MF DOOM : Potholderz

“Ignore cordon bleu, stand up, get up. Lunge for your knife, don’t forget your potholders”

Inspired by MF DOOM “Potholderz” from MM.FOOD
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This is part of the Cooking The Album project for MF DOOM’s MM..FOOD

I strive to be humble, lest I stumble
Never sold a jumbo or copped chicken with its mumbo sauce

It is a straight-up old-school jam in collab with Count Bass D. Food references laced into a brag/diss jam with a wicked production track. The contrast between Count Bass D’s and DOOM’s styles turns this into a classic head nodder. I come to hip-hop from the ’80s so I have a special affection for tracks like this. It’s filled with clever wordplay, smooth-as-hell delivery, and no fake gangster/sex rap bullshit. I’d say they don’t make them like this anymore, but clearly, DOOM does.

The title for this, from a culinary standpoint, presents a challenge. It’s a double entendre based around the things you use to handle hot pans in the kitchen and, of course, roach clips. Unlike most of the album, There was no clear path to a recipe.

So, I turned to the lyrics.

This uses far more food lyrical references than a lot of the tracks. The first to jump out was the quoted lyric above. I initially thought “mumbo sauce” was just a lyrical turn, but to my delight, it turned out to be a regional sauce from the Washington, D.C. area. Somewhere between sweet & sour and BBQ sauce, it’s a staple for the city’s urban community and Chinese restaurant wing service. After watching an episode of First We Feast’s Food Grails on the sauce’s history, and a bit of internet research, I came up with the recipe below. As I have never had mumbo sauce, I cannot attest to this being authentic. It LOOKS a lot like the sauce in the Food Grails video. It’s kind of like sweet thinned-out ketchup with a hint of heat.

Next to jump out lyrically was “Pass the Old Bay.” Granted, DOOM’s talking about cooking up wack MCs like “crabs in a barrel”, but Old Bay is also a great seasoning for grilled wings. It’s got a nice spicy kick without being too hot and does a great job of making crispy wings in the oven.

POTHOLDERZ
Oven-fried Old Bay chicken wings with mambo sauce

2 tablespoons Old Bay
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons corn starch
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2-3 pounds chicken wings

Toss wings in the seasoning & arrange them on a wire rack on a foil-lined baking sheet. Let the wings air dry for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to  425°F. Place the oven rack midway in the oven.

Bake wings for 30 – 50 minutes.

Toss in Mumbo Sauce and serve with ranch

MUMBO SAUCE
makes about 3 cups

1 cup ketchup
3/4 cup honey
1/3 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup pineapple juice
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 teaspoons hot sauce (or more for a hot version)
Dash kosher salt

Combine all of the ingredients in a saucepan and whisk to blend. Bring the sauce mixture to a simmer over medium heat. Turn the heat down to low and continue to cook, occasionally stirring, for about 15 minutes. Let the sauce cool then store it in an air-tight container. Store in the fridge.