Qeema and Daal with Journalist Mishal Husain

In this episode of The 5 O’ Clock Apron Podcast Claire cooks with journalist and icon of broadcasting, Mishal Husain. A reassuring voice to so many listeners on BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme, Mishal cooked not 1 but 4 dishes, home-style Pakistani qeema*, daal*, raita and rice. All this was no mean feat given the 45 minutes from a standing start it took Mishal to cook and present the most beautiful lunch which Mishal and Claire then sat down to eat together. Listen in to hear Mishal discuss family recipes, feeding teenage boys and how to extend meals for unexpected guests, what broadcasters listen to on their day off, darning socks in the front of the TV and what leeway there is when recreating your mother and mother-in-law’s favourite recipes. This recording is an audio treat.

Mishal’s book Broken Threads, a memoir of love and family resilience detailing the days leading up to and surrounding the partition of India, is published on June 6th by 4th Estate.
https://www.4thestate.co.uk/products/broken-threads-my-family-from-empire-to-independence-mishal-husain-9780008531706/

*In Pakistan, due to the way the letter ق is pronounced, the dish is spelled with a "q" (qeema), but in India and Bangladesh it is written with a "k" (keema). Likewise, there are different spellings for dal / daal across South Asia.
Follow Claire at 5 O' Clock apron on Instagram to get the recipe. https://www.instagram.com/5oclockapron
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Chef and food writer Claire Thomson invites you to join her as she steps out of her kitchen to discover what's cooking in the home kitchens of Britain and beyond. Claire is renowned for her authentic take on home cooking and loved for her inspirational and no nonsense approach to food and cookery. In this podcast, Claire is on a mission to discover and cook other people's favourite, tried and tested home recipes.
Travelling across the country, each episode drops you into the heart of a new kitchen. Cooking shoulder to shoulder with guests from every profession other than her own, aprons on, ingredients out and pans bubbling. Expect to hear much laughter as together they rummage through cutlery drawers, nose through spice racks and fling open fridge doors, chopping and chatting to get food on the table.
This is a Good Food podcast. For more recipes and inspiration go to goodfood.com

• No. of episodes: 17
• Latest episode: 2025-06-14
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