According to legend, in April of the tenth year of Xining in Song Shenzong (1077), Su Shi went to Xuzhou Zhizhou. On July 7th, the Yellow River burst in the area around Caocun, Zhuozhou. By August 21st, the flood besieged Xuzhou, and the water level was as high as 20 feet. Su Shi died by himself, joined the Dutch army, led the imperial military camp, and built dikes to protect the city with the people of the whole city. After more than 70 days and nights of hard work, Xuzhou City was finally saved. All the people in the city rejoiced. In order to thank the well-led and well-known Zhizhou, who shared the life and death with Xuzhou people, they slaughtered pigs and sheep in succession, and took wine and food to the government to comfort them. Su Shi couldn't refuse. After accepting it, he personally instructed his family to make braised pork and gave it back to the people who participated in the flood control. After eating, the people all felt that the meat was fat but not greasy, crisp and delicious, and unanimously called it "giving back meat." Since then, "giving back meat" has spread around Xuzhou and become a traditional dish in Xuzhou. This is recorded in Xuzhou Literature and History Materials, Xuzhou Scenery Records and Xuzhou Ancient and Modern Famous Cuisine.
In the third year of Yuanfeng (A.D. 1080), on February 1st, Su Shi was demoted to Huangzhou as an assistant of Yong ying. He cultivated land by himself, so he called this place "Dongpo layman". This is the origin of "Dongpo Meat". During his stay in Huangzhou, he personally cooked braised pork and wrote his experience in "Eating Pork Poetry". The braised pork cooked by Su Shi in Xuzhou and Huangzhou is only influential in the local area and is not well-known in the whole country. The braised pork, which is really famous all over the country, is Su Shi's "Dongpo Meat" when he was in Hangzhou for the second time.
On January 3rd, in the 4th year of Song Zhezong Yuanyou (1089), Su Shi came to Hangzhou as a prefecture after 15 years' absence. During May and June of the fifth year of Yuanyou, there was heavy rain in the west of Zhejiang Province, Taihu Lake flooded and large areas of crops were flooded. Because Su Shi took effective measures as early as possible, the people in western Zhejiang passed through the most difficult period. He organized migrant workers to dredge the West Lake, build dikes and bridges, and make the West Lake look new. The people in Hangzhou are very grateful to Su Shi for this good deed. Everyone praises him as a wise official. I heard that he liked pork best when he was in Xuzhou and Huangzhou, so when the Chinese New Year came, everyone carried pigs and carried wine to pay New Year greetings to him. After Su Shi received it, he instructed his family to cut the meat into cubes and burn it red and crisp, and then distributed it to the migrant workers who took part in dredging the West Lake. Everyone was surprised after eating it, and all the meat he sent was affectionately called "Dongpo Meat".
Tracing back to the source, Su Shi's braised pork was first created in Xuzhou, further improved in Huangzhou, and became famous throughout the country in Hangzhou.