The Traditional Bread From Florence Is Made Without Salt

Almost everyone who visits Florence recalls their first sample of Italian bread. After tours of Florence, they were probably waiting impatiently in a trattoria for their first real Tuscan lunch. They were accustomed to nibbling on a small piece of bread before their dinner, like many other individuals. They took a piece of bread from the small basket on their table and munched on it, with an unforeseen outcome. There is no salt in this bread. Every tourist to Florence learns that Tuscan bread is genuinely cooked without salt, which is one of the interesting facts about Florence.

Why would Tuscans leave out something so crucial? After all, just four fundamental ingredients are required to make bread, and we all know how well-known and enviable Italian cuisine is over the globe. In actuality, Tuscan bread is purposefully baked without salt and has so for centuries. As with many long-standing customs, there is significant disagreement regarding its genesis. Some claim that the lack of salt in Florentine bread is a result of the high tax that bakers in Florence paid on salt during the Middle Ages. This seems reasonable given the strong-willed Florentine character. Others, however, contend that bread without salt is necessary to fully appreciate the tastes of Florentine cuisine.