Zhejiang cuisine originated in Zhejiang province, which is located just south of Jiangsu province in eastern China. The province of Zhejiang is also known as a "land of fish and rice" because of their high agricultural output. Arguably the best Zhejiang food can be found in Hangzhou, a beautiful city that was once the capital of the illustrious Song dynasty and is now the capital of Zhejiang province.

One of Hangzhou's most famous dish is "Beggar's Chicken". It's not the most appetizing name, but the dish is famous for a good reason (hint: it's delicious). The story goes that a Hangzhou beggar had stolen a chicken from a farm. But the beggar didn't have any pots or utensils to prepare the chicken. So he came up with an idea. He wrapped the chicken in lotus leaves and packed it with clay to form a makeshift pot. Then he dug a hole in the ground, lit it with fire, and buried the chicken to cook. When he dug up and unwrapped the chicken, he discovered that baking the chicken in lotus leaves and clay had made the chicken unbelievably tender and aromatic.

After eating his fill, he realized he had an incredibly delicious discovery on him. So he stole some more chickens, cooked them using his patented process, and sold them on the streets of Hangzhou. Beggar's Chicken™ caught on with the locals and the former beggar and thief became a successful food vendor and lived happily ever after.