If boneless, skinless chicken breasts have you bored, poaching them will give you a better result, where the meat is just done instead of being overcooked and dry. From there, you can use it in a wide variety of recipes that are put together quickly. The fact that the chicken is just done, gives you a little more cooking time in your recipe without overcooking it, but you really just need a recipe where it is heated through (if it’s been refrigerated) or heated enough to absorb your recipe’s flavors. Here’s a useful list of recipes that call for shredded chicken, and you don’t even need to read them all to get your own ideas. Of course you can cube the meat for a nice chicken salad in the summer, but I like to shred or pull the meat and use it with barbecue sauce for sandwiches, in enchiladas or tacos, or with pasta dishes.

Chicken in single layer

Covered with water

Coming to boil

Strained poaching liquid

Pulled chicken

With spinach, bacon, pasta

I used my chicken in a pasta dish with spinach, bacon, Parmesan cheese, and pasta. I sauteed spinach, garlic, and the pulled chicken in olive oil and a little of the bacon fat, just until the spinach was wilted and the chicken heated through. I cooked the pasta in the poaching liquid and used a little of the liquid, mixed with a little cornstarch, in putting together the final dish.