Mala chips are the new, highly addictive snack that packs a spicy punch. Key ingredients for the potato chips and cassava chips include dried chilli, salt, peppercorn powder, ginger powder, pepper and fennel. Launched by local brand Ooh, they cost $6 for a 95 g packet.

Available at Level 2 North Wing, Suntec City Tower 2, 9 Temasek Boulevard. Call 8542 0972, e-mail oohsgp@gmail.com or go to www.facebook.com/OohSG for updates on the next location

Three-month-old vegetarian restaurant Ganglamedo uses ingredients from Tibet as well as Chinese herbs and spices in its cooking. The a la carte menu has a cold appetiser of carrot, radish, enoki and cordyceps flower ($12) that comes tossed in a fragrant mala sauce. Another appetiser, Ya Dong pearl fungus (seasonal price) from Tibet, also has mala spices.

Available at Ganglamedo, 40 Craig Road; open: 11 am to 3 pm, 6 to 9.30 pm daily. Call 6423 9788 or go to www.facebook.com/GanglamedoSG

If mala chicken rice sounds like an odd spin on the favourite hawker dish, an easier reference point would be kou shui ji (Sichuan poached chicken with chilli oil). Makanista’s chicken rice features chicken topped with a spicy sauce made from chillies, garlic, black vinegar and oil. Prices start at $5.80 for mala chicken rice.

Available at Makanista, #01-42/43/44 Tampines Mall, 4 Tampines Central 5; open: 9 am to 10 pm (weekdays), 8 am to 10 pm (weekends and public holidays). Call 6260 6002 or go to www.facebook.com/MakanistaSG

New to the London Fat Duck restaurant chain, this one ($9) has slices of pig’s liver in a spicy mala sauce – the perfect complement to its signature roast meats.

Available at London Fat Duck outlets including #B2-29 VivoCity, 1 Harbourfront Walk; #B1-16/17 Scotts Square, 6 Scotts Road; and #B1-76 Raffles City, 252 North Bridge Road; open: 11.30 am to 10 pm (weekdays), 10 am to 10 pm (weekends and public holidays). Go to www.londonfatduck.com.sg

Chinese restaurant chain Crystal Jade debuts its mala rice dumpling ($8.80 a piece; exclusive bundle on e-store $24.80 for three, $39.80 for five) for the upcoming Dragon Boat Festival. Pork shoulder and Spanish pork collar pieces are marinated in a blend of Sichuan peppercorns, dried chillies and chilli oil, giving the dumpling a gentle heat and fragrance.

Available at Crystal Jade outlets until June 18, various opening hours; and until June 14 on e-store. Go to estore.crystaljade.com

Taiwan pizza chain Tino’s Pizza Cafe packs a spicy punch with its Spicy Mala Pizza ($17.90 for six-piece Neapolitan, $23.90 for eight-piece, thin-crust Roman). The pizza dough gets a coating of housemade spicy mala sauce and toppings include prawns, chicken meatballs and tuna.

Available at Tino’s Pizza Cafe outlets at #01-206 Resorts World Sentosa, 8 Sentosa Gateway; #01-106 Tiong Bahru Plaza, 302 Tiong Bahru Road; and #B1-13 The Centrepoint, 176 Orchard Road; various opening hours. Go to www.facebook.com/tinospizzacafesg

The recently relaunched modern Chinese diner and bar Zui Hong Lou offers a spicy spin on small plates and snacks. These include the Double Deep-fried Chong Qing Chicken Wings with House Ma La Spices ($10) and Szechuan Fries ($6), which come with a Sichuan barbecue dip.

Available at Zui Hong Lou, 90 Club Street; open: noon to 2.30 pm (weekdays), 6 pm to 1 am (Saturdays, Mondays to Thursdays), 6 pm to 2 am (Fridays), closed on Sundays. Call 8181 0572 or go to zuihonglou.sg

The “mee kia” is actually capellini topped with five prawns ($14.80). The dish looks harmless until you see the Sichuan peppercorns. It is mildly spicy – think of a mala version of aglio olio, but without the chilli padi.

Available at Be My Guest, The Commerze, 1 Irving Place; open: 11.30 am to 9 pm (weekdays), noon to 9 pm (Saturdays), noon to 4 pm (Sundays). Call 9221 4405 or go to www.facebook.com/Bemyguestcafe

Ding Xian Hot Pot may be part of Japanese enclave Eat At Seven, but there is a strong Sichuan influence to the menu. Besides the spicy mala soup option for the hotpot, there are also mala side dishes, such as the Mala Fish ($10.80), a deep-fried fish coated in a spice blend which includes chilli oil, Sichuan peppercorns, black pepper and oyster sauce.

Available at Ding Xian Hot Pot, Eat At Seven, #03-315 Suntec City North Wing, 3 Temasek Boulevard; open: 11.30 am to 3 pm, 5.30 to 10 pm daily. Call 6266 5338 or go to www.facebook.com/dingxianhotpot

Modern Chinese restaurant Lokkee by the TungLok Group has a mala Irish duck ($36 for half, $60 for whole), where the roast duck comes with a spicy and fragrant mala sauce. Not a fan of duck? Then go for the firecracker chicken dish which has a fragrant zing.

Available at Lokkee, #03-01 Plaza Singapura, 68 Orchard Road; open: 11 am to 2.30 pm, 5.30 to 9.30 pm daily. Call 6884 4566 or go to www.lokkee.com.sg