Beggar's chicken, or stuffed roast chicken wrapped in lotus leaves, gets its name from a folktale. Back in the Qing dynasty (1644-1911), a hungry beggar was caught stealing a chicken, and was chased by its rightful owner. In order to hide his loot, the beggar wrapped the chicken with lotus leaves, and buried it in the mud before running away. The beggar later returned and roasted the muddy package directly over his fire. When he unwrapped the leaves, he discovered a delicious tender chicken hidden within.

叫花雞的名字來自于一個民間傳說。據說在清朝時期，一個饑腸轆轆的叫花子偷了一只雞，主人發現后到處追打叫花子。為了把這只雞藏起來，這個叫花子把雞用荷葉包裹起來，然后再將其埋在泥土之中，最后才逃之夭夭。叫花子后來折返回來，挖出包裹著雞肉的土包，直接在火上烤制。烹飪完畢打開荷葉時，他發現里面的雞肉美味鮮嫩、妙不可言。