Whip up a lockdown fakeaway

... from the Irish couple who have created the cookbook sensation, Daly Dish

Gorging on takeaways is more tempting than ever, but you can still create those same indulgent f lavours – minus the guilt

LOCKDOWN couldn’t have come at a better time for one pair of Irish food bloggers, whose unique take on fast food favourites has made their debut book the fastest selling Irish cookbook ever.

While the country is busy cooking and baking at home like never before, fans have catapulted The Daly Dish to the top of the bestseller list – even though nobody can go into a bookshop.

The book is the brainchild of Instagram star couple Gina and Karol Daly, and it’s packed with instructions on how to emulate the fare from your local chipper, Chinese or Indian – so-called ‘fakeaways’ but with a low-calorie twist.

However, there’s only so much takeaway your wallet or your waistline can take, so what better time for the arrival of The Daly Dish, a recipe book written by an Irish couple that is packed with instructions on how to emulate the fare from your local chipper, Chinese or Indian – so-called ‘fakeaways’ but with a low-calorie twist. The book became Ireland’s fastest selling cookbook ever when it hit the shelves last month, hitting No.1 in the bestsellers list.

Gina and Karol Daly met 12 years ago when they were both working for phone company 02 and their whirlwind romance had them engaged after two weeks and married six months later.

However, two children later and the pair found that they were piling on the pounds.

After Gina needed to lose weight for a gallstone operation, and was missing the delicious treats that were adding unwanted extra calories to her diet, she decided to improvise, creating slimming versions of her takeaway favourites.

When she started keeping a food diary on Instagram in 2018, Gina was nearly 19st, but says the recipes which rely on a combination of lean meats and cooking with little or no oils or fats (and much use of an airfryer) have helped

her to stay down at her target weight after years of yo-yoing. In the meantime, the couple collected more than 120,000 followers on Instagram between them, thanks to the recipes they have shared, leading them to a book deal with publisher Gill.

The couple describe their approach as ‘bold food made healthy’, which allows them to indulge their love of food while losing weight.

The Meath-based couple – known to fans as ‘The Dishes’ – also run an online greeting card company called The Bitch Box, the humour and design of which is reflected in the pages of The Daly Dish.

Chapters of the cookbook include Dishy Dinners, Ask Me Airfryer, Savage Snacks, and Saucy Sauces (including the Dalys’ legendary cheese sauce, tales of which are whispered in hushed tones across social media platforms).

Recipes include homemade satay beef, spice bag burger (yes, you read that right), and red velvet pancakes.

The Daly Dish, published by Gill Books, is out now, priced €22.99