From The Food Encyclopedia by Jacques Rolland and Carol Sherman
Fermented shredded cabbage in brine, brought to Europe by Genghis Khan in the 12th century, having learned the technique from the Chinese. When he became aware of its nutritive value, Captain James Cook took 25,000 pounds (11,340 kg) of sauerkraut on his second Pacific expedition, losing only one sailor to scurvy in more than 1,000 days, thanks to sauerkraut's high vitamin C content. Because it was pickled, it lasted a year without going bad. Sauerkraut is German for "sour cabbage."
