Last month, The Roots’ drummer and co-frontman Questlove revealed that he’s releasing his first-ever cookbook on October 15, a star-studded recipe medley named Mixtape Potluck. And while we’re hyped for its arrival, the announcement got us wondering about the other hip-hop artists who’ve released cookbooks over the years.
Of course, most people know that Action Bronson released F*ck, That’s Delicious: An Annotated Guide to Eating Well in 2016 and has a Munchies cooking show with the same name. But did you catch his follow-up cookbook Stoned Beyond Belief earlier this year?
Likewise, did you know Coolio loves to cook so much he released his own recipe book Cookin’ With Coolio: 5 Star Meals at a 1 Star Price in 2009? What about 2 Chainz, who dropped a bunch of recipes alongside an album release back in 2013?
Below, we’ve rounded up a list of cookbooks both by rappers and inspired by hip-hop that every music fan needs in their kitchen.
Snoop Dogg — From Crook to Cook: Platinum Recipes From Tha Boss Dogg’s Kitchen
Snoop Dogg dropped his first-ever cookbook last year, calling it a “dipped and whipped” bible of recipes from a “blazin'” kitchen. We tested some of the recipes and can confirm the accuracy of those bold claims: Snoop is a man who knows how to zest a turkey, make the creamiest mashed potatoes known to man, and (of course) how to mix a mean gin and juice.
Snoop has also created a bunch of occasion-based menus for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the like, all with dedicated playlists to make your kitchen slap. And yes, before you ask, the foreword was written by Snoop’s BFF Martha Stewart.
Kelis — My Life on a Plate: Recipes From Around the World
Kelis is a Le Cordon Bleu-trained chef, so if you’re grabbing My Life on a Plate hoping to find a simple milkshake recipe to bring all the boys to the yard, you’re out of luck. Instead, what you’ll find is a global journey through the singer’s various culinary experiences and skills. Kelis’ recipes shift from simple soups to Japanese yam samosas, lobster, and Puerto Rican pork shoulder.
Action Bronson — F*ck, That’s Delicious: An Annotated Guide to Eating Well and Stoned Beyond Belief
Both of Action Bronson’s cookbooks dish up bangin’ recipes and include everything the rapper loves and more: weed, photography, handwritten lyrics, music storyboards, and so on. In terms of the food itself, there’s plenty here, especially for those on the hunt for hardy, munchies-satisfying grub, including (but absolutely not limited to) fried chicken, cheesecake, fried pizza, and various other artery-challenging concoctions. Check out some of the best recipes from Stoned Beyond Belief here.
2 Chainz — #MEALTIME
When 2 Chainz released 2013 album B.O.A.T.S. II: #METIME, he bundled a cookbook of “tour bus recipes” co-authored with Chef Aleem along with it. Inside came the disclaimer, “Use of these recipes is at your own risk. UMG (Universal Music Group) is not responsible for the outcome of any recipe.”
Thankfully, UMG’s warning wasn’t indicative of subpar feeds — 2 Chainz knows his way around the kitchen. The booklet comprises 15 recipes, including dishes such as pan-seared sea bass with sautéed asparagus and crab cakes with mango salsa. Wearing a Versace apron while cooking is strongly advised (though you could also save yourself a few hundred and pick up this Carhartt number instead).
Coolio — Cookin’ With Coolio: 5 Star Meals at a 1 Star Price
Coolio essentially claims to have invented a whole new type of cuisine in his book, Cookin’ With Coolio. That cuisine is called “Ghetto Gourmet,” it boasts unique fusions such as “Blasian” and “Ghettalian,” and sees recipes listed under categories such as “Chillin’ and Grillin'” and “Pasta Like a Rasta.” The idea is essentially affordable comfort food with a healthy twist, and if you think you’ve heard the name before, you probably have — the rapper had a cooking show with the same title. Watch a clip below.
Rapper’s Delight: The Hip Hop Cookbook
Rather than being penned by rappers, 2014 cookbook Rapper’s Delight is inspired by them. The book features 30 recipes and is split into three categories — starters, mains, and desserts — with pun-heavy dish names and accompanying illustrations. Expect to find things like “Wu-Tang Clam Chowder,” “Public Enemiso Soup,” “Run-DM Sea Bass,” and “Busta Key Lime Pie.”
Bon Rappetite: The Hip Hop Cookbook
Another rapper-inspired effort, this cookbook comes with glossy photography rather than illustrations. As the name suggests, 2012’s Bon Rappetite is also heavy on the puns, with Roastface Killah, Lil’ Kimchi, and Waka Flocka Flambe all on the menu. There are 50 recipes in total and they’re all pretty basic and fun to make, with little twists on traditional dishes.
Thug Kitchen: The Official Cookbook
If we’re being totally honest, the description for Thug Kitchen is a little cringy, not least because it claims to “break the goddamn mold” and promises to make you a “total badass in the kitchen.” Yet despite that (and despite the fact it got a shout out from Gwyneth Paltrow in a goop newsletter) the recipes look pretty good. Like Rapper’s Delight, the meals here are healthy and hearty and include dishes and sides such as a BBQ bean burrito with grilled peach salsa and peanut butter and banana muffins.
