In 1992, the creator of the dish, Dai Lung, was head chef at a Chinese restaurant in Hong Kong frequented by Stephen Chow. After getting to know Lung, Chow expressed interest in making a film about chefs and asked him to create this dish for his film, The God of Cookery.[2] In the film, the protagonist played by Chow creates this simple dish of cooked rice, char siu, and a fried egg, naming it 'Sorrowful Rice'. The dish became popular in Hong Kong in the wake of the film.[3]