For background: I grew up (until about 28) in Australia, then moved to Thailand (a couple of years ago).
1. For pleasure, and because most western food I've found in Thailand is not great. Regardless of the meal it would almost always be cheaper to eat out here.
2. Not so much a meal plan - usually we just look and see what is available/looks good (i.e. imported or less common items are not always available or fresh) at the market/supermarket and then make decisions based based on that.
3. Various pasta sauces are quite common as they're quick and easy (especially if my wife wants Thai food that night and I don't), but anything from roasts to curries (both thai and indian), to things like risotto, pizza, burgers, and various 'meat & veg' using stuff like salmon, steak, etc.
4. Not specifically, I just try to watch what goes into the pan/pot - trim excessive fat/skin from meat, use olive oil when possible, reduce salt/sugar/cream/butter etc when possible.
5. Experiment when you can. For me a recipe is almost never an actual recipe but more like a napkin-sketch outline of the basic ingredients and process. I lived alone for several years which really gave me good opportunities to try things and get a feel for what works and what doesn't. When you are the only person who will end up hungry (if it fails) its so much easier to be brave and try something new - it becomes inspiration to try again until you find something that works. I find I'm much less likely to experiment to the same extent if I'm cooking for my wife. I'll usually get her to try stuff when I do, but its not common I will try something I've never done before if she is expecting to eat what I'm cooking for dinner.
1. For pleasure, and because most western food I've found in Thailand is not great. Regardless of the meal it would almost always be cheaper to eat out here.
2. Not so much a meal plan - usually we just look and see what is available/looks good (i.e. imported or less common items are not always available or fresh) at the market/supermarket and then make decisions based based on that.
3. Various pasta sauces are quite common as they're quick and easy (especially if my wife wants Thai food that night and I don't), but anything from roasts to curries (both thai and indian), to things like risotto, pizza, burgers, and various 'meat & veg' using stuff like salmon, steak, etc.
4. Not specifically, I just try to watch what goes into the pan/pot - trim excessive fat/skin from meat, use olive oil when possible, reduce salt/sugar/cream/butter etc when possible.
5. Experiment when you can. For me a recipe is almost never an actual recipe but more like a napkin-sketch outline of the basic ingredients and process. I lived alone for several years which really gave me good opportunities to try things and get a feel for what works and what doesn't. When you are the only person who will end up hungry (if it fails) its so much easier to be brave and try something new - it becomes inspiration to try again until you find something that works. I find I'm much less likely to experiment to the same extent if I'm cooking for my wife. I'll usually get her to try stuff when I do, but its not common I will try something I've never done before if she is expecting to eat what I'm cooking for dinner.