Zanthoxylum simulans, the Chinese-pepper,[2] Chinese prickly-ash or flatspine prickly-ash, is a flowering plant in the family Rutaceae, native to southern and central China, Taiwan, and South Korea.

[1] It is one of several species of Zanthoxylum from which Sichuan pepper is produced.

It is a spreading shrub or small tree growing to 7 m tall.

There are numerous short (3–6 mm) spines on both the stems and the leaf petioles, and large (several cm) knobs on the branches.

The 3–4 mm berry has a rough reddish brown shell that splits open to release the black seeds from inside.