Up to now, the dual continuum concept has been used to model dual porosity reservoirs. The mass exchange between the matrix and the fracture system is described by the so-called transfer term, based on the Kazemi approach using a single value for the shape factor. The deficiencies of the dual continuum approach are well known. This work introduces a new method and an appropriate workflow which assures a considerably higher physical reality, captures the heterogeneity of the matrix domain in a better way, and is more practical and computationally efficient. The work presumes that the shape factor can not be seen as a single average value. Instead, a statistical distribution of the shape factor has to be considered. Single porosity small-scale models are used to simulate the matrix depletion processes. The results of these small scale simulations are the recovery curves, which will be consolidated according to any given shape factor distribution. The consolidated recovery curves as function of time, are the best possible representation of the recovery from any simulation cell. They are directly used to describe the matrix-fracture mass transfer in full field simulation models. The conventional transfer function is not replaced completely, the recovery curve method can be used in combination with it. The applicability of the new approach is demonstrated on a real field example.