I have not been able to find low sodium bread in any grocery stores locally and have decided to make my own. People that I have spoken with say that home made bread with no salt is not going to taste good. Does anyone have any experience with this? I am mainly interested in making white bread so I can eat sandwiches again. I hate to spend the money on the bread maker just to find out the bread is no good. Any thoughts or suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
My bread machine has been a huge help with this. I usually put a little salt in-- 1/4 teaspoon or less. If you don't want to use any salt at all, try dried minced onion, garlic powder or dillweed (or a mix) or other spices you like...my whole family, even the kids, like one made with minced onion and dill, even though they don't have to eat low sodium.
Hi - I make my own bread - no chance of finding anything particularaly low salt in the UK - in a breadmaker and whilst it isnt quite the same as the real thing - at least its bread! Though the last week I have found a recipe that is perfect. Its called honey and oats bread and you can make it with white or brown flour. Because it has the honey in it, it takes away the bland taste of not having salt in it. Its the standard ingredients but 3/4 cup of rolled oats instead of the flour and 1/2 cup of honey. Another good alternative is raisin bread - again the sweetness takes away the bland taste. similar thing just put in less flour and replace with raisins instead And it must be good cos my kids always ask for it!
Hi Larsh, I invested in a less expensive bread machine and make my own. I actually have more success using the "fast bake" instead. I either don't use any salt, or just 1/4 tsp like Abra said. Biggest problem is that with no or little salt, bread molds much much faster than store bought or "normal" bread. When making the bread, I watch the dough and make sure it isn't too dry or too wet and add a bit of water or flour as necessary. I like it to be just sticky to the touch, but not so it sticks to the fingers. Can you borrow a bread maker from someone to give it a try? Marci
I make all my own bread and vary the amount of salt from zero to 1/4 tsp per loaf. I used to use a bread machine but since it broke, I went back to kneading by hand. If I do three risings (two in bowels and one in bread pans), it takes about three hours for the whole process. If I drop to two risings and push all the timings, then I can get it down to 2 hours. Of course, most of the time is jsut waiting around. The actual labour is close to 45 minutes, including the of washing bowels. There are lots of ways to make bread interesting without the addition of salt. Herbs, chopped dried fruits, and raisins are my favourite additions. Also, I posted a novel way to make bread that does not require kneading. It is under the heading No Knead Bread). This technique is very easy and does not require much time. The results are fantastic, in many ways better than the usual kneading approach. Joseph
I like my salt substitutes, either No Salt or Alsosalt. I tried cutting back on regular salt when baking and the results were bland and ended up going bad before eaten. A waste of my time and ingredients. Some have said they don't like the substitutes but my stuff comes out tasting normal so I recommend them.
I have to agree with burd. I use No Salt when I bake my bread and it comes out just fine. My kids loved it too. I made french wheat bread last time. I just put everything in the bread maker and then come back when it's finished. Have a sandwich while it's still warm and then I put it in the fridge to make sure it doesn't mold. I really enjoy it.
I went to the health food store where I live and found some low sodium bread. It's Food For Life organic whole grain bread. It's really grainy but doesn't taste bad. You can find it at www.foodforlife.com! Oh and it's not just low sodium. It's sodium free!
Without the "real" salt, you do have to make some adjustments. Salt in bread does three main things. It inhibits yeast, flavors, and preserves. Salt substitutes do not inhibit yeast nor preserve and there is room for debate about their flavor, especially in baked goods. The first issue, inhibition of yeast, can easily be compensated for by slightly reducing the amount of yeast used. Too much yeast activity and bread can explode or colapse. The preservation issue can slightly be compensated for by adding ascorbic acid to the bread. Ascorbic acid can be ordered from places like King Arthur flour or is also found in the Fruit Fresh stuff you buy in the grocery store. It also increases the vitamin C content of your bread and adds a little bit of the flavor bite that salt normally imparts. As for flavor, many of the folks on this board have given excellent recommendations such as the minced onions, nuts, fruits, whole grains, sweenteners (honey or just sugar), etc. For great NO SALT bread recipes, check out any of Donald Gazzaniga's cook books (you can find them online at sites like Amazon or your local library). Don Gazzaniga also has some of his bread recipes on his web site, http://www.megaheart.com I bought a bread machine after getting diagnosed and have done a few loafs and some rolls. Some were just ok and a couple have been good...but it sure is nice to be able to eat bread...and since I keep my sodium intake to about 1,000mg per day, two slices of regular bread would be about 350mg or more and way too much for me. Best wishes, Sean
Don't give up looking in the stores for good low sodium bread. I discovered Alvarado Street bread, they have a few varieties, but my favorite is their flax seed bread. Two slices at 120 mg. of sodium! It's fluffy and not dry and is very healthy with whole grains...yummy!
I make my own bread without salt - it tastes fine as long as you don't put sugar in your bread. I know our bread is different to yours in the USA because your bread is much sweeter than ours.
I agree w/ Burd about the Alvarado St. bread being a good brand. In addition to the flax seed variety she mentions, they make a No Salt Added Multigrain bread that is quite good. Trader Joe's makes a no salt added whole wheat sandwich bread but after trying very very hard to convince ourselves we liked it, hubby and I admitted it tastes like mushy cardboard and stopped buying it. Another good bread product: Tumaro's Gourmet Tortillas. They come in many flavors (we like Honey Wheat and Jalapeno Cilantro). They are big enough to make a nice hearty wrap sandwich and have around 100 mg sodium each. Very low for a flour tortilla. Katie
LOL...When I first tried that TJ Whole Wheat No Salt bread I nearly cried. Now two years later my taste buds have adjusted and I eat it all the time. I too buy the Tumaros wraps when I can find them. Wholefoods has two varieties of wraps...one round and one square which are both around 3% of a days sodium (I forget the exact count) and they are WONDERFUL. There is a no salt rye bread Rudolph's from Canada which is in the frozen section of Health Food stores and WholeFoods. It is a very dense European type rye. I also have bought the Food For Life one. I find it so 'rough'.....I make corn muffins with the Hain's featherweight baking powder when I have time and they are really good. I freeze them and use to make sandwiches to bring for my lunch. All this stuff is trial and error error error as I like to say.
If you have a Kroger in your area, they have a low sodium bread that I have found to be very tasty. The slices are a bit smaller than regular bread, but at 25mg sodium per 2 slices I can't complain! We served sandwiches made with it to 50+ people at my 2 year old's birthday party and nobody knew the difference! I usually keep it in the freezer and microwave slices as needed. Hope this helps!
I tried 6 different grocery store chains in my area (a couple of them are actually owned by Kroger) and I can't find a good low sodium bread like that...except for the sprouted grain stuff which I don't like the consistency/flavor of. I'd even settle for a very bland low sodium wheat bread just for the ease. I can bake my own bread but it's not as easy as just buying it. Cheers, Sean
It's been the toughest food group for me to replace or eliminate: bread and baked goods. I have found a few varieties here in Toronto that are pretty good, though. Dimpfelmeier makes a salt free rye bread which is quite good - as long as you buy it fresh. Worse on the second day and crap thereafter. I have also found a small bakery (Stonemill) that makes very nice walnut bread at about 75mg a slice, which is reasonable. I do indulge in the occasional bagel (350mgs), just make sure that what goes on top of it is salt free George
The only thing I add salt to is my bread. I use 1/4 teaspoon of kosher salt per loaf. When I tried to bake my bread without any salt it was like a brick.
