Bread Salt and recipes

Hi all

Well as my next stage of bread development (mine not the bread) I decided to do a simple Baguette test.

I went for plain, with poolie and with pate fermentee.

I looked at a range of recipes and noted the old salt issue.  A Baker's 2% of salt!!!

But undaunted I went ahead.  The first plain attempt got interrupted by family and having to rush didn't rise well.  I significantly reduced the salt and despite the issues it tasted ok but as a test it will need to be redone.

I then did the poolish version.  This worked well in all ways (watching the poolish do its impersonation of bubbling lava was great)  except the salt.  I used 2 teaspoons instead of stated 2.7 and still it was over salted.

So either:

1. My wife's and my taste buds are salt haters
2. The salt in the recipe is not the salt (plain old English table salt) I am using (I'm using Reinhart and Hamelman so in the recipes US salt I guess - not that on my many trips to the states I ever noticed a difference).
3. I'm going mad.

If I do cut the salt is there any counter balance I might apply having reduced a fermentation restrictor?

Any thoughts greatly appreciated as the ducks on our village pond are now suffering from high blood pressure and no longer look forward to my baking disasters.

Cheers  Nigel

Ross many tx for replying.

And tx for the correction to the salt action.  Just reading and practising too much at the moment but having left it till almost 60 to get into bread making time is short lol.

As a percentage of my "breakfast bread" I calculate the percentage of salt to dry is 1.56%.  No probs there.  But baguettes with similar!!!!  We certainly try to lower salt intake but I love salt on crisps and fish and chips in England, and sea salt on grilled prawns and tomatoes when we are in spain.  I can't believe our reducing salt intake in the last two years has changed our tastebuds but ... it's a funny old world. 

I'll try the baguettes with about 0.8% and see how we go.  Cheers