Fee you fami ...fas
After losing 18st between them James and Paul Anderson – aka Two Chubby Cubs – are on a mission to get the nation eating well. Here they reveal why 30 minutes is all it takes to cook
WHAT shall we have for dinner? It’s a question that should inspire, not make you groan and open up a takeaway app on your phone.
Enter James and Paul Anderson, who are on a two-man mission to help the nation get excited when it comes to eating well.
“All you need is 30 minutes,” said James. “No technical skill required.”
James and Paul are the married duo behind food blog Two Chubby Cubs. They live in Newcastle and have been together for 15 years, but it was their joint weight-loss journey that put them on the map.
“Until 10 years ago, Paul and I were always either fat or losing weight,” said James, 37, an ex-trainee lawyer, now full-time food blogger.
“So we set up a blog where we cooked things that didn’t feel like diet food.
“Neither of us are chefs and Paul even failed his food tech GCSE. But we starting making food that didn’t compromise on taste, so that while you’re on a diet you don’t feel like you’re depriving yourself.”
The blog took off, and in 2019 James and Paul were invited on to ITV reality show This Time Next Year, tasked with losing 10st each in a year. At the time James was 28st and Paul was 26st.
“We nearly did it – James was 4lb off the target and I lost 8st in total,” said Paul, 36, who also works as a medical assistant in the NHS. Their success inspired the first of three cookbooks from the pair, the third of which – Two Chubby Cubs: Dinner Time – is out at the end of this month. They also have over 100,000 followers on Instagram.
“We’re not chefs, we cook healthy recipes that don’t require technical skills, and with ingredients you can find in the supermarket,” said James. “We’re about minimal effort and minimal cost.”
And eating well is doable whatever your budget, they said.
“The secret is to make meals that use ingredients up so you’re not throwing anything away,” explained James.
“For example, say you’ve used half a pepper in one meal, chop the other half into a stew or salad, or roast it and add it to risotto or pasta,” said James.
“Cooking from scratch is cheaper than a takeaway – and takes less time,” adds Paul. “What’s more, if the meals you’re preparing are delicious, filling and interesting, you’ll look forward to them just as much.”
Here the Cubs share five exclusive recipes to feed the family in 30 minutes.