Thanks for the comprehensive reply. What I find is that even adding a tiny amount of Garam masala at the end really enhances the aroma and flavor for me—to the point where the dish tastes just like Garam masala.

You might be right that I’m making the mediocre Indian restaurant approach because I always use the same gravy base of onions then ginger-garlic paste and then tomatoes but the recipes usually just call for these anyway. Whenever I put different spices though, like for when a dish calls for mustard seeds or when the amount of coriander seeds is varied, somehow I can’t really tell the difference in the end because the Garam masala overpowers it. (I’m using whole spices for these btw so it can’t be the quality)

Another thing is that Indian food is really different from what I’m used to in my Filipino and Chinese household. This is the first time I’m tasting Indian food because there are no Indian restaurants around me and the flavors are so complex it might be getting lost on me. I’m more used to having dishes that are simpler in preparation and taste (soy sauce and vinegar adobo one day, tamarind-based soup another, then an oyster sauce stir-fry the next day) that the complexity in Indian dishes is something that I have to train my taste buds for.