RECTEQ Bull RT-700 Pellet Grill Review - Learn to Smoke Meat with Jeff Phillips (2024)

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RECTEQ grills (specifically the “Bull”) is a game changer where pellet grills are concerned. I've had mine for more than a year now and I can tell you that it is everything they say it is and more. There's a reason why this thing gets such awesome reviews.

If you already know you want this thing (great choice) then you can check the latest price and/or find out more information here.

The Delivery of the RECTEQ Grill

Mine was delivered by a freight truck and the huge box was strapped down to a pallet. I also received several bags of pellets, a stainless steel shelf for the front and a heavy duty cover to protect it from the elements when not in use.

Assembling the RECTEQ

It took me a while to get everything unboxed but then I was working alone that day and in spite of the instructions telling me it was best to have (2) people to assemble it, I was able to do it by myself using some of my engineering skills to lift the body of the smoker up onto the frame.

I do recommend having a buddy helping if possible.

As I took each piece out of the box I immediately noticed the quality of the materials used to manufacture this unit. I was also impressed that all of the seams inside the smoke chamber were sealed with some sort of heavy grade caulk or sealant. I assume this is to prevent heat loss and leaking. Very impressive.

It took me a couple of hours to install the chimney, front bull horn handles, controller, and legs and hoist it to an upright position– of course I was stopping a lot to take pictures of the process.

But when it was finished, it was a beautiful sight to behold!

The Main Features of this REC TEQ Pellet Grill

The BIG Pellet Hopper

This thing is on the very back of the unit and it's huge! It holds 40 lbs of pellets which means you'll not need to fill it up very often and you can run it for a day and a half without adding more fuel.

The hopper being on the back allows for a shorter distance to move the pellets from the hopper to the burn pot.

The stainless steel lid on the hopper makes a great place to sit foil pans to keep the food warm as well.

The Cooking Chamber

All stainless steel, sealed seams and extremely heavy duty says it all. At approximately 36 inches wide and 20 inches front to back, the cooking area is more than enough to cook for a large crowd. That's around 700 sq. in. of cooking space.

The ¼ inch stainless steel rod cooking grates are very heavy duty as well and makes them easy to keep clean. The fact that they are split into (2) pieces means they will fit into most dishwashers if you really want to get them cleaned up.

An interior light with a on/off switch on the controller makes it easy to see what you are cooking at night and the heavy duty glass cover over the bulb is dishwasher safe for easy cleaning.

The Burn Pot and Ignitor

The burn pot is stainless steel like much of the rest of the smoker so it's very heavy duty and built to last. The ignitor is made of ceramic unlike most other ignitors on other brands of pellet smokers which are made of steel. The ceramic ignitor is the longest lasting ignition system for pellet smokers on the market.

The Controller

This is where a lot of people are going to get very excited. Most pellet smokers maintain a heat range and while this works just fine, it is a source of contention for many.

RECTEQ decided to do what no one else had done up to this time and make it hold an absolute exact temperature.

The controller is a very fancy computer controlled one that not only holds an absolutely precise temperature, but it also connects to the Wi-Fi in your home and allows you to monitor and control the smoker right on your smart phone from anywhere.

As if that's not enough, the controller has inputs for not one but two probes (included) so you can also monitor the temperature of what you are cooking x 2.

A short while back, I placed a ham in the RECTEQ smoker before I left for church on Sunday morning and one hour later, I turned it on, set the temperature and monitored it (very discreetly of course) via my smart phone so it would be ready right when we got home. Worked like a charm!

Smoke Production and Flavor

It is a known fact that some pellet smokers give a much lighter smoke flavor than most other smokers and this often leaves users wanting a little more.

The RECTEQ smoker uses an algorithm to pulse the fan on and off at lower temperatures in order to produce maximum smoke. In a blind taste test you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference between food that is cooked on a RECTEQ and any other wood or charcoal smoker.

As with most pellet smokers, the lower the heat, the more smoke you get however I have found that I get better smoke with the RECTEQ at any setting between 180 and 250°F than I get on ANY OTHER pellet smoker.

The Smart Phone App

I normally don't mention the app but the one for RECTEQ is especially well made and they just updated a while back so it's even better. More than anything, it's easy to use, large numbers so it's easy to see and the graphing that it does automatically for your cooks is second to none.

You can name your RECTEQ anything you like– mine is “The Bull” and you can monitor and control your “Bull” from a single screen with no need to switch back and forth unless you are doing something a little more technical like adjusting the feed rate.

What I liked about the RECTEQ Bull

In case you can't tell, I really love this pellet smoker. Like most other pellet smokers, when you are cooking on this unit, you are cooking and smoking with 100% real wood and nothing else. It's a wood smoker and I love that!

The smoker looks absolutely awesome especially with all of the stainless steel contrasted with that shiny black lid and the stainless steel emblem, towel hook and bull horns on the front.

• Its ability to hold a perfect temperature. This is a complaint I hear from folks that use pellet smokers, even thought most indoor ovens cycle up and down, they aren't aware of this since it only shows the set temperature. On pellet smokers, they show the actual temperature and it just bothers folks to know that the temperature is not always where it should be. RECTEQ saw this problem and fixed it. Kudos!
• The HUGE pellet hopper! As I mentioned earlier, it holds 40 lbs and if you're cooking at normal temperatures of around 225 °F, that's enough to last you about a day and a half of cooking.
• All of the stainless steel and the horns. Stainless is a good thing to have in a pellet smoker or grill since it doesn't corrode quickly like normal steel. Plus it looks really nice. The horns make great handles and a good conversation starter as well.
• The controller and app and the ability to operate it even when I'm not home. The RECTEQ Bull has bluetooth/wi-fi built in and the app is super easy to use. It's nice being able to control the smoker from wherever I am in the world.
• The Flavor. Ultimately, it's about flavor and this RECTEQ grill puts out some of the best food you've ever tasted due to it's better than average smoke production where pellet grills are concerned.
• The customer service presence is amazing! When I first opened the box, I was immediately met with an envelope that had the contact information for the president and other top people in the company. RECTEQ owners will tell you that this is the case for every grill they ship out and I think that is the first step in great customer service and letting customers feel at ease about their purchase.

What I Didn't Like

There's a few features that I am very used to having on other pellet smokers. A few of these features include:

• External Ash Cleanout. While this is't common, I use the Camp Chef Woodwind a lot as well and I've gotten used to being able to dump the ashes in about 5 seconds. On the RECTEQ as with most other pellet smokers, this requires removing everything from the inside (grates, drip pan, heat deflector, etc.).
• Pellet Dump System. If you want to change out pellets, you have to dip them out with your hand, solo cup, etc. since there is no chute you can open and let them just quickly empty into a bucket. This is not a deal breaker by any means but when you're used to having this, it's disappointing to not have it available.
• Dual level grates. There's plenty of room in the RECTEQ for a 2nd shelf/grate but it's just not there.

Final Thoughts

But even without those missing “nice to have” features, the sheer quality of this smoker, its' ability to hold an absolute precise set temperature and the ability to control it so easily makes it well worth the price in my opinion.

I have used it long enough to be able to trust it and it is quite common for me to load the thing up with pork butts, briskets, etc and go to bed knowing that I don't have to worry about a thing. It's going to hold the temperature I set until the cows come home or it runs out of pellets.

Let me know in the comments below if you have this smoker and what you like or dislike about it. This helps other potential buyers make an informed decision when it comes to their next smoker purchase.

You can learn more and see the latest price at https://smoking-meat.com/bull.