Step 1

Put the wood ears in a small bowl and pour over boiling water. Let stand 30 minutes to reconstitute, then remove, rinse and slice. Discard any hard bits.

Step 2

Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, place the dried shiitakes and pour over 1 1/2 cups of boiling water. Let stand 30 minutes to reconstitute, then remove them and slice, discarding the stems. Reserve the mushroom soaking liquid.

Step 3

In a large pot, combine stock, mushroom soaking liquid, cloud ears, shiitakes, carrot, bamboo shoots, ginger, garlic, rice vinegar, soy sauce, salt, pepper, and sugar. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Step 4

In a small bowl, dissolve the cornstarch in the water and mix until smooth. Pour the cornstarch mixture in to the soup and add the tofu. Allow the soup to simmer until it thickens.

Step 5

Finally add the sesame oil.

Step 6

Serve and garnish with green onion tops.