Looking for a low-salt bread recipe for the bread machine? This recipe makes low-salt bread that has a great texture. AND you don’t need a special setting of your bread machine to make it.

Last Updated September 23, 2023 – Originally Posted November 14, 2021

I didn’t think it would be possible to make a low-salt bread in the bread machine.  I was wrong!  The bread’s texture is great. It’s soft, but firm. 

I will say that  the taste is rather bland because of the lack of salt.

Tuscan bread or pane Toscano is a salt-free Italian bread.  It’s used  with flavorful sandwich ingredients to make up for the bland flavor of the bread.   

I’m using this loaf of low-salt bread for toast topped with peanut butter.  It tastes great and the texture of the bread is wonderful.

Salt-Free Bread Setting Not Needed

If you’re interested in low-salt bread, you may have noticed that some machines, like the Zojirushi Virtuoso Plus, come with a salt-free bread setting. 

I saw that too.  However, I wondered if a special setting was really needed.  

To test it out, I made two loves of bread.  One loaf was made in my older machine using the basic setting and the other was made in the Virtuoso Plus using the salt-free bread setting.  

The loaf of the left was made with my older Zo, using the basic setting. The loaf of the right was made using the salt free course on the Virtuoso Plus.

As you can see, the loaf of bread made with my older machine (the loaf of the left) looks fine.  It is a little smaller, but I think the loaf is better formed.

My conclusion is that a salt-free course is not needed to make low-salt bread in the bread machine.

Full disclosure, I made one adjustment to the recipe.

The Virtuoso Plus calls for the use of rapid-rise/instant yeast in almost every recipe.  The recipe I used was designed for the Plus and called for 1 teaspoon of rapid-rise/instant yeast.  That’s what I used in the loaf on the right. 

My older machine usually calls for active dry yeast.  So I converted the 1 teaspoon of instant yeast that original recipe called for to 1.25 teaspoons of active dry yeast.  That’s what I used for the loaf on the left.

Wondering about the difference between active dry yeast, instant yeast, bread machine yeast and quick rise yeast?  I’ve got an article that explains the differences between different yeast. This article also shows how to convert between instant yeast and active dry yeast.

No-Salt versus Low-Salt

While this recipe doesn’t contain any added salt, it does contain powdered milk.  Powdered milk does contain some salt.  That’s why, despite the fact that you don’t add any salt to the recipe, I’ve labeled it as a low-salt bread recipe.

Low-Salt Bread Recipe Instructions

This recipe is for a two-pound loaf.  Use the basic cycle with the medium crust setting.

Follow the instructions that came with your bread machine in terms of which order to add ingredients to your bread machine. I use a Zojirushi bread machine, so I add the liquids first.

Check on the dough after five or ten minutes of kneading.  It should be a smooth, round ball. 

If the dough is too dry, add liquid a teaspoon at a time until it looks right.  If it looks too wet, add flour a tablespoon at a time until it looks right.

Low-Salt Bread Recipe

Again, this recipe is for a two-pound loaf.  Use the basic cycle with the medium crust setting.

1 ¼ Cups plus 2.5 Tablespoons Water
1 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar
4 Cups plus 3 Tablespoons Bread flour
3 ½ Tablespoons Sugar
3 Tablespoons Powdered (dry) milk 
2 ½ Tablespoons Unsalted butter
1 ¼  teaspoons active dry yeast

See below for metric measurements, as well as nutrition information, for this low-salt bread recipe for the bread machine.

Low-Salt Bread Recipe

Looking for a low-salt bread recipe for the bread machine?  This recipe makes low-salt bread that has a great texture. AND you don't need a special setting of your bread machine to make it.

4.53 from 36 votes

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Course: Bread Machine Recipes

Cuisine: American

Keyword: low-salt

Yield: 14 slices per two-pound loaf of bread

Calories: 173kcal

Recommended Equipment

Bread Knife

Measuring Cup

Zojirushi Bread Machine

Ingredients

• 1 ¼ Cups (295.74 ml) Water
• 2.5 Tablespoons Water
• 1 Tablespoon Apple cider vinegar
• 4 Cups (500 g) Bread flour
• 3 Tablespoons Bread Flour
• 3 ½ Tablespoons Sugar
• 3 Tablespoons Powdered milk
• 2 ½ Tablespoons Unsalted butter
• 1 ¼ teaspoons Active dry yeast

Instructions

• This recipe is for a two-pound loaf.  Use the basic/white cycle with the medium crust setting.
• Follow the instructions that came with your bread machine in terms of which order to add ingredients to your bread machine. I use a Zojirushi bread machine, so I add the liquids first.
• Check on the dough after five or ten minutes of kneading.  It should be a smooth, round ball.
• If the dough is too dry add liquid a teaspoon at a time until it looks right.  If it looks too wet, add flour a tablespoon at a time until it looks right.

Notes

Again, this recipe is for a two-pound bread machine. You’ll be using the basic/white cycle with the medium crust setting. 

This recipe was developed and tested using US customary measurements. Metric measurements are calculated automatically.

Nutrition

Serving: 1Slice | Calories: 173kcal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 7mg | Sodium: 8mg | Potassium: 63mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 78IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 22mg | Iron: 0.4mg

 

All information presented within this site is intended for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and any nutritional information on breadmachinediva.com should only be used as a general guideline. This information is provided as a courtesy and there is no guarantee that the information will be completely accurate. I try to provide accurate information to the best of my ability; however these figures should still be considered estimates.