Cookin' Up

[DISCLAIMER]

I recently listened to episode #2261 of Joe Rogan’s podcast in which he described a concept that evoked my memory of a popular meme and a hip hop song, as well as my approach to Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT). On the episode, Rogan stated:

There’s a concept in jujitsu that the Gracies came up with, about cooking someone. And the idea is, like, someone can spaz out in the beginning, they could be real strong and pull out of submissions, but eventually, I’m going to cook them. Eventually, I’m going to keep hitting my moves till I’m going to get to a dominate position, and they’re going to get tired, and I’m going to cook them, and then I’m going to submit them. And you need time to do that.

Rogan clarified that cooking in jujitsu was analogous to the his methodical deconstruction of ideas, opinions, and beliefs when discussing matters with a person during a long-form podcast. This concept led me to recall a meme about which one source states:

Let Him Cook, also known as Let That Boy Cook, is a slang term and catchphrase used as a callout to give someone the space to plot, strategize or hone their craft […] The phrase “Let Him Cook” is commonly understood to have originated from the catchphrase “Let that boy cook” and was coined by rapper Lil B.

Unfamiliar with the work of Lil B, I was reminded of rapper Cam’ron’s song “Cookin’ Up” when I heard of the Gracie concept. The track references crack cocaine which is transformed from powder cocaine by “cooking” in order to achieve a relatively short-lived high.

Aside from evoked memories of a meme and song, the concept described by Rogan reminded me of the ABC model of REBT. This helpful technique addresses how people disturb themselves with a belief-consequence connection rather than by way of an action-consequence connection.

In specific, the ABC model illustrates that when an undesirable Action occurs and one Believes an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s one’s unfavorable assumption and not the occurrence itself that causes an unpleasant Consequence. This is how people upset themselves.

Rather than allowing unhelpful attitudes to cause unpleasant cognitive, emotive, sensational, and behavioral outcomes, the ABC model incorporates Disputation of unproductive assumptions in order to explore Effective new beliefs. This is how people un-disturb themselves.

Regarding the Gracie concept of cookin’ up an opponent, in consideration of the memetic perception related to giving someone space to contemplate a matter (let that boy cook), I conceptualize the disputation of unproductive beliefs as a metaphorical method of cooking.

Generally, the more time I have to simmer a client’s self-disturbingly rigid narratives in a session, the more likely it is that the individual’s beliefs will be rendered into a flexible substance that better suits a person’s interests and goals. This reminds me of one last matter.

A couple days ago, I listened to episode #2303 of Rogan’s podcast in which United States (U.S.) stand-up comedian, podcaster, and libertarian political commentator Dave Smith discussed with British neoconservative political commentator, cultural critic, and journalist Douglas Murray the actions of Israel.

Formerly, I would’ve described this matter as the “Gaza war” which has been fought between Israel and Hamas-led Palestinian militant groups in the Gaza Strip and Israel since October 7, 2023. However, it’s clear to me that Israel is also ostensibly fighting civilians and other groups.

I oppose the killing of civilians who aren’t actively involved in war. In any event, I listened as Smith barbequed (BBQ’d) Murray’s beliefs about the U.S.-backed actions of Israel. For context, I referenced the work of Murray in a blogpost entitled It Ain’t Easy, as I value some of his ideas.

All the same, I think Murray is on the morally and ethically wrong side of the Israel issue. The targeting of non-Hamas, non-combatants (i.e., civilians – be they men, women, or children) isn’t justifiable from a rational position (that which is in accordance with both logic and reason).

As Texas is associated with the best BBQ in the country, and Rogan’s studio is located in Austin, Texas, it’s only fitting that Murray beliefs were BBQ’d by Smith in my home state. The British commentator was afforded plenty of time to be slow-cooked by the U.S. stand-up comedian.

Episodes such as Rogan’s #2303 serve as REBT practice for me, as I hone my craft while listening to arguments which border on the absurd, such as that offered by Murray. Let that boy Dave Smith cook! (And cook, he did!)

