15 deliciously healthy fakeaway recipes

Ditch the dodgy takeaways this January and make your own homemade versions instead. Chances are they’ll be healthier, cheaper and far tastier, too.

Make enough for leftovers and you’ll be just minutes away from a delicious, hearty dinner later in the week. These are our top fakeaway recipes that’ll go down a treat, from sticky sweet and sour and tangy pad Thai to big, juicy burgers and cheat’s fish and chips.

Check out our budget-friendly hub for more everyday recipes and cooking tips that’ll help you save money in the kitchen.

This classic Japanese dish (traditionally made with pork) has fast become a takeaway staple here in the UK. Gorgeous crispy, breaded chicken, sticky rice, pickled onion and, of course, lashings of spicy, satisfying curry sauce. Made properly at home, this dish is an absolute banger that will knock the socks off the luke-warm version that’s delivered to your door. You just can’t go wrong!

The beauty of Chinese cooking is that it can be super-fast, which is probably part of the reason why it’s such a popular takeaway. With lots of vibrant veggies and delicate noodles, tossed through with a lovely zingy dressing, this recipe will satisfy your hunger in minutes.

Ah, the beloved pizza takeaway. Why not have a homemade pizza night in and make it from scratch yourself? Get to grips with the dough and cover your pizza with all your favourite toppings - it’s (almost) better than the real thing!

Bursting with flavour, this chicken is tender, spicy and super-succulent. Serve it on a big board with homemade piri piri sauce, deliciously crisp sweet potato wedges and a jalapeño salsa, and you’ve got perfect Friday night food for sharing. The quick jalapeño salsa is a great trick and something you can make in seconds – simply pour a jar of pickled jalapeños and their liquor into a blender and blitz until smooth then transfer back to the jar. Store it in the fridge for up to four weeks to be served alongside grilled meats, in tacos or to spruce up eggs with a spicy hit.

Avoid that sluggish post-chippie dinner feeling and make your own fish and chips at home instead. Our cheat’s version is seriously easy and the secret to its insanely tasty flavour is a few bacon rashers in the breadcrumb coating for the fish… If you don’t fancy that, swap it out for sun-dried tomatoes, anchovies or a few dried herbs instead.

Forget fast-food burgers as our insanity burger will blow them out of the water. Made from succulent steak mince and covered in lashings of mustard and a homemade burger sauce to-die-for, this burger is a serious level-up. Plus, you can easily freeze any leftover patties for another incredible meal on another day.

For the veggies amongst you, our meat-free black bean burger is a real winner as a homemade takeaway alternative. Topped with a zingy salsa, fresh mango, avocado and Tabasco sauce, this burger is big on flavour and totally vegetarian-friendly.

Ready in under 30 minutes, super-nutritious and tasty, too, this will satisfy your takeaway cravings any day of the week. Dressed with a combo of garlic, ginger, fish and soy sauces and lime juice, it’s jam-packed with flavour. Stocking up on these store cupboard ingredients is a great idea and will help you make super-quick stir-fries and salads in no time.

This saucy Indian takeaway classic is one of the most satisfying dishes you can get delivered to your door. But, when done right, you can get it bang on at home, too. We use a few dollops of smooth cashew butter to give the sauce that gorgeous, nutty flavour that makes butter chicken so good.

If a pad Thai is your go-to Thai takeaway order, you’ve got to give this recipe a try. We’ve used prawns and tofu, but you can use whatever meat or veggies you fancy to make it the best fakeaway possible, combining all those beautiful, fragrant flavours our favourite Thai noodle dish delivers so well.

This tasty daal is an incredibly economical and nutritious dinner. Rolled up in handmade chapatis with fluffy rice, roasted aubergine, crispy curry leaves and chilli, it’s a beauty of a dish that’ll show you just how vibrant and exciting meat-free meals can be.

This is a deliciously perfumed fish curry with fluffy rice, loads of veggies and explosions of flavour. Embracing frozen fish and cauliflower mean it’s super-cheap to make, too, without compromising on taste and quality. If you end up with leftover paste, simply whack it in the freezer ready for a quick curry another day.

The other bonus of making Chinese sweet and sour yourself at home is you can really make it your own. We use chicken, but you can use whatever protein tickles your taste buds, along with your choice of vibrant veg, and enjoy the sweet, sticky sensation of Jamie’s sweet and sour recipe.

Served with pickled veg, minty jalapeno salsa, tahini flatbreads and nutty dukkah. The meaty texture of mushrooms works so well at replacing your usual kebab meat in this insanely delicious veggie version of a takeaway shawarma. Load up your flatbread with all the gorgeous components you’d usually get from your local kebab shop and enjoy the fresh flavours of shawarma made from the comfort of home.

Make your own Mexican-inspired feast, starting with this incredible recipe for fish tacos. This fakeaway couldn’t be easier to create at home, simply frying the fish with a few ingredients and whipping up a quick, delicious green salsa with a crunchy slaw to top it all off. Even making your own taco wraps from scratch is easy. Just knead a 3-ingredient dough for a couple of minutes, flatten and fry - it’s ready in a flash!

Make these healthy fakeaway dishes part of your cooking repertoire and enjoy fast food without the guilt. You’ll never look back!

Hungry for more? Check out our collection of epic dinner party dishes

Watch Jamie cook up his 'better than a takeaway burger' in the video below. Absolutely unreal!