If the meat is tough, you have over cooked it.
Poach in just enough broth or wine to cover and keep the heat at a very low simmer....never a rolling boil and cook only until the center is no longer pink.
Linda C

I usually poach the breasts, but last night DH had chicken salad I made from broiled white meat...

I also don't cut the meat, I pull it for my chicken salad. That seems to help if I've poached it too long.

I usually grill it.
However, I made some oven baked split breasts the other day cooked with bbq sauce for the purpose of chicken salad and it was very good. The bbq sauce added a subtle but nice flavor.
I added plenty of pan juices to the chicken salad also.

Ellen, try roasting your chicken breasts. I read that in Cook's Illustrated when we first had the deli, so I tried it and never poached them again. The best flavor comes from using the bone-in (usually called chicken breast quarters). It's easy to remove the meat from the skin and bones after cooking and cooling and the fat from the skin really adds to the flavor and the meat is more moist.

Roasted Chicken Salad

Preheat oven to 400°

Coat a rimmed baking pan with cooking spray.

Place chicken breasts skin side up, spray with a little cooking spray and sprinkle with kosher salt. If using skinless, boneless breasts (I prefer skin-on, more flavor) you should still spray and salt.

Roast to 160° internal temp., about 45-55 min, depending on size. Remove from oven, drain grease and cool.

When cool enough to handle, remove skin and bones, cut into cubes about ½ inch in size. Mine are pretty irregular.
Refrigerate until well chilled.

Version #1 DRIED CHERRY AND PECAN

4 C cut up chicken breast meat
2 C celery, sliced thin or coarsely chopped (I do mine in a food processor)
1 C dried red cherries
1 C coarsely chopped toasted pecans

Toss together in a large bowl. Add dressing to desired consistency. Better a little wet rather than dry, as chicken will absorb dressing as it sits.

Dressing:

1½ C mayo (Hellman's preferred)
¼ C Kikkoman's soy sauce
1 tsp powdered ginger
1 tsp celery seed
1 tsp ground pepper

Combine to use in dried cherry salad.

Version #2 HERB CHICKEN SALAD

4 C chopped chicken breasts
6 green onions
1 C loosely packed flat leaf (Italian) parsley
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black ground pepper
1-2 C mayo

Place chicken in a large bowl. Chop green onion and parsley very fine or pulse in food processor, add to chicken and toss. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and stir in mayo to desired consistency. Add more salt and pepper if needed.

Nancy

I always use bone-in breasts and bake them in the oven at 350 for about an hour. After baking, I remove the skin and bones and chill the meat before cubing for salad.

As a bonus, I throw the skin and bones in a pot with some vegetables and simmer for stock.

Try poaching them in a very flavorful court bullion onion, celery. perhaps a couple of lemon peels, garlic, pepper corns.....simmer about 20 to 30 minutes and add the chicken. the chicken picks up plenty of flavor....and when you are done you have a lovely pot full of sauce beginnings.
or they are wonderful poached in a half and half mix of dry white wine and chicken broth....for that I use canned.
Bone in is more flavorful, but boneless skinless works too.....and I always have some in the freezer. And poaching is so much easier than roasting or grilling!
Linda c

Ditto what Nancy and Ruthanna said. Poaching seemed to be the accepted method and I tried it several times and it just doesn't work out as well as roasting/baking breasts with skin on and bone in. Plus it isn't waterlogged from the poaching liquid, and is more moist and tender. I also like mine pulled apart, not chopped. Of course that depends on your preference.

Great advice, thank you all! I know how to poach and usually use white wine/chicken broth, but now will try roasting the whole breasts. I do have some bscb here and will poach them, but next time I'm buying the cheaper breasts and roasting them!

Do you freeze some of the meat for later use? How does the quality hold up, does it turn mushy?

I also prefer roasted or grilled bone-in chicken breasts for chicken salad. And I also pull the chicken - not cut into chunks. Very flavorful and tender.

I used to poach chicken and liked it, but then I saw The Barefoot Contessa brush olive oil, salt and pepper on skin on, bone in chicken breasts--bake at 350 degrees until done. Pull skin off, pull meat off the bone. Delicious!!

Gloria

Our local privately owned grocery store makes the best chicken salad. A friend who worked in the deli said their " secret" is they Steam the boneless chicken breasts. I have done this now for years and the chicken breasts are tender and delicious. I also shred the meat as much as possible.

The most succulent, firm, flavorful cold chicken I have eaten is cooked by a Chinese method called White-Cut.

White-Cut Chicken

It does freeze well if roasted/baked provided all the air is removed from the bag. It isn't mushy in the least. Of course fresh is always better.