How I Used AI to Reverse Engineer This Taco Recipe - and WTF Does It Have to do With SaaS Marketing

How I Used AI to Reverse Engineer This Taco Recipe - and WTF Does It Have to do With SaaS Marketing illustration
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Brian HopeAuthor: Brian Hope

Marketing leaders are under pressure to adopt AI fast, yet many teams still struggle to turn hype into practical, revenue-driving workflows. AI is everywhere in marketing, but the real differentiator in 2025 is how well you combine it with human judgment, not how many tools you use.​

Reframing the hook

After spending an entire day obsessing over SaaS strategy, an Instagram photo of birria-style tacos stopped me in my tracks. Instead of doom-scrolling, I opened an AI assistant, uploaded the image, and asked it to help me reverse-engineer a vegetarian version my wife could enjoy.

That tiny decision captures the fork in the road for today’s marketers: AI can either be a novelty you play with on the side, or a disciplined partner you use to turn vague inspiration into concrete, testable output.​

The taco experiment as a metaphor

The process was simple: image in, prompt out, and within minutes I had a full ingredient list and step-by-step method for vegetarian birria tacos with consommé. The tool pulled from existing patterns, suggested mushrooms and beans for texture, and structured the workflow so all I had to do was execute.

In other words, AI didn’t “invent” a new cuisine; it accelerated my path from idea to implementation by surfacing what already works and adapting it to my constraints. That is exactly how modern AI can serve SaaS teams: not as an oracle, but as a force multiplier for pattern recognition, adaptation, and speed.​

Where AI actually moves the needle

For senior marketers, the opportunity is not to “AI-wash” everything, but to deliberately assign AI to the parts of the funnel where it is already proven to perform. For example:​

  • Acceleration, not originality: Use AI to draft variants of messaging, not to define your positioning. Let it generate 20 headline angles, then apply your strategic filter to choose and refine.​
  • Signal extraction at scale: Let AI analyze customer behavior, churn patterns, and win–loss notes so your team can spend time on interpretation and decisions rather than data wrangling.​
  • Hyper-personalization with guardrails: Deploy AI to adapt content, timing, and offers in real time, but anchor it in a clear brand voice and value proposition defined by humans.​

Just as the taco recipe worked because it respected the fundamentals of birria and then adapted them, AI-driven SaaS marketing works best when it starts from a strong strategy and uses AI to scale and tailor, not to improvise blindly.

The non-negotiable human layer

The tacos only became “the best I’ve ever made” when I adjusted seasoning, watched texture, and tasted as I went - none of which the AI could do for me. The assistant gave me a solid starting point, but the quality of the outcome depended on my judgment in context.

In SaaS, that judgment looks like understanding category dynamics, customer politics, and the emotional reality behind “jobs to be done.” AI can surface patterns, but it cannot sit in a board meeting, feel the tension around a risky repositioning, or sense when a story will resonate with a CFO versus a champion in the trenches.​

A forward-looking challenge for marketing leaders

Over the next few years, nearly every serious marketing team will use AI in some capacity; the gap will be between teams that bolt it on and those that redesign their operating model around it. The leaders who win will:​

  • Treat AI as an always-on strategist’s assistant, not a content vending machine.
  • Build playbooks where AI handles pattern-heavy tasks, freeing humans for narrative, creativity, and complex decisions.
  • Continuously experiment, measure, and refine how AI is embedded into planning, execution, and optimization.​

So yes, ask AI to help you reverse engineer tacos - or your onboarding flow, or your pricing page. But the real competitive advantage will come from how you orchestrate these tools around a sharp, human-led point of view. In a market where almost everyone has access to similar AI, the scarce resource is not algorithms; it is the marketers who know how to turn them into distinctive, durable growth.


For those still reading...

Here is the recipe for the best tacos I've ever, ever made!

Ingredients for the Tacos

  • 2 cups mushrooms (shiitake, portobello, or button mushrooms), chopped
  • 1 can black beans (or pinto beans), drained and rinsed
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 bell pepper (optional), diced
  • 1 teaspoon cumin powder
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Corn tortillas
  • Vegetable oil for frying
  • Fresh cilantro (for garnish)
  • Chopped white onion (for garnish)
  • Lime wedges (for serving)

Ingredients for the Consommé

  • 1 large tomato, chopped
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 cups vegetable broth
  • 1 teaspoon cumin powder
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Fresh cilantro (for garnish)

Instructions

  1. Prepare the Mushroom and Bean Filling:
    • In a pan, heat some oil over medium heat. Sauté the onion and garlic until they’re soft and fragrant.
    • Add the diced bell pepper (if using) and chopped mushrooms. Cook until the mushrooms have released their water and start to brown.
    • Add the black beans, cumin, smoked paprika, chili powder, oregano, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine and let it cook for another 5-7 minutes until flavors meld together. Set aside.
  2. Prepare the Consommé:
    • In a pot, add some oil and sauté the chopped onion, garlic, and tomato until softened.
    • Add the vegetable broth, bay leaf, cumin, smoked paprika, chili powder, salt, and pepper.
    • Let the broth simmer for about 15-20 minutes. Strain the broth to make a clear consommé (optional). Garnish with fresh cilantro.
  3. Assemble the Tacos:
    • Heat a skillet over medium-high heat with a little oil. Dip each corn tortilla briefly in the consommé to coat, then place on the skillet.
    • Add a spoonful of the mushroom and bean filling to one side of the tortilla, fold it over, and press gently. Cook until crispy and golden brown on each side.
    • Repeat with the remaining tortillas and filling.
  4. Serve:
    • Serve the tacos with a side of consommé for dipping. Garnish with chopped white onions, fresh cilantro, and lime wedges.

Shopping List

  • Mushrooms (shiitake, portobello, or button)
  • Canned black beans or pinto beans
  • Small onion
  • Garlic
  • Bell pepper (optional)
  • Cumin powder
  • Smoked paprika
  • Chili powder
  • Oregano
  • Salt and pepper
  • Corn tortillas
  • Vegetable oil
  • Fresh cilantro
  • White onion (for garnish)
  • Lime
  • Tomato
  • Vegetable broth
  • Bay leaf

Enjoy and email me a picture of the tacos... I'm interested contact@brianhope.me