As for the comment section for the video, Cam’ron stated it best, “We just cookin’ up homie, we just cookin’ up.” If you’d like to know more about how to render your beliefs through slow-simmered disputation, I look forward to hearing from you. (BBQ sauce sold separately.)

If you’re looking for a provider who tries to work to help you understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.

As the world’s foremost hip hop-influenced REBT psychotherapist, I’m pleased to try to help people with an assortment of issues from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.

At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply trying to help you to feel better, I want to try to help you get better!

Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW

References:

Cam’ron. (2018, July 3). Cookin’ up [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/8MDqXMfNe38?si=7r01Si3rtjFfqLYS

Hollings, D. (2024, November 15). Assumptions. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/assumptions

Hollings, D. (2024, November 24). Automatic thoughts and beliefs. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/automatic-thoughts-and-beliefs

Hollings, D. (2024, October 29). Cognitive continuum. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/cognitive-continuum

Hollings, D. (2024, October 27). Correlation does not imply causation. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/correlation-does-not-imply-causation

Hollings, D. (2022, March 15). Disclaimer. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/disclaimer

Hollings, D. (2023, October 12). Get better. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/get-better

Hollings, D. (n.d.). Hollings Therapy, LLC [Official website]. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/

Hollings, D. (2024, January 2). Interests and goals. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/interests-and-goals

Hollings, D. (2022, October 19). It ain’t easy. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/it-ain-t-easy

Hollings, D. (2025, March 4). Justification. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/justification

Hollings, D. (2023, September 19). Life coaching. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/life-coaching

Hollings, D. (2023, January 8). Logic and reason. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/logic-and-reason

Hollings, D. (2023, October 2). Morals and ethics. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/morals-and-ethics

Hollings, D. (2024, September 27). My attitude. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/my-attitude

Hollings, D. (2024, June 2). Nonadaptive behavior. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/nonadaptive-behavior

Hollings, D. (2023, September 3). On feelings. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/on-feelings

Hollings, D. (2024, November 18). Opinions. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/opinions

Hollings, D. (2024, May 5). Psychotherapist. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/psychotherapist

Hollings, D. (2022, March 24). Rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT). Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/rational-emotive-behavior-therapy-rebt

Hollings, D. (2024, March 14). REBT and emotions. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/rebt-and-emotions

Hollings, D. (2024, January 4). Rigid vs. rigorous. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/rigid-vs-rigorous

Hollings, D. (2022, November 1). Self-disturbance. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/self-disturbance

Hollings, D. (2024, April 21). Sensation. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/sensation

Hollings, D. (2022, August 1). Spaz on that ass. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/spaz-on-that-ass

Hollings, D. (2022, December 23). The A-C connection. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/the-a-c-connection

Hollings, D. (2022, December 25). The B-C connection. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/the-b-c-connection

Hollings, D. (2025, February 28). To try is my goal. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/to-try-is-my-goal

Hollings, D. (2025, January 9). Traditional ABC model. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/traditional-abc-model

Hollings, D. (2025, April 12). What’s the big idea? Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/what-s-the-big-idea

Laws, J. (2024, October 3). Map shows states that serve the tastiest BBQ. Newsweek. Retrieved from https://www.newsweek.com/map-shows-states-that-serve-tastiest-bbq-1962757

PowerfulJRE. (2025, January 23). Joe Rogan Experience #2261 - Warren Smith [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/m7Hrq8WL1-g?si=I3i1fHTZiN9vjB40

PowerfulJRE. (2025, April 10). Joe Rogan Experience #2303 - Dave Smith & Douglas Murray [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/Ah6kirkSwTg?si=5OFvh2oraW-PXBRX

Sakshi. (2023). Let him cook / Let that boy cook. Know Your Meme. Retrieved from https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/let-him-cook-let-that-boy-cook

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Cam’ron. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cam%27ron

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Crack cocaine. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crack_cocaine

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Dave Smith (comedian). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Smith_(comedian)

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Douglas Murray (author). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_Murray_(author)

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Gaza war. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaza_war

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Gracie family. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gracie_family

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Joe Rogan. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Rogan

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Lil B. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lil_B