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1
Soak the dried wood ear mushrooms in cold water for 15–20 minutes, using cold rather than hot water so they rehydrate gradually and hold their pleasing snap rather than turning limp. They are ready when fully softened and pliable with no hard or dry centre remaining. Drain and trim any tough base sections.
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2
Heat a wok at maximum heat until smoking before adding the oil, so the oil shimmers and coats the surface instantly rather than sitting and absorbing into the metal. Add the protein in a single layer and stir-fry, moving continuously, until nearly — but not fully — cooked through, then push to the side of the wok.
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3
Add the julienned ginger to the centre of the wok and fry for 30–45 seconds without smothering it, so its raw, sharp pungency has direct contact with the hot oil and transforms into a cooked, slightly sweet, rounded aromatic. This is where the dish lives or dies: ginger added directly to the sauce without this step produces a harsher, sharper result that no amount of cooking later will correct. The cue is a bloom of warm, cooked ginger fragrance rising from the wok.
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4
Add the rehydrated wood ear mushrooms and the spring onion whites, tossing them together with the protein and ginger over maximum heat so the mushrooms take on some of the wok's heat rather than cooling the pan down. Continue tossing until the mushrooms are heated through and the spring onion whites have softened slightly — approximately 30 seconds.
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5
Add the oyster sauce and fish sauce, then toss the contents of the wok to coat evenly so the sauces reduce and cling rather than pool at the bottom. Taste: the balance should be savoury and ginger-forward, with the sauce binding without pooling.
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6
Add the spring onion greens and toss once, then remove from the heat immediately so the residual warmth of the wok wilts the greens without robbing them of their fresh colour and bite. Serve at once.