Hot Pot Queen

Hotpot Queen makes Sichuan chili crisps and sauces, quick-cooking air-dried noodles, and hotpot soup bases built around the numbing, spicy flavor of málà. The brand grew out of Little Swan, a hotpot restaurant He Yongzhi opened in Chongqing in 1982 that helped popularize split-pot Yuan Yang hotpot. Her daughter Jia now carries those family recipes into jars and noodle packs for home cooks, with no added MSG.

• What is Hotpot Queen?

  A Chongqing-rooted Sichuan food brand making sauces, noodles and hotpot soup bases for home cooks.

• How is Hotpot Queen connected to Little Swan?

  The brand comes from the family of He Yongzhi, who opened the Little Swan hotpot restaurant in Chongqing in 1982.

• What does málà mean?

  It is the Sichuan pairing of chili heat with the numbing tingle of Sichuan peppercorn, central to Chongqing hotpot.

• How spicy are the products?

  Each product is rated 0 to 5 for tingle, heat and umami. The Savory Mushroom soup base is the mildest; the Sichuan Mala soup base and Spicy Hotpot noodles are the strongest. The garlic chili crisp and toasted seed crunch bring heat with little tingle.

• Are the products vegan?

  Most are. The soup bases, chili sauces and noodles are plant-based; check each product page for the vegan tag and ingredients.

• Do the products contain MSG?

  No. There is no added MSG; flavor comes from Sichuan peppercorn, dried chilies, doubanjiang and mushrooms.

• How should I store opened products?

  Refrigerate opened sauces and soup bases and use within about 3 months. Keep noodles dry and sealed. Unopened items are shelf-stable.

• Where should a newcomer start?

  The sauces, which work on noodles, rice, eggs and dumplings.