diff --git a/salt/utils/cloud.py b/salt/utils/cloud.py
index c06e6f1abfa1..d3fcd16a4f64 100644
--- a/salt/utils/cloud.py
+++ b/salt/utils/cloud.py
@@ -214,14 +214,13 @@ def minion_config(opts, vm_):
     Return a minion's configuration for the provided options and VM
     '''
 
-    # Let's get a copy of the salt minion default options
-    minion = copy.deepcopy(salt.config.DEFAULT_MINION_OPTS)
-    # Some default options are Null, let's set a reasonable default
-    minion.update(
-        log_level='info',
-        log_level_logfile='info',
-        hash_type='sha256'
-    )
+    # Don't start with a copy of the default minion opts; they're not always
+    # what we need. Some default options are Null, let's set a reasonable default
+    minion = {
+        'master': 'salt',
+        'log_level': 'info',
+        'hash_type': 'sha256',
+    }
 
     # Now, let's update it to our needs
     minion['id'] = vm_['name']