Fill your kettle and boil it. Place 1 large nest of pad Thai noodles in a heatproof bowl. Cover with boiling water and set aside to soak for 10 mins. The noodles should be firm, but not chalky. To check, bite into a noodle – if it's still chalky, soak for another 4-5 mins. Drain and set aside.

While the noodles soak, put a wok or deep frying pan on a high heat. Add the peanuts and toast for 1-2 mins, shaking the pan, till lightly browned all over. Tip the peanuts out onto a board and roughly chop them. Set aside, and keep the wok for later.

Add 1 tbsp tamarind paste (about half the packet) to a small bowl. Add 1 tbsp each vegan fischy sauce and demerara sugar. Add 2 tbsp cold water and stir to mix and dissolve the sugar. Set aside.

Peel and finely slice the shallots. Trim and peel the carrots, then use the vegetable peeler to shave ribbons off the carrot. When you've peeled down to the cores, finely slice them. Trim the root end off the pak choi, then thinly slice the stalks. Roughly chop the leaves, keeping the leaves and stalks separate. Thinly slice the chilli – for less heat, you can flick out the seeds and white pith. The noodles should be ready to drain by now.

Put the wok back on a medium heat. Add 2 tbsp oil to the wok and add the shallots. Fry, stirring, for 5 mins till golden. Crack the eggs in the pan and fry, stirring, for 1-2 mins to scramble the eggs and cook them till they are firm. Scoop the tamarind and sugar mix into the pan. Stir and cook for 1 min.

Add the carrots and pak choi stems to the wok. Stir-fry for 4-5 mins till starting to soften but still with plenty of bite. Add the pak choi leaves and the chilli. Stir fry for another 1 min.

Tip the drained noodles into the wok and add the peanuts. Stir fry for 2-3 mins to combine and warm the noodles. Taste and add a pinch of salt if you think it needs it. Divide the pad Thai between 2 warm plates or bowls and serve.