For the sauce, combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix until smooth. (The sauce will smell a little strange, but it will taste delicious later.) Pat the tofu dry, halve it lengthwise, and cut it into thin slices. If the slices are too long to eat with chopsticks, halve them again.

Press the garlic cloves with the flat side of a knife, remove the peel, and slice the garlic thinly. Slice the white part of the spring onions into thin rings and the green part into thin strips. Crush the peanuts in a mortar or roughly chop them with a knife.

Heat two teaspoons of oil in a wok or cast-iron skillet. Add dried shrimp (optional) and tofu and stir-fry over high heat for three to four minutes. Add garlic and the green parts of the spring onions and stir-fry for another 30 seconds.

Push the ingredients to one side of the pan and spread the remaining oil (1 teaspoon) on the other side. Crack the eggs and cook them gently for 20 to 30 seconds, stirring constantly, until lightly set, then mix in the other ingredients.

After another 30 seconds, add the soaked pasta to the pan. Take it straight from the water to add some liquid to the pan.

Stir-fry the noodles for one to two minutes, then add the sauce. Cook the rice noodles in the sauce for another two minutes, stirring continuously.

Add the sprouts, half of the green spring onions and half of the peanuts and sauté for another minute.

Then divide the Pad Thai between two plates, garnish with the remaining spring onions and peanuts, and serve with fresh lime wedges.