What is "ARAITHU VITTA"?
Meaning
“Araithu Vitta” means freshly wet ground in Tamil and usually includes freshly grated coconut in the grinding. Similar words are used in the other South Indian states - “Araipu” in Malayalam, “Aratha huli “ in Kannada and “Mudha masala” in Telugu
Significance
Traditional recipe for making sambar requires that a fresh wet ground sambar masala paste be prepared each and every time sambar is prepared. In the past, this masala was made using spices freshly roasted in oil that were then wet ground on traditional, now obsolete, stone equipment called “Ammikal”.
The “Ammikal” had two components- the “Ammi”, a thick flat stone (about 14”Lx10”Wx5”H) and the “Kuzhavi”, a thick cylindrical stone rolling pin (about 15”Lx4”D). The roasted spices were placed on the “Ammi”. The “Kuzhavi” was rolled over the spices on the “Ammi” in a back and forth manner while moving the masala around by hand and adding a little water at a time. There are tiny holes in both stones that help shred the spices to create a textured paste.
This traditionally made sambar masala was added towards the end of the sambar preparation to give the sambar its authentic color, freshness, taste, texture and flavor.