “no Claire, your peppers need to be thinner” and “no, Claire,this is how you prepare the potato, you need to do it like this and you need to listen for the crack as you cut the potato”. Claire is enthralled throughout, because this, in a nutshell, is what this podcast is all about. Food and cookery knowledge shared through the prism of good conversation, two people cooking side by side, chopping and chatting about why a recipe means so much to them, and how it fits into their lives.

Miriam’s stew is undoubtedly delicious, as the cooking is wrapped up, husband Nick walks into the kitchen introducing himself, meanwhile Miriam’s son waits patiently to eat the dish his mum has just cooked; “he’s always so hungry, he eats all the time, teenage boys” she says with a chuckle. Conscious of the clock, Claire makes tracks to leave, after all Miriam, has got a lot to do, a plane to catch, a country to run and so on and so on….

This new series of the podcast is proudly sponsored by Tims Dairy Yogurt and Kefir.

Listen to the new series

THE RECIPE:

Marmitako, Basque Tuna Stew

Serves 4

500g fresh tuna, cut into large chunks

2 tbsp plain flour

2 peppers, green, red or yellow

2 onions, finely sliced

3 garlic cloves

Small bunch of parsley

200mls dry white wine

1kg waxy potatoes, peeled  

Salt and pepper, to taste

Olive oil, quite a bit to fry tuna and shallow fry the potatoes

1. Dust the pieces of tuna all over with the flour and season well with salt and pepper.

2. In a large pan, add 3 tbsp of olive oil and fry the onions and the peppers over a moderate heat until softened, around 10 minutes. Push the onions and peppers to one side of the pan, add a splash more olive oil and fry the pieces of tuna to get a little golden in colour, but not cook all the way through, though this will depend on the thickness of the tuna. Remove the pan from the heat and keep to one side.

3. Use a pestle and mortar or use a small food processor or blender to blend the garlic, parsley and white wine together. Keep to one side.

4. Use a small saucepan and fill 1/3 with olive oil (working in batches and using a smaller pan will help you to use less oil). Use a small knife to make small, sharp indentations in the potatoes and “crack off” small pieces of the potato, about the size of a shell on walnut is a good approximation. This is Miriam’s way, and she suggests preparing the potatoes likes this gives them a better texture once cooked, see reel for video explanation. Fry the potatoes in hot oil at 180C until nicely coloured and nearly cooked through.

5. Put the tuna, onions and peppers back on the heat, add the parsley, garlic and wine mix and a big splash of water, around 80mls and add the fried potatoes, mixing gently to combine. Bring the pan up to the boil and simmer for 30 seconds. Put a lid on the pan and reduce the heat to moderate – low and continue cooking until the potatoes are soft, the tuna will be cooked through.

6. Remove from the heat, check the seasoning and serve.