Apparatus (21) for boiling an egg (24), including an egg-boiling container (2) which is adapted to contain the egg and a first volume of water (32), and a heater (11) which is adapted to boil the water in the container. The apparatus also includes one or more valves (16, 17), which are coupled to drain the first volume of water from the egg-boiling container and to introduce a second volume of cold water (34) into the egg-boiling container in place of the first volume. The apparatus further includes an automated controller (3), which is coupled to actuate the heater so as to cook the egg in the first volume of the water for a preset time period, and to actuate the one or more valves at the conclusion of the preset time period so as to replace the boiled water with the cold water.