The Setup
This is my review of the GrillGrate on Recteq Bullseye Grill. When I ordered my Recteq Bullseye Grill I got the full package that included pellets and a GrillGrate that fits the 22-inch ground grill. At first, I thought the GrillGrate was just some gimmick device that I would use a few time and then never use again. What I found was the Bullseye and the GrillGrate is the perfect marriage if you want to properly sear food.
The Bullseye Grill is a 22 inch round grill that looks and feels like a 22 inch Weber Kettle. The big difference is that the Bullseye burns wood pellet and the Weber burns charcoal. The GrillGrate does a good job of covering most of the wired grate. Also, the GrillGrate comes in three pieces that interlock so it is very stable inside the grill. It also comes with a cool BBQ tool that can flip even big pieces of meat.
If you want to sear properly you need a really hot surface. The ideal temperature is 550F to 700F. You have to get the actual grill grate up to at least 500F to even get grill marks. Most pellet smokers struggle to get past 500F and do not generate enough radiant heat to give you that “to die for” sear. I do not have that problem with the Bullseye for it will easily go pass 600F and that is air temperature (ambient) and because it generates a lot of radiant heat the grate even gets hotter.
The Test
Here is my test data comparing the ambient temperature to grate temperature using an infrared thermometer that shows the GrillGrate temperature. Here is the series of temperatures as the grill warmed up. I am using the dome temperature gauge that is remarkably accurate. These temperatures were compared to a ThermoPro TP20 and were only off at high temperatures by just a few degrees. The ThermoPro was 3 degrees hotter and is closer to correct.
So I could get the actual temperature at the GrillGrate I bought an Etekcity Lasergrip 630 Dual Laser Digital Infrared Thermometer. It is pretty cool for it has two lasers that you point to an object and it will show you the temperature between the two laser points. Is not affected by air temperature. Below it showed the GrillGrate temperature at 744.2F.
That is 134.2F hotter than the air temperature inside the grill and is about 100F hotter than what my Weber 310 gas grill could do even using the sear station on the grill.
The Conclusion
The Bullseye is a great grill but when you add the GrillGrate to the Bullseye it becomes a fantastic searing machine. This weekend I will be doing a complete video review of the Bullseye Grill including cooking steaks and chicken. I picked those two items for you need the ability to cook hotter and both require a good sear to be cooked correctly.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7guGJPlGvao[/embedyt]