One of my favourite parts about the Chinese New Year celebrations is the food. There’s a reason why people call it ‘comfort’ food – because food is often associated with fond memories and feelings of safety and warmth. It’s such a good feeling to have awesome home cooked food to dig into the moment you step into the house.

In this case, upon arriving in Ipoh, my cousin YS (who is a great cook) had made a big bunch of pork and century egg dumplings in a light, savoury broth. The thickness of the dumpling skin was just right, and the filling had the right balance of fat and lean for a tender, melt-in-the-mouth texture.

Then my uncle came back from visiting friends with a big bag of these fried snacks called “Phoenix Balls”. Apparently they used to be served as appetisers at Chinese banquets, but you rarely find them these days because they are quite painstaking to make.

The inside was a mix of pork, shredded carrots and egg, enveloped in a chewy layer of pork fat taken from underneath the pig skin (caul fat), then battered and deep fried. I really liked the textures, despite the ball’s oiliness – there’s the crisp from the shell, the chewiness from the pork fat, and the soft tenderness of the meat.

YS wanted to make charsiewbao (pork buns) so we helped out. It’s a lot of work, since everything was made from scratch, from the dough to the pork filling. Folding the buns into the proper shape was an art on its own.

Presenting the ugliest charsiewbao in the world.

These are ready for the steamer! Enough about food though – since it’s the Year of the Pig, here are some cute (and unique) porcine decorations around the house.

Alcohol in a pig shaped glass container. Guess where the alcohol was poured out from?

Literal piggy bank

These were friggin adorable – squishy pig dolls. Hope you’re having a great CNY as well!