Marmitako is the Basque fisherman's tuna stew, made with bonito (Atlantic bonito tuna), potatoes, peppers, tomatoes and onions in one pot, cooked aboard small boats while the catch was still warm.

Marmitako takes its name from the marmita, the cast-iron pot Basque sailors cooked it in. The dish appeared in the 19th century along the Cantabrian coast, when bonito boats from Bermeo and Santurtzi simmered the catch with potatoes, choricero peppers and onions in a single pot. By the 1980s, marmitako had crossed from boat to taberna and is now the canonical summer Basque stew, eaten July through September across Bilbao tabernas. Casa Rufo, La Despensa de Etxanobe and the older Bilbao kitchens run the seasonal version.

3 editor picks for Marmitako in Bilbao, ranked by editorial score. All Bilbao signature dishes · Marmitako across every city.

Also in: San Sebastián.

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