Cupcake Liner Dumpling Craft (and our 10+ favorite Asian Food Picture Books!)

A couple of weeks ago, our family celebrated New Year (and made a ton of Chinese New Year Crafts.) Even though the celebrations are over, I've still been in the mood to eat lots of yummy Asian food. The boys and I recently tried making dumplings (using this super easy recipe). Today I thought it would be fun to put together a fun list of Asian food inspired picture books + share a cute cupcake liner dumpling craft. Enjoy!

10+ Awesome Asian Food Inspired Picture Books AND a Cupcake Liner Dumpling Craft

This post contains Amazon affiliate links. This means I make a tiny bit of grocery money from each purchase made at no cost to you. Thank you for your support! For my full disclosure policy, click here.

Let's Make A Cupcake Liner Dumpling Craft:

Isn't this craft cute? It's perfect for preschoolers and kindergarteners!

• Simply cut out a plate and a small circle soy sauce from construction paper.
• Fold white cupcake liners in half to make your dumplings.
• Use a glue stick to adhere the dumplings, popsicle stick chopsticks, and soy sauce to your plate.
• Use a pencil to draw cute faces. (Because why not? Cute faces rock!)

Our 10+ Favorite Asian Food Inspired Picture Books for Kids:

Do you love dumplings? Noodles? Dim Sum? Bee-bim bop? Bao? Sushi? Mooncake? Ramen?

Me too! And you're going to love these fun Asian-inspired picture books. They're perfect for sharing a bit of tasty food culture with the kids.

1. Magic Ramen 

This fun book shares the history of one of my favorite foods. By the end of the book, you get a real appreciation for all the hard work and hear that Momofuku Ando put into creating ramen! 

2. The Ugly Dumpling  

Similar to The Ugly Duckling, this story reminds us that there is beauty in our differences. (And cute food with faces!)

3. The Story of Noodles
We love this fun story about three mischievous boys and the accidental invention of noodles. (The paper cuttings are also gorgeous!!)

4. Boy Dumplings: A Tasty Chinese Tale
This picture book is hilarious. We love seeing the little boy outsmart the ghost and I'm particularly partial to this story because the main character reminds me of my youngest. ;)

5. Runaway Rice Cake

We love this sweet tale about sharing. The illustrations are also lovely and soft.

6. How My Parents Learned to Eat

I read this book as a child and loved it. It was so neat reading books about people who looked like me. Now that I'm an adult, I love the beautiful message it shares about cultures and family.

7. The Runaway Wok

This book is one silly read. We love it.

8. Goldy Luck and the Three Pandas

Pandas? A Goldilocks and the Three Bears retelling? Yes and yes! This is a guaranteed fun read. 

9. Dim Sum for Everyone

This is the only board book on the list and it's wonderful. The fun and yummy pictures capture all the fun of going to dim sum.

10. A Big Mooncake for Little Star

Why does the moon change shape at night? This book offers a truly imaginative response to the question. Gorgeous illustrations, sweet mother-daughter dynamic, and such lovely prose. This book is perfection.

11. The Ugly Vegetables

Another Grace Lin book? You bet. (I think I have an author crush on her.) As someone who grew up eating non-traditional and "weird" vegetables, this book really hit home for me. It also gave my boys and I the opportunity to talk about culture and food. Loved it!

12. Bee-Bim Bop!

We loved this sweet tale of a mother and daughter cooking bee-bim bop together. (I also looooove bee-bim bop. Yummy.)

Whew! That was a long list of books. I hope you enjoy reading them and sharing a bit of culture and cuisine with your kids too.

Looking for more great reads? Click here for my other booklists!

Happy connecting and crafting, friends!