Sardine / small fish fry (mathi)

One serving of Sardine / small fish fry (mathi) — 3 small fish (100 g) — comes to 200 kcal, 20 g protein, 3 g carbs and 12 g fat. Scaled to 100 g it works out to 200 kcal and 20 g protein, which makes it dense in protein for a fish & seafood item. That single serving is about 13.3% of a 1,500 kcal day and 10% of a 2,000 kcal day, so it can carry real weight in a protein-focused plan without much extra planning.

Walking off Sardine / small fish fry (mathi) takes roughly 5,000 steps, using the rough approximation of 0.04 kcal burned per step (a population-average estimate for a moderate walking pace, not a personalised number). At ₹25 a serving it costs about ₹25 for every 20 g of protein it delivers, which is a mid-to-high price for protein compared with dal, eggs or soya chunks. It fits a non-vegetarian diet. It works at lunch and dinner. It's a genuinely high-protein choice for its calories and one of the cheaper ways to hit a protein target.

If you want variety without changing the macros much, the closest swaps in the fish & seafood category are Catla fish curry, Fish curry (Kerala/coastal, coconut), Fish tikka (tandoor), Pomfret fry (tawa) — each keeps a similar role on the plate while shifting the exact protein-to-carb balance a little.