E-40 Defends Strange Food Combos and Jaidyn Alexis' Viral 'Prison Recipes'

E-40 thinks everyone hating on Jaidyn Alexis' unconventional meals for Blueface should learn to eat with their tastebuds, not their eyes ... and be open to mixing and matching random foods.

TMZ Hip Hop picked up on a few kitchen tips in NYC from Mr. Fonzarelli outside Sei Less restaurant ... as he took us inside his cookbook, which he co-authored with Snoop Dogg.

Blueface's fiancee was dragged across internet coals for her goopy pasta and cheese dinner, but 40 says his book contains plenty of creative recipes -- how does a ground turkey and sausage stuffed mozzarella BBQ meatloaf dish sound for your holiday gathering???

40 describes the dishes as "ghetto elegant" ... a term he developed while cooking at an early age when there were much fewer ingredients available in his pantry.

He's combining his 2 loves -- food and music -- on his recently released 27th album, "Rule Of Thumb: Rule 1," which includes raps about his food situation as a kid ... "My household wasn't like the Cosbys/Grew up on spam, noodles, fried bologna."