The soup I made had to accomplish several things at once: ease sore throat, clear congestion, and eliminate dizziness or headache. This requires anti-inflammatory, expectorant, and diaphoretic herbs. The best approach is often aromatic and antibiotic herbs, and those that move phlegm outward. To loosen thick phlegm, it must first be softened, then cleared with expectorant herbs. The baseline recipe contains moistening and antibiotic herbs, but you can add others for fever and sore throat as needed. Here is an example: